The Luzon bleeding-heart or punay (''Gallicolumba luzonica'') is one of a number of species of ground

dove 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 ...

in 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 ...

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 ...

'' that are called "bleeding-hearts". The native name in Tagalog is punay. It is also known as ''paloma de punalada'' 'stabbed pigeon'. The Luzon Bleeding-heart is the species in which the "blood" feature is most pronounced, with the reddish hue extending down the belly, furthering the illusion of blood having run down the bird's breast.

Description

On its upper surfaces, the Luzon bleeding-heart is slate grey in color, but because it is

iridescent Iridescence (also known as goniochromism) is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear to gradually change color as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Examples of iridescence include soap bubbles, feathers, butterfl ...

, it can appear to be purple, royal blue, or bottle-green, and the apparent color varies with lighting conditions. On their wings are black bands, while their belly and under wing areas are buff or chestnut. As in most pigeons, there is little

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

; males tend to be larger and have a more pronounced red patch, while in the females it is slightly duller. The body shape is typical of the genus, with a round body, a short tail and long legs.

Distribution

The Luzon bleeding-heart 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 ...

to the island 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 ...

in 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 ...

where the locals call it ''Puñalada''. It lives in primary or secondary forests, and can be found at altitudes varying from up to 1400 meters above sea level. They eat seeds,

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 ...

and

grub Grub can refer to Grub (larva), of the beetle superfamily Scarabaeoidea, or as a slang term for food. It can also refer to: Places * Grub, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Switzerland * Grub, St. Gallen, Switzerland * Grub (Amerang), a hamlet in Bavaria, ...

s. They are shy and secretive, and very quiet, and rarely leave the ground except when nesting. Unlike the other bleeding-hearts, they usually lay two

egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...

s in each clutch. Three subspecies of the Luzon bleeding-heart are known: ''Gallicolumba luzonica luzonica'', ''Gallicolumba luzonica griseolateralis'', ''Gallicolumba luzonica rubiventris''. ''Gallicolumba luzonica luzonica'' is found on the central and southern parts of the island of

, and the neighboring

Polillo Islands The Polillo Islands is a group of about 27 islands in the Philippine Sea lying about to the east of the Philippine island of Luzon. It is separated from Luzon Island by the Polillo Strait and forms the northern side of Lamon Bay. The islands are ...

, while ''Gallicolumba luzonica griseolateralis'' is found on the northern part of the island. ''Gallicolumba luzonica rubiventris'' meanwhile, is found exclusively on the island of

Catanduanes Catanduanes (; ), officially the Province of Catanduanes, is an island province located in the Bicol Region of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the 12th-largest island in the Philippines, and lies to the east of Camarines Sur, across Maqueda Cha ...

where a single specimen was collected in 1971; this subspecies is very rare and believed to be near extinction or already extinct.

Conservation status

Currently, the Luzon bleeding-heart is listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. This is due to the species being threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation through deforestation for timber extraction and agricultural lands. It is also commonly trapped as a pet for its striking plumage. A captive breeding project has been started in Australia. The Luzon bleeding-heart was featured on a Philippine 2-peso

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...

in 1994.

References

External links

Detailed account by a fancier who has kept the species in captivity
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1049295

Luzon bleeding-heart The Luzon bleeding-heart or punay (''Gallicolumba luzonica'') is one of a number of species of ground dove in the genus ''Gallicolumba'' that are called "bleeding-hearts". The native name in Tagalog is punay. It is also known as ''paloma de puna ...

Birds of Luzon Near threatened animals Near threatened biota of Asia