The Mindoro imperial pigeon (''Ducula mindorensis''), also known as Mindoro Zone-tailed pigeon (''Zonophaps mindorensis''), Great Mindoro pigeon or Pink-throated Imperial pigeon, is a

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

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 ...

in the

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 ...

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 else ...

to the mountains of

Mindoro Mindoro is the seventh largest and eighth-most populous island in the Philippines. With a total land area of 10,571 km2 ( 4,082 sq.mi ) and has a population of 1,408,454 as of 2020 census. It is located off the southwestern coast of Luz ...

in central

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and is the largest pigeon in the country reaching 50cm in length.BirdLife International (2019) Species factsheet: ''Ducula mindorensis''. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 15/10/2019 It is classified as being

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...

according to the

IUCN Red List 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 biol ...

. Its main threats are habitat loss and hunting. IUCN estimates the population to be 600 to 1,700 remaining mature individuals.

Description

The Mindoro imperial pigeon is the largest

Philippine The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

pigeon. It measures from 42 cm to 50 cm in length. Its wings are about 24 cm long and its tail measures from 15 cm to 17 cm. Its forehead and throat are both pinkish grey. The head, neck and most underparts are bluish grey, darkest on the belly and under the tail. The hind neck goes from dark grey to black around the upper part of its back. The rest of the back and the inner wings go from a bronzy red colour to a green colour. The majority of the upper parts of the bird are emerald green. It has a black ring around and extending behind the eye. The tail is greenish black with an obvious grey band in the centre. The feathers under the tail are grey with a cinnamon coloured tinge. They have a black bill and their legs are pinkish red. In males, the iris is bright yellow and the eyelids are red. In females, the iris is brownish yellow and the eyelids are yellow orange. No information on juvenile plumage was recorded.

Taxonomy

The Mindoro imperial pigeon is a bird from the genus '' Ducula'', otherwise known as the group consisting of imperial pigeons. The species ''Ducula mindorensis'', formerly known as ''Carpophaga mindorensis'' and ''Zonophaps mindorensis'', was first described by John Whitehead in 1896. Together with '' Ducula radiata'', it forms a superspecies. It is also known to be closely related to '' Ducula poliocephala'' and '' Ducula forsteni'', and these three species together may relate ''

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 doves to other imperial pigeons.

Behaviour

The Mindoro imperial pigeon can be seen singly, in pairs or in groups up to four individuals. This species tends to roost together with '' Ducula poliocephala'' and '' Columba vitiensis'' in the canopy. They tend to be inconspicuous, making it difficult to observe when roosting.

Vocalization

No recordings were found, but it is known to be a distinct

disyllabic A syllable is a unit of organization for a sequence of speech sounds typically made up of a syllable nucleus (most often a vowel) with optional initial and final margins (typically, consonants). Syllables are often considered the phonological "b ...

call. Their voice is similar to the other imperial pigeons of Mindoro, but much more resonant and deeper. The Mindoro imperial pigeon's call is frequently heard at dawn.

Diet

Little to no information is known about their diet. The Mindoro imperial pigeon was seen feeding on fruits, from small berries up to large ones as big as the size of a pigeon's egg.

Reproduction

No information can be found about their breeding behaviours. One male was recorded as being in breeding conditions in April and one immature was found in August.

Habitat and Conservation Status

The Mindoro imperial pigeon is distributed throughout

, where sufficient closed canopy forests remain. They used to be found mostly in mountain forests above 1000m. However, in 1991, most of the observations were made in understory trees of the remaining low altitude forests of Mindoro (800-950m). IUCN assessed this bird as

with an estimate of 600 - 1,700 mature individuals. This species is rare and uncommon, but known to be found more easily in Mount Ilong and

Mount Halcon Mount Halcon ( fil, Bundok Halcon) and ( es, Monte Halcón) is the highest mountain in the island of Mindoro in the Philippines, according to the new data release by ''Oriental Mindoro peakvisor'' as of 2022, it has an elevation of above sea lev ...

. Its habitat is threatened by logging, cultivation, deforestation and forest destruction. Conservation actions proposed include more surveys to better understand population, distribution and ecology. Also, protect the remaining forest on Mt Halcon and lobby for improved protected status.

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1079197 Mindoro imperial pigeon Birds of Mindoro Mindoro imperial pigeon Taxonomy articles created by Polbot