African Green Pigeon

Photo by juninho
Ulu, Kenya, July 2005

Treron calva

Treron calvus

Identification

• Grey-green to yellowish-green upperparts
• Yellow thighs
• Mauve patches on the top of the wing
• White-tipped red bill
• Red feet

Variations

Subspecies salvadorii has a larger red cere.

Distribution

Widespread in sub-Saharan Africa
Western Africa: Mauritania, Senegambia, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo, Angola
Eastern Africa: Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Zambia, Mozambique, Malawi
Southern Africa: Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe
South Africa: KwaZulu-Natal, Swaziland
African Islands: Gulf of Guinea Islands, Bioko (Fernando Po), Sao Tome, Principe

Taxonomy

Treron calvus has 17 subspecies:^[1]

• T. c. nudirostris

• Senegal to Gambia and Guinea-Bissau

Photo by Reini
Lamin fields, The Gambia, November 2005

• T. c. sharpei

• Sierra Leone to southern Nigeria and northern Cameroon

• T. c. calvus

• Eastern Nigeria to north-eastern DRC, central Angola and Príncipe.

• T. c. poensis

• Bioko

• T. c. uellensis

• Northern Zaire to southern Sudan and Uganda

• T. c. brevicerus

• South-western Ethiopia to northern Tanzania east of the Rift Valley

• T. c. salvadorii

• Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi to eastern DRC

• T. c. granviki

• Western Kenya and north-western Tanzania

• T. c. wakefieldii

• Coastal Kenya and north-western Tanzania

• T. c. granti

• Lowlands of eastern Tanzania and Zanzibar

• T. c. orientalis

• Southern Tanzania and northern Mozambique

• T. c. schalowi

• Southern DRC and Zambia to Victoria Falls

• T. c. chobiensis

• South-western Zimbabwe and northern Botswana

• T. c. ansorgei

• Western Angola

• T. c. vylderi

• North-western Namibia

• T. c. damarensis

• North-eastern Namibia and north-western Botswana

• T. c. delalandii

• Coastal Kenya to south-eastern South Africa

Habitat

Forests, bushveld, savanna; always associated with fruiting trees, especially figs.

Behaviour

Arboreal.

Diet

The diet includes fruit, particularly figs.

Breeding

The nest is a frail platform of coarse twigs and leaves. 1-2 eggs are laid and incubated for 13 days.

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2014. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.9., with updates to August 2014. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Avibase
3. Africa Bird Guide
4. BF Member observations

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) African Green Pigeon. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 1 June 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/African_Green_Pigeon

External Links

Search for photos of African Green Pigeon in the gallery