family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
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
cere
The beak, bill, or rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for eating, preening, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food ...
s. They primarily feed on seeds, fruits, and plants. The family occurs worldwide, but the greatest variety is in the
Indomalayan
The Indomalayan realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia.
Also called the Oriental realm by biogeographers, Indomalaya spreads all over the Indi ...
and
Australasian realm
The Australasian realm is a biogeographic realm that is coincident with, but not (by some definitions) the same as, the geographical region of Australasia. The realm includes Australia, the island of New Guinea (comprising Papua New Guinea and th ...
s.
The family contains 344
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
divided into 50 genera. Thirteen of the species are extinct.
In English, the smaller species tend to be called "doves" and the larger ones "pigeons". However, the distinction is not consistent, and does not exist in most other languages. Historically, the common names for these birds involve a great deal of variation between the terms. The bird most commonly referred to as just "pigeon" is the
domestic pigeon
The domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domestica'' or ''Columba livia'' ''forma'' ''domestica'') is a pigeon subspecies that was derived from the rock dove (also called the rock pigeon). The rock pigeon is the world's oldest domesticated bird. M ...
, which is common in many cities as the
feral pigeon
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 ...
.
Doves and pigeons build relatively flimsy nests, often using sticks and other debris, which may be placed on branches of trees, on ledges, or on the ground, depending on species. They lay one or (usually) two white eggs at a time, and both parents care for the young, which leave the nest after 25–32 days. Unfledged baby doves and pigeons are called squabs and are generally able to fly by 5 weeks of age. These fledglings, with their immature squeaking voices, are called squeakers once they are weaned or
weaning
Weaning is the process of gradually introducing an infant human or another mammal to what will be its adult diet while withdrawing the supply of its mother's milk.
The process takes place only in mammals, as only mammals produce milk. The infan ...
. Unlike most birds, both sexes of doves and pigeons produce "
crop milk
Crop milk is a secretion from the lining of the crop of parent birds that is regurgitated to young birds. It is found among all pigeons and doves where it is referred to as pigeon milk. An analog to crop milk is also secreted from the esopha ...
" to feed to their young, secreted by a sloughing of fluid-filled cells from the lining of the
crop
A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydropon ...
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
, for a "peeping" chick, while ''dove'' is an ultimately Germanic word that refers to the bird's diving flight. The English dialectal word appears to derive from Latin . A group of doves is called a "dule", taken from the French word ('mourning').
Origin and evolution
Columbiformes is one of the most diverse non-
passerine
A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped'), which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines are distinguished from other orders of birds by th ...
neoavian
Neoaves is a clade that consists of all modern birds (Neornithes or Aves) with the exception of Paleognathae (ratites and kin) and Galloanserae (ducks, chickens and kin). Almost 95% of the roughly 10,000 known species of extant birds belong to t ...
s, and its origins are in the
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...
and the result of a rapid diversification at the end of the K-Pg boundary. Whole genome analyses have found the columbiformes form a sister clade of a group conformed by the sandgrouses (
Pterocliformes
Sandgrouse is the common name for Pteroclidae , a family (biology), family of sixteen species of bird, members of the order Pterocliformes . They are traditionally placed in two Genus, genera. The two central Asian species are classified as ''Sy ...
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
was introduced by the English zoologist
William Elford Leach
William Elford Leach FRS (2 February 1791 – 25 August 1836) was an English zoologist and marine biologist.
Life and work
Elford Leach was born at Hoe Gate, Plymouth, the son of an attorney. At the age of twelve he began a medical appre ...
in a guide to the contents of the
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
published in 1820. Columbidae is the only living family in the order
Columbiformes
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 ...
. The
sandgrouse
Sandgrouse is the common name for Pteroclidae , a family of sixteen species of bird, members of the order Pterocliformes . They are traditionally placed in two genera. The two central Asian species are classified as '' Syrrhaptes'' and the othe ...
(Pteroclidae) were formerly placed here, but were moved to a separate order,
Pterocliformes
Sandgrouse is the common name for Pteroclidae , a family (biology), family of sixteen species of bird, members of the order Pterocliformes . They are traditionally placed in two Genus, genera. The two central Asian species are classified as ''Sy ...
, based on anatomical differences (such as the inability to drink by "sucking" or "pumping").
The Columbidae are usually divided into five subfamilies, probably inaccurately. For example, the American ground and quail doves (''
Geotrygon
''Geotrygon'' is a bird genus in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). Its members are called quail-doves, and all live in the Neotropics. The species of this genus have ranges from southern Mexico and Central America to the West Indies and So ...
''), which are usually placed in the
Columbinae
Columbinae is a subfamily of birds from the family Columbidae. Otherwise, four genera '' Geotrygon'', ''Leptotila'', ''Starnoenas'' and '' Zenaida'' form subfamily Leptotilinae.
Genera
*''Caloenas''
*'' Chalcophaps''
*'' Claravis''
*''Columba'' ...
, seem to be two distinct subfamilies. The order presented here follows Baptista etal. (1997), with some updates.Supplementary information /ref>
The arrangement of genera and naming of subfamilies is in some cases provisional because analyses of different DNA sequences yield results that differ, often radically, in the placement of certain (mainly Indo-Australian) genera. This ambiguity, probably caused by
long branch attraction
In phylogenetics, long branch attraction (LBA) is a form of systematic error whereby distantly related lineages are incorrectly inferred to be closely related. LBA arises when the amount of molecular or morphological change accumulated within a lin ...
, seems to confirm the first pigeons evolved in the
Australasian region
The Australasian realm is a biogeographic realm that is coincident with, but not (by some definitions) the same as, the geographical region of Australasia. The realm includes Australia, the island of New Guinea (comprising Papua New Guinea and th ...
, and that the " Treronidae" and allied forms (crowned and
pheasant pigeon
The pheasant pigeon (''Otidiphaps nobilis'') is a species of large terrestrial pigeon. It is the only species of the monotypic genus ''Otidiphaps''. The pheasant pigeon is found in the primary rainforests of New Guinea and nearby islands. It rang ...
s, for example) represent the earliest radiation of the group.
The family Columbidae previously also contained the family Raphidae, consisting of the extinct
Rodrigues solitaire
The Rodrigues solitaire (''Pezophaps solitaria'') is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Rodrigues, east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Genetically within the family of pigeons and doves, it was most closely relate ...
and the
dodo
The dodo (''Raphus cucullatus'') is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The dodo's closest genetic relative was the also-extinct Rodrigues solitaire. The ...
. These species are in all likelihood part of the Indo-Australian radiation that produced the three small subfamilies mentioned above, with the
fruit dove
The fruit doves, also known as fruit pigeons, are a genus (''Ptilinopus'') of birds in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). These colourful, frugivorous doves are found in forests and woodlands in Southeast Asia and Oceania. It is a large gen ...
s and pigeons (including the
Nicobar pigeon
The Nicobar pigeon (''Caloenas nicobarica'', Car: ') is a bird found on small islands and in coastal regions from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, east through the Malay Archipelago, to the Solomons and Palau. It is the only living membe ...
). Therefore, they are here included as a subfamily
Raphinae
The Raphinae are a clade of extinct flightless birds formerly called didines or didine birds. They inhabited the Mascarene Islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, but became extinct through hunting by humans and predation by introduced non-native ...
, pending better material evidence of their exact relationships.
Exacerbating these issues, columbids are not well represented in the
fossil record
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
. No truly primitive forms have been found to date. The genus ''Gerandia'' has been described from
Early Miocene
The Early Miocene (also known as Lower Miocene) is a sub-epoch of the Miocene epoch (geology), Epoch made up of two faunal stage, stages: the Aquitanian age, Aquitanian and Burdigalian stages.
The sub-epoch lasted from 23.03 ± 0.05 annum, Ma to ...
deposits in France, but while it was long believed to be a pigeon, it is now considered a
sandgrouse
Sandgrouse is the common name for Pteroclidae , a family of sixteen species of bird, members of the order Pterocliformes . They are traditionally placed in two genera. The two central Asian species are classified as '' Syrrhaptes'' and the othe ...
. Fragmentary remains of a probably " ptilinopine" Early Miocene pigeon were found in the Bannockburn Formation of New Zealand and described as ''
Rupephaps
''Rupephaps taketake'', also referred to as the Saint Bathans pigeon, is an extinct species of pigeon from the Miocene of New Zealand. It is the first species of columbid to be described from pre- Pliocene fossil deposits in the Australasian re ...
''; ''"Columbina" prattae'' from roughly contemporary deposits of
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
is nowadays tentatively separated in ''
Arenicolumba
'' Arenicolumba prattae '' is an extinct species of small pigeon from the Miocene of Florida. It was described from fossil material ( a left coracoid) collected at the Thomas Farm Site in Gilchrist County, northern Florida, south-eastern Unit ...
'', but its distinction from ''
Columbina
Columbina (in Italian Colombina, meaning "little dove"; in French and English Colombine) is a stock character in the ''commedia dell'arte''. She is Harlequin's mistress, a comic servant playing the tricky slave type, and wife of Pierrot. Rudli ...
/Scardafella'' and related genera needs to be more firmly established (e.g. by
cladistic
Cladistics (; ) is an approach to biological classification in which organisms are categorized in groups ("clades") based on hypotheses of most recent common ancestry. The evidence for hypothesized relationships is typically shared derived char ...
analysis). Apart from that, all other fossils belong to extant genera.
List of genera
Fossil species of uncertain placement:
* Genus †''
Arenicolumba
'' Arenicolumba prattae '' is an extinct species of small pigeon from the Miocene of Florida. It was described from fossil material ( a left coracoid) collected at the Thomas Farm Site in Gilchrist County, northern Florida, south-eastern Unit ...
'' Steadman, 2008
* Genus †''
Rupephaps
''Rupephaps taketake'', also referred to as the Saint Bathans pigeon, is an extinct species of pigeon from the Miocene of New Zealand. It is the first species of columbid to be described from pre- Pliocene fossil deposits in the Australasian re ...
'' Worthy, Hand, Worthy, Tennyson, & Scofield, 2009 (St. Bathans pigeon, Miocene of New Zealand)
Subfamily Columbinae (typical pigeons and doves)
* Tribe Zenaidini eptotilinae(quail-doves and allies)
** Genus ''
Geotrygon
''Geotrygon'' is a bird genus in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). Its members are called quail-doves, and all live in the Neotropics. The species of this genus have ranges from southern Mexico and Central America to the West Indies and So ...
blue-headed quail-dove
The blue-headed quail-dove (''Starnoenas cyanocephala''), or blue-headed partridge-dove, is a species of bird in the pigeon and dove family Columbidae. It is monotypic within the subfamily Starnoenadinae and genus ''Starnoenas''.
Taxonomy
In 173 ...
Leptotila
''Leptotila'' is a genus of birds in the dove and pigeon family Columbidae. These are ground-foraging doves that live in the Americas.
The genus ''Leptotila'' was introduced by the English naturalist William John Swainson in 1837 with the Caribb ...
'' (11 species)
** Genus ''
Zenaida Zenaida (Greek name meaning "Life of Zeus.") Zenaide (Italian), Zénaïde ( French), or Zinaida (russian: Зинаида).
'' (7 species)
** Genus ''
Zentrygon
''Zentrygon'' is a bird genus in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). Its members are called quail-doves and all live in the Neotropics.
The species of this genus primarily range from southern Mexico throughout Central America. Quail-dov ...
'' (8 species)
* Tribe Columbini
** Genus ''
Patagioenas
''Patagioenas'' is a genus of New World pigeons whose distinctness from the genus ''Columba'' was long disputed but ultimately confirmed. It is basal to the ''Columba''-''Streptopelia'' radiation. Their ancestors diverged from that lineage proba ...
'' (American pigeons, 17 species)
** Genus †''
Ectopistes
The passenger pigeon or wild pigeon (''Ectopistes migratorius'') is an extinct species of pigeon that was endemic to North America. Its common name is derived from the French word ''passager'', meaning "passing by", due to the migratory habits ...
'' (passenger pigeon; extinct 1914)
** Genus ''
Reinwardtoena
''Reinwardtoena'' is a small genus of doves in the family Columbidae. They are found on parts of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.
The genus was introduced by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1854 with the gre ...
'' (3 species)
** Genus '' Turacoena'' (3 species)
** Genus ''
Macropygia
''Macropygia'' is a genus of bird in the pigeon and dove family Columbidae. The genus is one of three genera known as cuckoo-doves. They are long tailed, range between 27 and 45 cm in length and have brown plumage. The genus ranges from Ind ...
'' (typical cuckoo-doves, 15 species)
** Genus ''
Streptopelia
''Streptopelia'' is a genus of birds in the pigeon and dove family Columbidae. These are mainly slim, small to medium-sized species. The upperparts tend to be pale brown and the underparts are often a shade of pink. Many have a characteristic bla ...
'' (turtle doves and collared doves, 13 species)
** Genus †'' Dysmoropelia'' Olson, 1975 (
Saint Helena dove
The Saint Helena dove (''Dysmoropelia dekarchiskos'') was a species of flightless bird in the family Columbidae. It is monotypic within the genus ''Dysmoropelia''. It was endemic to the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is ...
) (prehistoric)
** Genus '' Columba'' (Old World pigeons, 35 species of which 2 recently extinct)
** Genus ''
Spilopelia
''Spilopelia'' is a genus of doves that are closely related to ''Streptopelia'', yet distinguished from them by differences in morphology and behavior. Some authors have argued that ''Stigmatopelia'' is the valid name as it appears in an earlier ...
'' (2 species)
** Genus ''
Nesoenas
''Nesoenas'' is a bird genus in the pigeon and dove family, Columbidae. It is often included with the typical turtle-doves in ''Streptopelia'' or the typical pigeons (''Columba''). By those who accepted it, it was usually treated as monotypic, c ...
Metriopelia
''Metriopelia'' is a genus of Columbidae, ground doves containing four species that live in the dry, upland habitats along the Andes, Andean mountain chain in South America. They have large wings and three species have orange skin around the eyes ...
'' (4 species)
* Genus ''
Columbina
Columbina (in Italian Colombina, meaning "little dove"; in French and English Colombine) is a stock character in the ''commedia dell'arte''. She is Harlequin's mistress, a comic servant playing the tricky slave type, and wife of Pierrot. Rudli ...
'' (9 species)
Raphinae
* Tribe Phabini (bronzewings and relatives)
** Genus '' Henicophaps'' (2 species)
** Genus ''
Gallicolumba
''Gallicolumba'' is a mid-sized genus of ground-dwelling doves (family Columbidae) which occur in rainforests on the Philippines. Local name 'punay' which is a general term for pigeons and doves. They are not closely related to the American groun ...
'' (bleeding-hearts and allies, 7 species)
** Genus ''
Pampusana
''Pampusana'' is a mid-sized genus of ground-dwelling doves ( family Columbidae) which occur in rainforests in the Pacific region. They are not closely related to the American ground doves ( genus ''Columbina'' and related genera).
Systematic ...
'' (13 species of which 3 recently extinct)
** Genus '' Ocyphaps'' (
crested pigeon
The crested pigeon (''Ocyphaps lophotes'') is a bird found widely throughout mainland Australia except for the far northern tropical areas. Only two Australian pigeon species possess an erect crest, the crested pigeon and the spinifex pigeon. The ...
)
** Genus ''
Petrophassa
''Petrophassa'', commonly known as the rock pigeons, is a small genus of doves in the family Columbidae native to Australia, and similar to bronzewing pigeons.
The genus was introduced in 1841 by the English ornithologist and bird artist John ...
'' (rock pigeons, 2 species)
** Genus '' Leucosarcia'' (
wonga pigeon
The wonga pigeon (''Leucosarcia melanoleuca'') is a pigeon that inhabits areas in eastern Australia with its range being from Central Queensland to Gippsland, eastern Victoria, Australia.
Distribution and habitat
Previously they could be found ...
)
** Genus ''
Geopelia
''Geopelia'' is a genus of small, long-tailed doves in the family Columbidae. They are native to South-east Asia and Australasia and are most often found in open country and scrubland. They feed mainly on seeds which they find by foraging on the ...
'' (5 species)
** Genus ''
Phaps
''Phaps'' is a genus of bronzewing pigeons in the family Columbidae that are native to Australia.
The genus was introduced in 1835 by the English naturalist Prideaux John Selby with the common bronzewing (''Phaps chalcoptera'') as the type spe ...
Viti Levu giant pigeon
The Viti Levu giant pigeon or Fiji giant ground pigeon (''Natunaornis gigoura'') is an extinct flightless pigeon of Viti Levu, the largest island in Fiji. It was only slightly smaller than the dodo (''Raphus cucullatus'') and Rodrigues solitair ...
pheasant pigeon
The pheasant pigeon (''Otidiphaps nobilis'') is a species of large terrestrial pigeon. It is the only species of the monotypic genus ''Otidiphaps''. The pheasant pigeon is found in the primary rainforests of New Guinea and nearby islands. It rang ...
)
** Genus '' Goura'' (crowned pigeons, 4 species)
** Genus ''
Didunculus
The tooth-billed pigeons are the only genus (''Didunculus'') of the subfamily Didunculinae, in the pigeon and dove family, (Columbidae). It has no close living relatives, but it has been shown to be genetically close to the dodo, and the genus n ...
'' (
tooth-billed pigeon
The tooth-billed pigeon (''Didunculus strigirostris''), also known as the ''manumea'', is a large pigeon found only in Samoa. It is the only living species of genus '' Didunculus''. A related extinct species, the Tongan tooth-billed pigeon (''D ...
)
** Genus ?†'' Deliaphaps'' De Pietri, Scofield, Tennyson, Hand, & Worthy, 2017 (Zealandian dove, Miocene of New Zealand)
** Genus ''
Caloenas
''Caloenas'' is a genus of pigeons. The only living species is the Nicobar pigeon (''C. nicobarica'').
One or two extinct species are known: the Kanaka pigeon was a large species from New Caledonia and Tonga. It is only known by subfossil r ...
'' (
Nicobar pigeon
The Nicobar pigeon (''Caloenas nicobarica'', Car: ') is a bird found on small islands and in coastal regions from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, east through the Malay Archipelago, to the Solomons and Palau. It is the only living membe ...
)
** Genus †''
Raphus
The dodo (''Raphus cucullatus'') is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The dodo's closest genetic relative was the also-extinct Rodrigues solitaire. The ...
'' (
dodo
The dodo (''Raphus cucullatus'') is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Mauritius, which is east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. The dodo's closest genetic relative was the also-extinct Rodrigues solitaire. The ...
, extinct late 17th century)
** Genus †'' Pezophaps'' (
Rodrigues solitaire
The Rodrigues solitaire (''Pezophaps solitaria'') is an extinct flightless bird that was endemic to the island of Rodrigues, east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Genetically within the family of pigeons and doves, it was most closely relate ...
, extinct c. 1730)
** Genus †''
Bountyphaps
''Bountyphaps obsoleta'' is an extinct species of pigeon. It was described in 2008 as a new genus and species from subfossil remains found on Henderson Island in the Pitcairn Group of southeastern Polynesia. Additionally, an indeterminate spe ...
'' Worthy & Wragg, 2008 (Henderson Island pigeon) ( prehistoric)
* Tribe Turturini
** Genus ''
Phapitreron
Brown doves are members of the genus ''Phapitreron'' in the pigeon family. Their common name refers to their overall brown coloration. They are endemic to the Philippines. All brown doves are tree-dwellers, but the different species occupy differ ...
'' (brown doves, 3 species)
** Genus ''
Oena
The Namaqua dove (''Oena capensis'') is a small pigeon. It is the only species in the genus ''Oena.'' It is found over much of Sub-Saharan Africa as well as Arabia and Madagascar.
Taxonomy
The Namaqua dove is the only species in the monotypic ...
'' (
Namaqua dove
The Namaqua dove (''Oena capensis'') is a small pigeon. It is the only species in the genus ''Oena.'' It is found over much of Sub-Saharan Africa as well as Arabia and Madagascar.
Taxonomy
The Namaqua dove is the only species in the monotypic g ...
, tentatively placed here)
** Genus ''
Turtur
''Turtur'' is a small genus of doves native to Sub-Saharan Africa. Species in this genus are known as wood doves.
The genus ''Turtur'' was introduced in 1783 by the Dutch naturalist Pieter Boddaert to accommodate the blue-spotted wood dove
Th ...
Chalcophaps
''Chalcophaps'' is a genus of small doves, commonly called ''emerald doves'', that are found in Indomalaya and Australasia.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Chalcophaps'' was introduced by the English ornithologist John Gould in 1843. The genus name comb ...
Treron
''Treron'' is a genus of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. Its members are commonly called green pigeons. The genus is distributed across Asia and Africa. This genus contains 30 species, remarkable for their green coloration, hence the common ...
'' (
green pigeon
''Treron'' is a genus of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. Its members are commonly called green pigeons. The genus is distributed across Asia and Africa. This genus contains 30 species, remarkable for their green coloration, hence the common ...
s, 30 species)
* Tribe Ptilinopini (fruit doves and imperial pigeons)
** Genus '' Ducula'' (imperial pigeons, 36 species)
** Genus ''
Ptilinopus
The fruit doves, also known as fruit pigeons, are a genus (''Ptilinopus'') of birds in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). These colourful, frugivorous doves are found in forests and woodlands in Southeast Asia and Oceania. It is a large gen ...
fruit dove
The fruit doves, also known as fruit pigeons, are a genus (''Ptilinopus'') of birds in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). These colourful, frugivorous doves are found in forests and woodlands in Southeast Asia and Oceania. It is a large gen ...
s, some 50 living species, 1–2 recently extinct)
** Genus '' Hemiphaga'' (2 species)
** Genus '' Lopholaimus'' (
topknot pigeon
The topknot pigeon (''Lopholaimus antarcticus'') is a pigeon native to eastern Australia.
Taxonomy
English naturalist George Shaw described the topknot pigeon as ''Columba antarctica'' in 1793.
The topknot pigeon is sister taxon to a lineage t ...
)
** Genus ''
Cryptophaps
The sombre pigeon (''Cryptophaps poecilorrhoa'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Cryptophaps''. It is endemic to the Indonesian island of Sulawesi in Wallacea. Its natural habitat is subtr ...
'' (
sombre pigeon
The sombre pigeon (''Cryptophaps poecilorrhoa'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is the only species within the genus ''Cryptophaps''. It is endemic to the Indonesian island of Sulawesi in Wallacea. Its natural habitat is subtr ...
)
** Genus ''
Gymnophaps
Mountain pigeons are four species of birds in the genus ''Gymnophaps'' in the pigeon family Columbidae. They are found on islands in eastern Indonesia and Melanesia, where they inhabit hill and montane forest. They mostly have dull grey, white, ...
Pigeons and doves exhibit considerable variation in size, ranging in length from , and in weight from to above . The largest species is the crowned pigeon of
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
, which is nearly
turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
-sized, at a weight of . The smallest is the New World ground dove of the genus ''Columbina'', which is the same size as a house sparrow, weighing as little as . The dwarf fruit dove, which may measure as little as , has a marginally smaller total length than any other species from this family. One of the largest
arboreal
Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally, but others are exclusively arboreal. The habitats pose nu ...
species, the
Marquesan imperial pigeon
The Marquesan imperial pigeon (''Ducula galeata''), also known as the Nukuhiva pigeon or Upe, is a pigeon which is endemic to Nuku Hiva in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia. This pigeon is only found in some valleys in the western part of ...
, currently battles extinction.
Anatomy and physiology
Overall, the
anatomy
Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...
of Columbidae is characterized by short legs, short bills with a fleshy
cere
The beak, bill, or rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for eating, preening, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food ...
, and small heads on large, compact bodies. Like some other birds, the Columbidae have no
gall bladder
In vertebrates, the gallbladder, also known as the cholecyst, is a small hollow organ where bile is stored and concentrated before it is released into the small intestine. In humans, the pear-shaped gallbladder lies beneath the liver, although ...
s. Some medieval naturalists concluded they have no bile (gall), which in the medieval theory of the
four humours
Humorism, the humoral theory, or humoralism, was a system of medicine detailing a supposed makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Ancient Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers.
Humorism began to fall out of favor in the 1850s ...
explained the allegedly sweet disposition of doves. In fact, however, they do have bile (as
Aristotle
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ph ...
had earlier realized), which is secreted directly into the gut.
The wings are large, and have eleven
primary feathers
Flight feathers (''Pennae volatus'') are the long, stiff, asymmetrically shaped, but symmetrically paired pennaceous feathers on the wings or tail of a bird; those on the wings are called remiges (), singular remex (), while those on the tai ...
; pigeons have strong wing muscles (wing muscles comprise 31–44% of their body weight) and are among the strongest fliers of all birds.
In a series of experiments in 1975 by Dr.Mark B. Friedman, using doves, their characteristic head bobbing was shown to be due to their natural desire to keep their vision constant. It was shown yet again in a 1978 experiment by Dr.Barrie J. Frost, in which pigeons were placed on
treadmill
A treadmill is a device generally used for walking, running, or climbing while staying in the same place. Treadmills were introduced before the development of powered machines to harness the power of animals or humans to do work, often a type o ...
s; it was observed that they did not bob their heads, as their surroundings were constant.
Feathers
Columbidae have unique body feathers, with the shaft being generally broad, strong, and flattened, tapering to a fine point, abruptly. In general, the aftershaft is absent; however, small ones on some tail and wing feathers may be present. Body feathers have very dense, fluffy bases, are attached loosely into the skin, and drop out easily. Possibly serving as a predator avoidance mechanism, large numbers of feathers fall out in the attacker's mouth if the bird is snatched, facilitating the bird's escape. The plumage of the family is variable.
Granivorous
Seed predation, often referred to as granivory, is a type of plant-animal interaction in which granivores (seed predators) feed on the seeds of plants as a main or exclusive food source,Hulme, P.E. and Benkman, C.W. (2002) "Granivory", pp. 132 ...
species tend to have dull plumage, with a few exceptions, whereas the
frugivorous
A frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts and seeds. Approximately 20% of mammalian herbivores eat fruit. Frugivores are highly dependent on the abundance an ...
species have brightly coloured plumage. The ''Ptilinopus'' (fruit doves) are some of the brightest coloured pigeons, with the three endemic species of Fiji and the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
''Alectroenas'' being the brightest. Pigeons and doves may be sexually monochromatic or dichromatic. In addition to bright colours, pigeons may sport crests or other ornamentation.
Flight
Columbidae are excellent fliers due to the lift provided by their large wings, which results in low
wing loading
In aerodynamics, wing loading is the total mass of an aircraft or flying animal divided by the area of its wing. The stalling speed of an aircraft in straight, level flight is partly determined by its wing loading. An aircraft or animal with a ...
; They are highly maneuverable in flight and have a low aspect ratio due to the width of their wings, allowing for quick flight launches and ability to escape from predators, but at a high energy cost.
Distribution and habitat
Pigeons and doves are distributed everywhere on Earth, except for the driest areas of the
Sahara Desert
, photo = Sahara real color.jpg
, photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972
, map =
, map_image =
, location =
, country =
, country1 =
, ...
,
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...
and its surrounding islands, and the high
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...
. They have colonised most of the world's oceanic islands, reaching eastern
Polynesia
Polynesia () "many" and νῆσος () "island"), to, Polinisia; mi, Porinihia; haw, Polenekia; fj, Polinisia; sm, Polenisia; rar, Porinetia; ty, Pōrīnetia; tvl, Polenisia; tkl, Polenihia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, made up of ...
and the
Chatham Islands
The Chatham Islands ( ) (Moriori: ''Rēkohu'', 'Misty Sun'; mi, Wharekauri) are an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean about east of New Zealand's South Island. They are administered as part of New Zealand. The archipelago consists of about te ...
in the
Pacific
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...
, Mauritius, the Seychelles and Réunion in the Indian Ocean, and the
Azores
)
, motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace")
, anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores")
, image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg
, map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union
, map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...
in the Atlantic Ocean.
The family has adapted to most of the habitats available on the planet. These species may be arboreal,
terrestrial
Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth.
Terrestrial may also refer to:
* Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...
, or semi-terrestrial. Various species also inhabit
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
,
grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...
atoll
An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gr ...
s.
Some species have large natural ranges. The
eared dove
The eared dove (''Zenaida auriculata'') is a New World dove. It is a resident breeder throughout South America from Colombia to southern Argentina and Chile, and on the offshore islands from the Grenadines southwards. It may be a relatively re ...
ranges across the entirety of South America from Colombia to
Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla ...
, the
Eurasian collared dove
The Eurasian collared dove (''Streptopelia decaocto'') is a dove species native to Europe and Asia; it was introduced to Japan, North America and islands in the Caribbean. Because of its vast global range and increasing population trend, it ha ...
has a massive (if discontinuous) distribution from
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
across Europe, the Middle East, India, Pakistan and China, and the
laughing dove
The laughing dove (''Spilopelia senegalensis'') is a small pigeon that is a resident breeder in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, and Western Australia where it has established itself in the wild after being released from Perth Zoo in 1898. T ...
across most of sub-Saharan Africa, as well as India, Pakistan, and the Middle East. Other species have tiny, restricted distributions; this is most common in island
endemics
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 else ...
. The
whistling dove
The whistling fruit dove (''Ptilinopus layardi''), also known as the velvet dove or yellow-headed dove, is a small fruit dove from Fiji. The species is endemic to the islands of Kadavu and Ono in the Kadavu Group in the south of Fiji.
Taxono ...
is endemic to the tiny
Kadavu Island
Kadavu (pronounced ), with an area of , is the fourth largest island in Fiji, and the largest island in the ''Kadavu Group'', a volcanic archipelago consisting of Kadavu, Ono, Galoa and a number of smaller islands in the Great Astrolabe Reef. Its ...
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically, they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in the ce ...
, and the
Grenada dove
The Grenada dove (''Leptotila wellsi'') is a medium-sized New World tropical dove. It is endemic to the island of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. Originally known as the pea doveLawrence, G. N. (1884). Characters of a new species of ''Engyptila' ...
is restricted to Grenada in the Caribbean. Some continental species also have tiny distributions; for example, the
black-banded fruit dove
The black-banded fruit dove (''Ptilinopus alligator'') is a large (38–44 cm in length, 450-570 g in weight) pigeon with white head, neck and upper breast; black back and upperwing grading to grey on rump; black tail with broad grey termina ...
is restricted to a small area of the Arnhem Land of Australia, the Somali pigeon is restricted to a tiny area of northern Somalia, and
Moreno's ground dove
Moreno's ground dove (''Metriopelia morenoi'') or the bare-eyed ground dove, is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to Argentina.Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Ger ...
is restricted to the area around
Salta
Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Argentine province of the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the 7th most-populous city in Argentina. The city serves as the cultural and economic ce ...
and Tucuman in northern Argentina.
The largest range of any species is that of the rock dove. This species had a large natural distribution from Britain and Ireland to northern Africa, across Europe,
Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plat ...
,
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
, India, the
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...
and up into China and Mongolia. The range of the species increased dramatically upon domestication, as the species went
feral
A feral () animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some ...
in cities around the world. The species is currently resident across most of North America, and has established itself in cities and urban areas in South America, sub-Saharan Africa,
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...
, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. The species is not the only pigeon to have increased its range due to the actions of man; several other species have become established outside of their natural range after escaping captivity, and other species have increased their natural ranges due to habitat changes caused by human activity. A 2020 study found that the East Coast of the U.S. includes two pigeon genetic megacities, in New York and Boston, and the birds do not mix together.
Behaviour
Male pigeons are more opportunistic to mate with another female.
Feeding
Seeds and fruit form the major component of the diets of pigeons and doves. In fact, the family can be divided into the seed-eating or granivorous species (subfamily Columbinae) and the fruit-and-mast-eating or
frugivorous
A frugivore is an animal that thrives mostly on raw fruits or succulent fruit-like produce of plants such as roots, shoots, nuts and seeds. Approximately 20% of mammalian herbivores eat fruit. Frugivores are highly dependent on the abundance an ...
species (the other four subfamilies). The granivorous species typically feed on seed found on the ground, whereas the frugivorous species tend to feed in trees. There are morphological adaptations that can be used to distinguish between the two groups: granivores tend to have thick walls in their gizzards,
intestines
The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The GI tract contains all the major organs of the digestive system, in humans and ...
, and esophagi whereas the frugivores tend to have thin walls. In addition, fruit-eating species have short intestines whereas those that eat seeds have longer ones. Frugivores are capable of clinging to branches and even hang upside down to reach fruit.
In addition to fruit and seeds, a number of other food items are taken by many species. Some, particularly the ground doves and quail-doves, eat a large number of prey items such as insects and worms. One species, the
atoll fruit dove
The atoll fruit dove (''Ptilinopus coralensis'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to the Tuamotu archipelago in French Polynesia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and plantations. ...
, is specialised in taking insect and reptile prey. Snails, moths, and other insects are taken by
white-crowned pigeon
The white-crowned pigeon (''Patagioenas leucocephala'') is a fruit and seed-eating species of bird in the dove and pigeon family Columbidae. It is found primarily in the Caribbean.
John James Audubon painted these pigeons, including the waterco ...
s,
orange fruit dove
The orange fruit dove (''Ptilinopus victor'') is a species of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. One of the most colorful doves, the male has a golden olive head and elongated bright orange "hair-like" body feathers. The golden-olive remiges a ...
s, and
ruddy ground dove
The ruddy ground dove (''Columbina talpacoti'') is a small New World tropical dove. It is a resident breeder from Mexico south to Brazil, Peru and Paraguay, and northern Argentina, and on Trinidad and Tobago. Individual birds can sometimes be see ...
s.
Urban feral pigeons, descendants of domestic
rock dove
The rock dove, rock pigeon, or common pigeon ( also ; ''Columba livia'') is a member of the bird family Columbidae (doves and pigeons). In common usage, it is often simply referred to as the "pigeon".
The domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domes ...
s (''Columbia Livia''), reside in urban environments, disturbing their natural feeding habits. They depend on human activities and interactions to obtain food, causing them to forage for spilled food or food provided by humans.
Status and conservation
While many species of pigeons and doves have benefited from human activities and have increased their ranges, many other species have declined in numbers and some have become
threatened
Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensa ...
or even succumbed to extinction. Among the ten species to have become extinct since 1600 (the conventional date for estimating modern extinctions) are two of the most famous extinct species, the dodo and the passenger pigeon.
The
passenger pigeon
The passenger pigeon or wild pigeon (''Ectopistes migratorius'') is an extinct species of pigeon that was endemic to North America. Its common name is derived from the French word ''passager'', meaning "passing by", due to the migratory habits ...
was exceptional for a number of reasons. In modern times, it is the only pigeon species that was not an island species to have become extinct even though it was once the most numerous species of bird on Earth. Its former numbers are difficult to estimate, but one ornithologist, Alexander Wilson, estimated one flock he observed contained over two billion birds. The decline of the species was abrupt; in 1871, a breeding colony was estimated to contain over a hundred million birds, yet the last individual in the species was dead by 1914. Although habitat loss was a contributing factor, the species is thought to have been massively over-hunted, being used as food for slaves and, later, the poor, in the United States throughout the 19thcentury.
The dodo, and its extinction, was more typical of the extinctions of pigeons in the past. Like many species that colonise remote islands with few predators, it lost much of its predator avoidance behaviour, along with its ability to fly. The arrival of people, along with a suite of other introduced species such as rats, pigs, and cats, quickly spelled the end for this species and all the other island forms that have become extinct.
Around 59 species of pigeons and doves are threatened with extinction today, about 19% of all species. Most of these are tropical and live on islands. All of the species are threatened by introduced predators, habitat loss, hunting, or a combination of these factors. In some cases, they may be extinct in the wild, as is the Socorro dove of
Socorro Island
Socorro Island ( es, Isla Socorro) is a small volcanic island in the Revillagigedo Islands, a Mexican possession lying off the country's western coast. The size is 16.5 by 11.5 km (10.25 by 7.15 miles), with an area of . It is the largest ...
, Mexico, last seen in the wild in 1972, driven to extinction by habitat loss and introduced
feral cat
A feral cat or a stray cat is an unowned domestic cat (''Felis catus'') that lives outdoors and avoids human contact: it does not allow itself to be handled or touched, and usually remains hidden from humans. Feral cats may breed over dozens ...
s. In some areas, a lack of knowledge means the true status of a species is unknown; the
Negros fruit dove
The Negros fruit dove (''Ptilinopus arcanus'') is a species of bird in the pigeon and dove family, Columbidae. It is endemic to the island of Negros in the Philippines. This fruit dove is known from a single female specimen collected from the sl ...
has not been seen since 1953, and may or may not be extinct, and the
Polynesian ground dove
The Polynesian ground dove (''Pampusana erythroptera'') or ''Tutururu'' is a critically endangered species of bird in the family Columbidae. Originally endemic to the Society Islands and Tuamotus in French Polynesia, it has now been extirpated ...
is classified as critically endangered, as whether it survives or not on remote islands in the far west of the Pacific Ocean is unknown.
Various
conservation
Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws.
Conservation may also refer to:
Environment and natural resources
* Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...
techniques are employed to prevent these extinctions, including laws and regulations to control hunting pressure, the establishment of protected areas to prevent further habitat loss, the establishment of captive populations for reintroduction back into the wild (''
ex situ
Svalbard GLOBAL SEED BANK, an ''ex situ'' conservation.
''Ex situ'' conservation literally means, "off-site conservation". It is the process of protecting an endangered species, variety or breed, of plant or animal outside its natural habitat; ...
'' conservation), and the translocation of individuals to suitable habitats to create additional populations.
Military
The pigeon was used in both
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, notably by the Australian, French, German,
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
, and UK forces. They were also awarded with various laurels throughout, for their service. On 2 December 1943, three pigeons Winkie, Tyke, and White Visionwere awarded the first Dickin medal, serving with Britain's
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
, for rescuing an air force crew during World WarII. Thirty-two pigeons have been decorated with the Dickin Medal, citing them for "brave service", for war contributions, including
Commando
Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin">40_Commando.html" ;"title="Royal Marines from 40 Commando">Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin area of Afghanistan are pictured
A commando is a combatant, or operativ ...
,
G.I. Joe
''G.I. Joe'' is an American media franchise and a line of action figures owned and produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier ( U.S. Army), Ac ...
Royal Blue
Royal blue is a deep and vivid shade of blue. It is said to have been created by clothiers in Rode, Somerset, a consortium of whom won a competition to make a dress for Queen Charlotte, consort of King George III.
Brightness
The ''Oxford E ...
Cher Ami
Cher Ami (French for "dear friend", in the masculine) was a male homing pigeon who had been donated by the pigeon fanciers of Britain for use by the U.S. Army Signal Corps in France during World War I and had been trained by American pigeoners. ...
Oak Leaf Cluster
An oak leaf cluster is a ribbon device to denote preceding decorations and awards consisting of a miniature bronze or silver twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem. It is authorized by the United States Armed Forces for a speci ...
for his service in
Verdun
Verdun (, , , ; official name before 1970 ''Verdun-sur-Meuse'') is a large city in the Meuse department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department.
Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital ...
. Despite having almost lost a leg and being shot in the chest, he managed to travel around 25 miles to deliver the message that saved 194 men of the Lost Battalion of the
77th Infantry Division 77th Division or 75th Infantry Division may refer to:
* 77th Infantry Division (Wehrmacht), Germany
* 77th Infantry Division of Khurasan, Iran
* 77th Division (Imperial Japanese Army)
* 77th Division (People's Republic of China)
* 77th Division ( ...
in the
Battle of the Argonne
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and for ...
, in October 1918. When Cher Ami died, he was
mounted
Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest.
Mount or Mounts may also refer to:
Places
* Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England
* Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, Co ...
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
.
A grand ceremony was held in Buckingham Palace to commemorate a platoon of pigeons that braved the battlefields of
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
to deliver vital plans to Allied forces on the fringes of Germany. Three of the actual birds that received the medals are on show in the London Military Museum so that well-wishers can pay their respects.
Domestication
The
rock dove
The rock dove, rock pigeon, or common pigeon ( also ; ''Columba livia'') is a member of the bird family Columbidae (doves and pigeons). In common usage, it is often simply referred to as the "pigeon".
The domestic pigeon (''Columba livia domes ...
has been domesticated for hundreds of years. It has been bred into several varieties kept by hobbyists, of which the best known is the homing pigeon or
racing homer
Pigeon racing is the sport of releasing specially trained homing pigeons, which then return to their homes over a carefully measured distance. The time it takes the animal to cover the specified distance is measured and the bird's rate of travel ...
. Other popular breeds are tumbling pigeons such as the
Birmingham roller
The Birmingham Roller is a breed of domesticated roller pigeon that originated in Birmingham, England. They were developed via selective breeding, for their ability to do rapid backward somersaults while flying.
Rolling motion
It is unknow ...
, and fancy varieties that are bred for certain physical characteristics such as large feathers on the feet or fan-shaped tails. Domesticated rock pigeons are also bred as carrier pigeons, used for thousands of years to carry brief written messages, and
release dove
A release dove is usually a small white domestic rock dove used for events such as public ceremonies, weddings and funerals. They typically have a symbolic meaning for the event.
Subspecies and types
Typically one or more white doves are re ...
s used in ceremonies. White doves are also used for entertainment and amusement, as they are capable of solving puzzles and performing intricate tricks. A variant called the ''zurito'', bred for its speed, may be used in live
pigeon shooting
Pigeon shooting is a type of live bird wing shooting competition. Traditionally, there are two types of competition: box birds and columbaire. In box birds, the pigeons are held in a mechanical device that releases them when the shooter calls out. ...
.
In religion
In ancient
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...
, doves were prominent animal symbols of Inanna-Ishtar, the goddess of love, sexuality, and war. Doves are shown on cultic objects associated with Inanna as early as the beginning of the third millennium BC. Lead dove figurines were discovered in the temple of Ishtar at Aššur, dating to the thirteenth century BC, and a painted fresco from Mari, Syria, shows a giant dove emerging from a palm tree in the temple of Ishtar, indicating that the goddess herself was sometimes believed to take the form of a dove. In the ''
Epic of Gilgamesh
The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh begins with ...
'',
Utnapishtim
Ut-napishtim or Uta-na’ishtim (in the ''Epic of Gilgamesh''), Atra-Hasis, Ziusudra ( Sumerian), Xisuthros (''Ξίσουθρος'', in Berossus) ( akk, ) is a character in ancient Mesopotamian mythology. He is tasked by the god Enki (Akkadian: ...
releases a dove and a raven to find land; the dove merely circles and returns. Only then does Utnapishtim send forth the raven, which does not return, and Utnapishtim concludes the raven has found land.
In the
ancient Levant
The Levant is the area in Southwest Asia, south of the Taurus Mountains, bounded by the Mediterranean Sea in the west, the Arabian Desert in the south, and Mesopotamia in the east. It stretches north to south from the Taurus Mountains to the S ...
, doves were used as symbols for the Canaanite mother goddess
Asherah
Asherah (; he, אֲשֵׁרָה, translit=Ăšērā; uga, 𐎀𐎘𐎗𐎚, translit=ʾAṯiratu; akk, 𒀀𒅆𒋥, translit=Aširat; Qatabanian: ') in ancient Semitic religion, is a fertility goddess who appears in a number of ancient ...
ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...
word for "dove" was ''peristerá'', which may be derived from the Semitic phrase ''peraḥ Ištar'', meaning "bird of Ishtar". In classical antiquity, doves were sacred to the Greek goddess
Aphrodite
Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols inclu ...
, who absorbed this association with doves from Inanna-Ishtar. Aphrodite frequently appears with doves in
ancient Greek pottery
Ancient Greek pottery, due to its relative durability, comprises a large part of the archaeological record of ancient Greece, and since there is so much of it (over 100,000 painted vases are recorded in the Corpus vasorum antiquorum), it has exe ...
. The temple of
Aphrodite Pandemos
Aphrodite Pandemos ( grc, Πάνδημος, Pándēmos; "common to all the people") occurs as an epithet of the Greek goddess Aphrodite. This epithet can be interpreted in different ways. In Plato's ''Symposium'', Pausanias of Athens describes ...
on the southwest slope of the
Athenian Acropolis
The Acropolis of Athens is an ancient citadel located on a rocky outcrop above the city of Athens and contains the remains of several ancient buildings of great architectural and historical significance, the most famous being the Parthenon. Th ...
was decorated with relief sculptures of doves with knotted fillets in their beaks and votive offerings of small, white, marble doves were discovered in the temple of Aphrodite at Daphni. During Aphrodite's main festival, the
Aphrodisia
The Aphrodisia festival (Ancient Greek: Ἀφροδίσια) was an annual festival held in Ancient Greece in honor of the goddess of love and beauty, Aphrodite (Ancient Greek: Ἀφροδίτη Πάνδημος). It took place in several Ancient ...
, her altars would be purified with the blood of a sacrificed dove. Aphrodite's associations with doves influenced the Roman goddesses
Venus
Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...
and
Fortuna
Fortuna ( la, Fortūna, equivalent to the Greek goddess Tyche) is the goddess of fortune and the personification of luck in Roman religion who, largely thanks to the Late Antique author Boethius, remained popular through the Middle Ages until at ...
, causing them to become associated with doves as well.
In the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach" '' In Genesis, Noah sends a dove out of the ark, but it came back to him because the floodwaters had not receded. Seven days later, he sent it again and it came back with an olive branch in her mouth, indicating the waters had receded enough for an olive tree to grow. "Dove" is also a term of endearment in the Song of Songs and elsewhere. In Hebrew,
Jonah
Jonah or Jonas, ''Yōnā'', "dove"; gr, Ἰωνᾶς ''Iōnâs''; ar, يونس ' or '; Latin: ''Ionas'' Ben (Hebrew), son of Amittai, is a prophet in the Hebrew Bible and the Quran, from Gath-hepher of the northern Kingdom of Israel (Samaria ...
(יוֹנָה) means dove. The "sign of Jonas" i is related to the "sign of the dove".God's Kingdom Ministries serious Bible Study Chapter 12: The Sign of Jonah Gods-kingdom-ministries.net. Retrieved on 5 March 2013.
Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...
Matthew
Matthew may refer to:
* Matthew (given name)
* Matthew (surname)
* ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497
* ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith
* Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Ch ...
), and subsequently the " peace dove" became a common Christian symbol of the Holy Spirit.
In Islam, doves and the pigeon family in general are respected and favoured because they are believed to have assisted the final prophet of Islam,
Muhammad
Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...
, in distracting his enemies outside the cave of Thaw'r, in the great
Hijra
Hijra, Hijrah, Hegira, Hejira, Hijrat or Hijri may refer to:
Islam
* Hijrah (often written as ''Hejira'' in older texts), the migration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE
* Migration to Abyssinia or First Hegira, of Muhammad's followers ...
. A pair of pigeons had built a nest and laid eggs at once, and a spider had woven cobwebs, which in the darkness of the night made the fugitives believe that Muhammad could not be in that cave.
As food
Several species of pigeons and doves are used as food; however, all types are edible. Domesticated or hunted pigeons have been used as the source of food since the times of the Ancient Middle East,
Ancient Rome
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...
, and
Medieval Europe
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
. It is familiar meat within
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
,
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
, and
French cuisine
French cuisine () is the cooking traditions and practices from France. It has been influenced over the centuries by the many surrounding cultures of Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Belgium, in addition to the food traditions of the re ...
s. According to the
Tanakh
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach" '' kosher, and they are the only birds that may be used for a '' korban''. Other kosher birds may be eaten, but not brought as a ''korban''. Pigeon is also used in
Asian cuisine
Asian cuisine includes several major regional cuisines: Central Asian, East Asian, North Asian, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and West Asian. A cuisine is a characteristic style of cooking practices and traditions, usually associated with ...
s, such as
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
game bird
Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are ofte ...
, while rock pigeons were originally domesticated as a food species, and many breeds were developed for their meat-bearing qualities. The extinction of the passenger pigeon in North America was at least partly due to shooting for use as food. ''
Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management
''Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management'', also published as ''Mrs. Beeton's Cookery Book'', is an extensive guide to running a household in Victorian Britain, edited by Isabella Beeton and first published as a book in 1861. Previously p ...
'' contains recipes for roast pigeon and
pigeon pie
Pigeon pie is a savoury game pie made of pigeon meat and various other ingredients traditional to French cuisine and present in other European cuisines. It has been eaten at least as early as 1670 in French cuisine.
Similar dishes to pigeon pie e ...
Doves as symbols
Doves, typically domestic pigeons white in plumage, are used in many settings as symbols of peace, freedom, or love. Doves appear in the symbolism of Judaism, Christianity, Islam and paganism, and of both military and pacifist groups.
My ...
*
Gamasoidosis
Gamasoidosis, or dermanyssosis, is a frequently unrecognized ectoparasitosis and source of growing concern in human medicine, occurring after contact with avian mites which infest canaries, sparrows, starlings, pigeons and poultry and caused ...
List of Columbidae species
The International Ornithological Committee (IOC) recognizes 351 species in family Columbidae, the pigeons and doves. They are distributed among 50 genera. This list is presented according to the IOC taxonomic sequence and can also be sorted alph ...
*
Marquesan imperial pigeon
The Marquesan imperial pigeon (''Ducula galeata''), also known as the Nukuhiva pigeon or Upe, is a pigeon which is endemic to Nuku Hiva in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia. This pigeon is only found in some valleys in the western part of ...
*
Pigeon control
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 ...
*
War pigeon
Homing pigeons have long played an important role in war. Due to their homing ability, speed, and altitude, they were often used as military messengers. Carrier pigeons of the Racing Homer breed were used to carry messages in World War I and Wor ...
*
Kapotasana
Kapotasana ( sa, कपोतासन; IAST: ''Kapotāsana'') or Pigeon Pose is a kneeling back-bending asana in modern yoga as exercise.
Asanas based on One-legged King Pigeon pose, Rajakapotasana, are also sometimes called "Pigeon".
Etymolo ...
and
Rajakapotasana
Eka Pada Rajakapotasana ( sa, एक पाद राजकपोतासन; IAST: ''Eka Pāda Rājakapotāsana''), Rajakapotasana, or ne-leggedKing Pigeon Pose is a seated back-bending asana in modern yoga as exercise. The Yin Yoga form of t ...
, yoga poses named for columbidae
Notes
References
Further reading
* Blechman, Andrew, ''Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Reviled Bird'' ( Grove Press 2007)
* Gibbs, Barnes and Cox, ''Pigeons and Doves'' (Pica Press 2001)