The Somali pigeon (''Columba oliviae'') or Somali stock dove is a species of bird in the family

Columbidae Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

. Because there has hardly been any research on the species, the health of the population is uncertain; however, it is believed that the species is relatively rare. The

IUCN Redlist The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biologi ...

identified a possible threat to the species from the

speckled pigeon The speckled pigeon (''Columba guinea''), or (African) rock pigeon, is a pigeon that is a resident breeding bird in much of Africa south of the Sahara. It is a common and widespread species in open habitats over much of its range, although there ...

(''Columba guinea''). ''C. oliviae'' is found mostly on the ground, where it often forages, most frequently in rock along arid coasts.

Taxonomy

The Somali pigeon is placed in the ''Oenas'' sub-group within the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

Columba Columba or Colmcille; gd, Calum Cille; gv, Colum Keeilley; non, Kolban or at least partly reinterpreted as (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is toda ...

'' alongside the

stock dove The stock dove (''Columba oenas'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae, the doves and pigeons. It is widely distributed in the western Palearctic. Taxonomy The stock dove was first formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Li ...

and

yellow-eyed pigeon The yellow-eyed pigeon or pale-backed pigeon (''Columba eversmanni'') is a member of the family Columbidae (doves and pigeons). It breeds in southern Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, north-east Iran and ...

, based on their similar mauve heads and wing markings, but believed to be more closely related to the latter overall.

Description

''C. oliviae'' is a mid-sized pigeon with pale grey coloration, a mauve cap, yellow eyes and an iridescent collar with bronze-green tones. It has a bluish-gray rump, dark wing edges and dark bands along its tail; all of these features are most clearly seen in flight. Its range overlaps with that of the much darker and more densely spotted speckled pigeon, which is rapidly expanding into the Somali pigeon's territory. Unlike various species of collared doves with which its range overlaps, it lacks a characteristic dark band on the hind-neck. It may also be confused with

feral pigeons Feral pigeons (''Columba livia domestica'' or ''Columba livia forma urbana''), also called city doves, city pigeons, or street pigeons,Nagy, Kelsi, and Johnson, Phillip David. ''Trash animals: how we live with natures filthy, feral, invasive, an ...

(''C. livia''), but the Somali pigeon is smaller and less dark than ''C. livia''.

Vocalizations

As with many other aspects of the species, the Somali pigeon's vocalizations are not well known, but have described as a "''wuk-wuk-wuk-ooooh''". It also produces other pigeon-like noises, including cooing sounds.

Distribution and habitat

The exact distribution is unclear, but its range encompasses much of northeast Somalia, especially along the coast, including both the country proper and the unrecognized state of

Somaliland Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...

. It is non-migratory. It is a mostly ground-dwelling bird, found in arid, coastal environments, especially on cliffs and hills, usually found in areas with little vegetation. It is typically seen at altitudes of to , but has been recorded as high as .

Behavior and ecology

The Somali pigeon's range overlaps with that of other doves, including the speckled pigeon. While uncommon, it can be found in pairs or small flocks. It is often seen feeding on the ground, consuming

seeds A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosperm pl ...

, cultivated

grains A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legume ...

and

berries A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...

Status and conservation

The exact population is unknown, but the bird is believed to be rare but with a stable population overall. However, there are no laws in effect to protect it and it is considered urgently in need of some type of population survey. It may also be experiencing competition from the rapidly expanding speckled pigeon, although further study is still needed to be certain. Plans to organize research on the species have been made. As of February 2022, on

eBird eBird is an online database of bird observations providing scientists, researchers and amateur naturalists with real-time data about bird distribution and abundance. Originally restricted to sightings from the Western Hemisphere, the project e ...

, a site that collects bird population data based on user-provided information, only six observations of the Somali pigeon have been made in over four hundred thousand checklists submitted throughout the

African continent Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

(and over sixty million worldwide).

Relationship with humans

The bird is featured on the one shilling coin's

obverse Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''o ...

of the internationally unrecognized East African republic of Somaliland's official currency.

References

External links

Species profile on eBird
(includes images) {{Taxonbar, from=Q524321

Somali pigeon The Somali pigeon (''Columba oliviae'') or Somali stock dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to Somalia. Because there has hardly been any research on the species, the health of the population is uncertain; however, i ...

Endemic birds of Somalia

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Somali montane xeric woodlands