Namaqua dove | |
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Adult male at Arusha, Tanzania, and a female at Mapungubwe, South Africa | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Columbiformes |
Family: | Columbidae |
Genus: | Oena Swainson, 1837 |
Species: | O. capensis |
Binomial name | |
Oena capensis (Linnaeus, 1766) | |
Synonyms | |
Columba capensisLinnaeus, 1766 |
The Namaqua dove (Oena capensis) is a small pigeon. It is the only species in the genus Oena. It is found over much of Sub-Saharan Africa as well as Arabia and Madagascar.
The Namaqua dove is the only species in the monotypic genus Oena. It is most closely related to doves in the genus Turtur , and some phylogenetic evidence suggests that Oena may be a part of Turtur. [2]
In 1760 the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the Namaqua dove in his six volume Ornithologie based on a specimen collected near the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. He used the French name La tourterelle du Cap de Bonne Espérance and the Latin Turtur capitis bonae spei. [3] Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature. [4] When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for the twelfth edition, he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. [4] One of these was the Namaqua dove which he placed with the other pigeons in the genus Columba . Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Columba capensis and cited Brisson's work. [5] The specific name capensis denotes the Cape of Good Hope. [6]
The Namaqua dove is placed in its own genus Oena that was introduced by the English naturalist William Swainson in 1837. [7] [8] The genus name is from the Ancient Greek oinas meaning "pigeon". [9] Alternative names for the Namaqua dove include Cape dove and long-tailed dove.
Two subspecies are recognised: [8]
The Namaqua dove is a tiny sparrow-sized pigeon, typically 22 cm in length with a 28–33 cm wingspan, and weighing 40g. It has a very long black tapered tail, and the size and shape have led to comparison with the budgerigar. The plumage is mostly grey apart from a white belly, and chestnut primary feathers which are visible in flight.
The adult male has a yellow and red beak and a black face, throat and breast. The adult female lacks the black and has a red-based grey bill. Young birds are dark blotched on the wings and shoulders, and otherwise resemble the females.
The song is a quiet, short, double hoo, higher on the longer second note kuh-whooo, mournful and frequently repeated.
The dove is a widespread resident breeding bird in Sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar with its range extending into the Arabian Peninsula southern Israel and Jordan. It is found in near desert with acacia and bushes. The namaqua dove is prone to wander out its original range, it is now being recorded south Asian countries. In Pakistan this species is recorded near shore waters off Paradise Point, Karachi on Friday, 14 October 2016. In India, the species has been observed multiple times near Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary. [10]
The dove is quite terrestrial, and usually forages on open ground and roadsides. The food is almost exclusively minute seeds, such as those of grasses, sedges and weeds. It is not gregarious, being encountered singly or in pairs, though they may form larger flocks at waterholes. The flight is fast with clipped beats and a tendency to stay low.
It builds a stick nest in a bush.
It lays two white eggs, which are incubated for 16 days in typical pigeon fashion; the female at night and early morning and the male from mid morning till late afternoon.
Turtur is a small genus of doves native to Sub-Saharan Africa. Species in this genus are known as wood doves.
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The double-spurred spurfowl is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds. Like most spurfowls, it is restricted to Africa. It is a resident breeder in tropical west Africa, but there is a small and declining isolated population in Morocco.
The stork-billed kingfisher, is a tree kingfisher which is widely but sparsely distributed in the tropical Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India to Indonesia. This kingfisher is resident throughout its range.
The African grey hornbill is a member of the hornbill family of mainly tropical near-passerine birds found in the Old World. It is a widespread resident breeder in much of sub-Saharan Africa and the southwest of the Arabian Peninsula. The African grey hornbill has escaped or been deliberately released into Florida, USA, but there is no evidence that the population is breeding and may only persist due to continuing releases or escapes.
The laughing dove is a small pigeon that is a resident breeder in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Western Australia where it has established itself in the wild after being released from Perth Zoo in 1898. This small long-tailed dove is found in dry scrub and semi-desert habitats where pairs can often be seen feeding on the ground. It is closely related to the spotted dove which is distinguished by a white and black chequered necklace. Other names include laughing turtle dove, palm dove and Senegal dove while in Asia the name little brown dove is often used.
The vinaceous dove is a bird species in the pigeon family Columbidae that widely resident across the Sahel and Sudan (region).
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The olive bee-eater or Madagascar bee-eater is a near passerine bee-eater species in the genus Merops. It is native to the southern half of Africa where it is present in Angola; Botswana; Burundi; Comoros; Democratic Republic of the Congo; Djibouti; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Kenya; Madagascar; Malawi; Mayotte; Mozambique; Namibia; Rwanda; Somalia; South Sudan; Sudan; Tanzania; Uganda; Zambia; Zimbabwe. It is a common species with a wide range so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated their conservation status as "least concern".
The Cape longclaw or orange-throated longclaw is a passerine bird in the family Motacillidae, which comprises the longclaws, pipits and wagtails. It occurs in Southern Africa in Zimbabwe and southern and eastern South Africa. This species is found in coastal and mountain grassland, often near water.
The Amboyna cuckoo-dove is a dove in the genus Macropygia found in the Moluccas and New Guinea. It was one of three new species defined when the slender-billed cuckoo-dove was split up in 2016 and retains the Latin binomial of the former species.[1]
The yellow bishop, also known as Cape bishop, Cape widow or yellow-rumped widow, is a resident breeding Afromontane bird species.
The Cape bulbul is a member of the bulbul family of passerine birds. It is an endemic resident breeder in coastal bush, open forest, gardens and fynbos in western and southern South Africa. This species nests mainly in the southern spring from September to November. The nest is a thick-walled cup concealed by foliage in a small tree or shrub.
The plain-breasted ground dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It lacks the scaled appearance to the feathers of the similar and typically more abundant common ground dove.
The claret-breasted fruit dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found in the Moluccas, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands archipelago. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.
The Madagascar green pigeon or Madagascan green pigeon is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found in Madagascar, Comoros, and Mayotte. The taxon griveaudi, by most authorities considered a subspecies of the Madagascan green pigeon, is sometimes considered a separate species, the Comoros green pigeon. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.
The blue-spotted wood dove or blue-spotted dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is abundantly present throughout Africa south of the Sahel; it is partially present in East Africa and absent in southern Africa.
The Malagasy paradise flycatcher is a species of bird in the family Monarchidae. It is found in Comoros, Madagascar, and Mayotte. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.
The hook-billed vanga is a species of bird in the family Vangidae. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, and subtropical or tropical moist montane forest.
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