Tambourine dove

Last updated

Tambourine dove
2007 08 05 Tambourine Dove.jpg
Tambourine Dove - Kakamega Kenya (16056799118), crop.jpg
A male bird in South Africa (above), and a female in Kenya (below)
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Columbiformes
Family: Columbidae
Genus: Turtur
Species:
T. tympanistria
Binomial name
Turtur tympanistria
(Temminck, 1809)

The tambourine dove (Turtur tympanistria) is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in woodlands and other thick vegetation in Africa south of the Sahara Desert. Its range extends from Senegal east to Ethiopia and Kenya and southwards through eastern Africa to south-eastern South Africa, but it is absent from the drier areas of south-western Africa. There is a population on the Comoros Islands.

This is very much a species of thick woodlands, including dense gardens and plantations of castor oil, cocoa and rubber. As such, this shy species is usually seen when flushed whilst feeding on the forest floor. The tambourine dove builds a frail stick nest low in a thicket or vine tangle, and lays two cream-coloured eggs. Both sexes incubate, although this task is performed mainly by the female, and the eggs hatch in 13 days with another 13–14 days to fledging. The chicks are fed regurgitated food.

The tambourine dove is a small plump pigeon, typically 22 cm in length. The male has a white face with a black spot behind the eye, white underparts and a grey crown. Its back, hind neck, wings and tail are pale grey brown, and the folded wings have large dark purple patches. The under tail is brown. The eye ring and feet are purple-red, and the bill is purple.

The female is duller, and is white only on the belly, the face and breast being a pale grey-brown. The crown is grey-brown, without the blue-grey of the male. The juvenile resembles the female but has chestnut fringes to the feathers of the back, breast and flanks. Even in these plumages, this species is paler below than other small African doves.

The tambourine dove's flight is fast and agile, and it tends to stay quite low when flushed. In flight it shows chestnut primary flight feathers and under wings.

The call of this bird is a persistently repeated du-du-du-du-du.

Tambourine dove is usually solitary, but is sometimes seen in family groups or with lemon doves. It is quite terrestrial, and usually forages on the ground for seeds and small fruits. It has a preference for seeds of the castor oil plant. [2] It will on occasion eat small insects and molluscs.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-eyed dove</span> Species of bird

The red-eyed dove is a dove that is widespread and common in Sub-Saharan Africa. It has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List since 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mourning collared dove</span> Species of bird

The mourning collared dove or African mourning dove is a dove which is a widespread resident breeding bird in Africa south of the Sahara. Despite its name, it is not related to the North American mourning dove. This species is common or abundant near water. They often mingle peacefully with other doves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-billed wood dove</span> Species of bird

The black-billed wood dove is a pigeon which is a widespread resident breeding bird in a belt across Africa just south of the Sahara Desert.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trocaz pigeon</span> Species of bird

The trocaz pigeon, Madeira laurel pigeon or long-toed pigeon is a pigeon which is endemic to the island of Madeira, Portugal. It is a mainly grey bird with a pinkish breast; its silvery neck patch and lack of white wing markings distinguish it from its close relative and probable ancestor, the common wood pigeon. Its call is a characteristic six-note cooing, weaker and lower-pitched than that of the wood pigeon. Despite its bulky, long-tailed appearance, this pigeon has a fast, direct flight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Namaqua dove</span> Species of bird

The Namaqua dove 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue ground dove</span> Species of bird

The blue ground dove is a small New World tropical dove. It is a resident breeder from southeastern Mexico to northwestern Peru and northern Argentina, and on Trinidad in the Caribbean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emerald-spotted wood dove</span> Species of bird

The emerald-spotted wood dove is a bird of the family Columbidae, resident across eastern and southern Africa. It is a species of open drier deciduous woodland and second growth. It is absent from evergreen rainforests and semidesert areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snow pigeon</span> Species of bird native to central Asia

The snow pigeon is a species of bird in the genus Columba in the family Columbidae from hilly regions of central Asia. They are grey, black, pale brown and white birds and two subspecies are recognised: C. l. leuconota occurs in the western Himalayas from western Afghanistan to Sikkim and C. l. gradaria occurs in the mountains of eastern Tibet and from eastern Nan Shan (Qinghai) to Yunnan and extreme northern Myanmar. The birds forage in open country in pairs or small groups, feeding on grain, buds, shoots, berries and seeds. They roost at night on cliffs, breeding in crevices where they build untidy stick nests and lay a clutch of usually two white eggs. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated the bird's conservation status as being of least concern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pale mountain pigeon</span> Species of bird in the Solomon Islands

The pale mountain pigeon is a species of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. It is endemic to the Solomon Islands archipelago, where it inhabits old-growth and secondary montane forest. It is a medium-size pigeon with an average length of 38 cm (15 in) and a weight of 310–385 g (10.9–13.6 oz). The head and neck are whitish-grey, the belly and lower breast are buffy-pink, and the vent and undertail coverts are pale grey. The upperparts are smoky-grey with darker fringes on the mantle and wing coverts. Both sexes look similar, but there can be large variation in individual appearance.

References

  1. ↑ BirdLife International (2016). "Turtur tympanistria". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22690635A93280996. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22690635A93280996.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ↑ Mokotjomela, T.M.; Downs, C.T.; Esler, K.; Knight, J. (July 2016). "Seed dispersal effectiveness: A comparison of four bird species feeding on seeds of invasive Acacia cyclops in South Africa". South African Journal of Botany. 105: 259–263. doi: 10.1016/j.sajb.2016.04.005 . ISSN   0254-6299.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.