Namaqua Dove - BirdForum Opus

Male, Subspecies capensis
Photo © by AJDH
Damman, Saudi Arabia

Oena capensis

Identification

Female
Photo © by volker sthamer
Awash, Ethiopia, February 2017

28 cm (11 in)

Black forehead, face, throat and front of breast, with narrow greyish-white edging
Bluish-grey neck sides, remained of head, breast and wing-coverts
White belly
Chestnut primaries
Long black tapered tail
Yellow and red bill

Female lacks the black and has a red-based grey bill
Young birds are similar to the female, but have dark blotches on the wings and shoulders.

Distribution

Sub-saharan Africa (with Madagascar), Socotra and the Arabian Peninsula.

Taxonomy

It is the only species in the genus Oena.

Subspecies

Juvenile, Subspecies capensis
Photo © by AJDH
Badaan Farm, Bahrain

There are 2 subspecies^[1]:

O. c. capensis:

Africa south of the Sahara, Socotra and Arabia

O. c. aliena:

Madagascar

Habitat

Dry deciduous forest, brushland, scrub, semi desert and desert, savanna. Farm land, palm orchards, open woodland. Reed beds and brackish water.

Behaviour

Breeding

They construct a stick nest in a bush. The clutch consists of 2 white eggs, which are incubated by the female for 16 days.

Diet

Their diet includes mainly small grass and herb seeds.

Gallery

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References

Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2017. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2017, with updates to August 2017. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2017)
BF Member observations
Wikipedia

List of references

Recommended Citation

BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Namaqua Dove. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 28 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Namaqua_Dove

External Links

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