- Ptilinopus superbus
Identification
21-24 cm (8¼-9½ in)
Male
- Purple crown
- Orange hindneck
- Bluish-black breastband separating the grey upper breast from white underparts
- Remainder of body is green
- Green tail with grey tips
- Yellow eyes and eyerings
Female
- Green overall plumage
- Grey breast and white underparts
- Smallish purple patch on crown.
Young birds resemble females but lack the purple crown patch.
Distribution
Australia, north-eastern Queensland to north-eastern New South Wales, New Guinea, Solomon Islands, the Philippines and Sulawesi.
Taxonomy
Subspecies
There are 2 subspecies[1]:
- P. s. temminckii:
Sulawesi and Sula Islands
- P. s. superbus:
- Moluccas to Bismarck Archipelago, Solomon Islands and north-eastern Australia
Habitat
They can be found in a variety of forest types, including mangroves and forest edges and more open areas with scattered trees.
Behaviour
Arboreal.
Diet
Their diet consists of fruit, particularly figs, and berries.
Breeding
The nest is a flimsy platform of twigs built in bushy trees from 5-30 m above the ground. The female incubates the eggs at night while the male incubates by day.
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/
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Superb Fruit Dove. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 15 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Superb_Fruit_Dove
