Gray-fronted Dove - BirdForum Opus

Photo by Dave B Smith
Asa Wright, Trinidad, February, 2008

Leptotila rufaxilla

Identification

28 cm
Notice that this species shows variation between subspecies: warm brown upperside and pale underside with crown similar to breast in color. Red color of bare skin around eyes (orbital). Red legs, dark bill.

Similar Species

White-tipped Dove is the biggest problem in most of the range, for comparison see^[2].

Distribution

Central America, Caribbean, South America:
Central America: found in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama
Caribbean: Lesser Antilles, Windward Islands and Trinidad
South America: occurs throughout most of the area in Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are 6 subspecies^[1]:

• L. r. pallidipectus:

• Tropical eastern Colombia and adjacent western Venezuela

• L. r. dubusi:

• South-eastern Colombia and eastern Ecuador to tepuis of Venezuela and Brazil

• L. r. rufaxilla:

• Venezuela to Guianas and northern Brazil (R. Madeira to northern Maranhão)

• L. r. hellmayri:

• North-eastern Venezuela (Paría Peninsula) and Trinidad

• L. r. bahiae:

• Central Brazil (southern Mato Grosso to Bahia)

• L. r. reichenbachii:

• Mato Grosso to Espírito Santo, Paraguay and north-eastern Argentina

Habitat

Forest edges.

Behaviour

Diet

A ground feeder. Little is known about their diet, but eats seeds and probably insects too.

Vocalisation

Recording by Andrew Whitehouse

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, B.L. Sullivan, C. L. Wood, and D. Roberson. 2013. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: Version 6.8., with updates to August 2013. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Birdforum thread discussing id of this species compared to White-tipped Dove
3. Avibase
4. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2014)

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Gray-fronted Dove. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Gray-fronted_Dove

External Links

Search for photos of Gray-fronted Dove in the gallery