Alternative name: Shining Imperial Pigeon
- Ducula chalconota
Identification
37-39 cm.
- Dark blue-grey head and neck
- Pinkish brown throat, shading to dark chestnut on belly and flanks
- Pale chestnut on undertail-coverts
- Shining bronzy green or emerald green upperparts with purplish red iridescence on mantle, back and rump
- Bluish black tail with dark grey terminal band
- Dark red eye
- smaragdina slightly larger with greener upperparts and largely lacking reddish purple iridescence on mantle, back and rump
Sexes similar, female often with less reddish iridescence. Juveniles similar but duller.
Distribution
Mountains of New Guinea.
Reported to be uncommon to rare in its remote habitat.
Taxonomy
Two subspecies recognized:
- D. c. chalconota (Purple-rumped Imperial Pigeon) in the Vogelkop Mountains (northwest New Guinea)
- D. c. smaragdina (Green-rumped Imperial Pigeon) in the montane forests of New Guinea (except Vogelkop)
Sometimes placed in a species-group with Purple-tailed Imperial Pigeon, Cinnamon-bellied Imperial Pigeon and Finsch's Imperial Pigeon.
Habitat
Moist montanes.
Occurs at 1400 to 2500 m, occasionally lower.
Behaviour
Diet
Feeds on figs and large fruits.
Forages in middle and upper levels of forest, usually in pairs or solitary.
Breeding
Not much information. Birds in breeding condition were collected in February and March.
Movements
No information.
References
- 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/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved April 2015)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Rufescent Imperial Pigeon. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 3 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Rufescent_Imperial_Pigeon
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.
