- Patagioenas squamosa
Formerly known as Red-necked Pigeon
Identification
The body of this bird is almost entirely slate-gray with breast, neck, and head reddish. The sides and back of the neck is covered in a scaly pattern, giving the bird its name. The eye is yellow, surrounded by a red eye-ring and a bare area that is ligth red. The bill is two-colored, red inner and yellow distally while legs are red.
Distribution
Widespread resident in the West Indies and on islands off Venezuela, status varying with hunting intensity. Accidental vagrant to Florida (with 2 old records).
Taxonomy
Scaly-naped Pigeon is monotypic. It has previously been placed in genus Columba.
Habitat
Habitat is forests, often montane, but in some islands also occur in villages (from Raffaele et al.). Where it occupies the same island as White-crowned Pigeon, they tend to segregate so that the White-crowned are in wetter areas including mangrove, while Scaly-naped is in the dryer areas.
Behaviour
The voice is somewhat variable, three-four syllables, but often includes a down-slurred element.
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
