The flame-breasted fruit dove (''Ptilinopus marchei'') is a species of

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 ...

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 else ...

to the

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 ...

only being found in the mountains of

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

.This is a large dove reaching 42 cm long, being the largest

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 ...

in the country and rivalling the size of Imperial pigeons. It is identified with its red hood, black wings with a red patch on its secondaries and its unmistakable flame-coloured breast. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are in upper areas of the tropical moist lowland forest and in mid to upper

montane forest Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial ...

. It is threatened by

habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

, poaching for the pet trade and hunting for food. It is illegal to hunt, capture or keep flame-breasted fruit-doves under Philippine Law RA 9147.

Description

It is described 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 ...

as "A fairly large dove. Pale gray from the belly to the sides of the chest and neck, with a sooty back and cheek, an orange chest patch with dark red below, and a pink crown and mark across the flight feathers. Similar to the Yellow-breasted Fruit-Dove, but Flame-breasted has an orange rather than yellow chest and a dark pink crown. Song is a deep, rising-then-falling “oo-woo.” Takes flight with loud wing claps."

Habitat and Conservation Status

It is known in lowland and hill dipterocarp forest and mid-montane forest from 450-1,500 m with some sparse records in montane mossy forests. It is only found in

primary forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological feature ...

being fairly sensitive and unable to thrive in secondary forest. This is now listed vulnerable with 2,500 to 9,999 mature individuals left in the wild. It is threatened by

, poaching for the pet trade, nest disturbance and hunting for food. They have been seen being sold in illegal online markets on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...

Habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

is its main threat

with wholesale clearance of forest habitats as a result of logging, agricultural conversion and mining activities occurring within the range. Forest cover in the

Sierra Madre Sierra Madre (Spanish, 'mother mountain range') may refer to: Places and mountains Mexico *Sierra Madre Occidental, a mountain range in northwestern Mexico and southern Arizona *Sierra Madre Oriental, a mountain range in northeastern Mexico *S ...

has declined by 83% since the 1930s and most remaining areas are under logging concessions and may suffer further from major road-building plans. Mount Banahaw is affected land conversion due to quarrying and development for

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

. It occurs in several protected areas but more must be done to protect these areas from poachers and loggers. The

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of nat ...

recommends more surveys be done to know the full extent of this bird and to make key habitats on Mt. Cetaceo (Cagayan Valley),

Infanta, Quezon Infanta, officially the Municipality of Infanta ( tgl, Bayan ng Infanta, Ilocano: ''Ili ti Infanta''), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Quezon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 76,186 people. I ...

and Mount Polis as formally protected areas and to promote stricter enforcement of laws designed to stop hunting and trade. Under the Philippine law RA9147, it is completely illegal to hunt these birds or to capture and keep them as pets. As it is

Vulnerable species A vulnerable species is a species which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being threatened with extinction unless the circumstances that are threatening its survival and reproduction improve. Vulnera ...

, any violations have harsher punishments including "(c) imprisonment of six (6) months and one (1) day to one (1) year and/or a fine of One thousand pesos (P1,000.00) to One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00), if inflicted or undertaken against vulnerable species"

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q886790 flame-breasted fruit dove Birds of Luzon flame-breasted fruit dove Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxobox binomials not recognized by IUCN