- Patagioenas subvinacea
Identification
28 cm. Wine-purple in colour, becoming more rufous on the back. dark brown tail and primary flight feathers, black bill, and the legs are purple-red. Iris typically reddish. Amazonian populations sometimes with yellowish irides, but always appear dark from any distance due to their relatively distinct red eye-ring. The female is slightly duller and browner than the male, and the juvenile bird has a greyish brown head, neck and breast, with cinnamon or rufous scaling on the head and upperparts.
Distribution
Costa Rica through Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and central Brazil and also Venezuela and the Guianas.
Taxonomy
Eight subspecies recognized:
- P. s. subvinacea:
- Subtropical Costa Rica and Panama
- P. s. berlepschi:
- P. s. ruberrima:
- Northwestern Colombia (Sinú Valley)
- P. s. zuliae:
- P. s. peninsularis:
- Northeast Venezuela (Paría Peninsula)
- P. s. ogilviegranti:
- P. s. purpureotincta:
- P. s. recondita:
- Central Amazonian Brazil, south of the Amazon
The subspecies bogotensis of Plumbeous Pigeon was formerly also placed in this species.
Ruddy Pigeon was in the past placed in genus Columba.
Habitat
Forests and semi-open woodland. In Central America in highlands2 (where the similar Short-billed Pigeon is found in lowlands); in South America mostly in lowlands3.
Behaviour
It builds a platform nest out of twigs 5 m high in a small tree, and lays 1 white egg.
The diet includes mistletoe, fruits and berries.
References
- Clements, James F. 2007. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2007. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801445019
- Ridgely & Gwynne 1989. Birds of Panama. Princeton Paperbacks. ISBN 0691025126
- Restall et al. 2006. Birds of Northern South America. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300124156
