Victoria Crowned Pigeon

- May 14, 2020

Detail about Victoria Crowned Pigeon:

Victoria Crowned Pigeon are the largest pigeon species in the world. They are easily recognized by the lacy crest of feathers on top of their heads which gives them their common name. They are steely blue-grey in color with deep maroon on their front and striking red eyes. Male and female victoria crowned pigeons from stable pairs, usually for life. The males have Courtship behaviours that involves bowing of their head and moving their tail. The female incubate the egg for around 30 days. The juveniles leave the nest at four weeks old but the parents continue to feed them for another nine weeks.

Description:

The Victoria crowned pigeon is a deep blue-grey color with a small, black mask. Its feather crest (the signature feature of crowned pigeons other than their size) is conspicuously white-tipped. On the wing coverts is a row of feathers that are a paler blue-gray with maroon tips. These form a distinct wing bar. The chest is a deep purple-maroon color. As in all crowned pigeons, melanism has been observed. The other two crowned pigeons are somewhat superficially similar, but only the western crowned pigeon overlaps in range with the Victoria species. The Scheepmaker's crowned pigeon does not. In the western species, the crown is more scraggly and hair-like, the chest is a uniform blue-gray and not maroon, and a less distinct wing-bar is present. Both sexes are similar.

This species is typically 73 to 75 cm (29 to 30 in) long. Some specimens may exceed a length of 80 cm (31 in) and a weight of 3.5 kg (7.7 lb). It is marginally larger than the two other crowned pigeons on average, thus is considered the largest surviving species of pigeon of Earth. The standard measurements among pigeons on mainland New Guinea are: the wing chord is 36–39 cm (14–15 in), the tail is 27–30.1 cm (10.6–11.9 in), the bill is 3.2–3.5 cm (1.3–1.4 in) and the unfeathered tarsus is 8.5–9.8 cm (3.3–3.9 in).

Like other crowned pigeons, this species makes a loud clapping sound when it takes flight. The mating calls of this species are also similar to the other two species of crowned pigeons, consisting of a deep hoota-hoota-hoota-hoota-hoota sound. When defending their territories, these birds make a resounding whup-up, whup-up, whup-up call. Their contact call is a deep, muffled, and rather human-like ummm or hmmm.

The two subspecies of the Victoria crowned pigeon are G. v. beccarii found on the mainland of New Guinea and G. v. victoria, the nominate race, found on the islands of Yapen, Biak and Supiori. The nominate subspecies is markedly smaller, with a wing chord measurement of 31.6–33.2 cm (12.4–13.1 in), with less robust legs and feet and darker overall plumage. The nominate has a sparser crest with black on the wing coverts and right above the tail.

Habitat:

The Victoria crowned pigeon is distributed in the lowland and swamp forests of northern New Guinea and surrounding islands. It usually occurs on areas that were former alluvial plains, including sago forests. Though typically found at or near sea level, occasionally birds of this species may venture up in the hills to an elevation up to about 3,000 feet. They fly from sea to tree every day.

Reproduction:

Breeding peaks late in wet season and in the dry season. When the male displays for the female, he lowers his head down, stretches forward, and then rhythmically swings his head up and down while simultaneously wagging his fanned tail. Although the female does most direct brooding, both parents help raise the young. The female usually lays a single white egg in a well-built tree nest of stems, sticks, and palm leaves. In the weeks before she lays the egg, the male brings nesting material to the female. The egg is incubated around 30 days. The young leave the nest when they are still much smaller than their parents, but are actively tended to for a total of 13 weeks.

Victoria Crowned Pigeon Video: