The Marquesan imperial pigeon (''Ducula galeata''), also known as the Nukuhiva pigeon or Upe, is a

pigeon 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 ...

which 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 ...

Nuku Hiva Nuku Hiva (sometimes spelled Nukahiva or Nukuhiva) is the largest of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas country of France in the Pacific Ocean. It was formerly also known as ''Île Marchand'' and ''Madison Island''. Herman M ...

in the

Marquesas Islands The Marquesas Islands (; french: Îles Marquises or ' or '; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in th ...

French Polynesia )Territorial motto: ( en, "Great Tahiti of the Golden Haze") , anthem = , song_type = Regional anthem , song = " Ia Ora 'O Tahiti Nui" , image_map = French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of Frenc ...

. This pigeon is only found in some valleys in the western part of that island.

Description

This is the largest pigeon outside of the

crowned pigeon The crowned pigeons (''Goura'') is a genus of birds in the family Columbidae. It contains four large species of pigeon that are endemic to the island of New Guinea and a few surrounding islands. The species are extremely similar to each other in ...

s, as it weighs approximately 900 grams (2 lb). Females, at long, are slightly smaller than males, at in length. Among standard measurements, the wing chord is , the

tail The tail is the section at the rear end of certain kinds of animals’ bodies; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, r ...

is , the

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

is and the tarsus is . This species is heavily built with a large bill and long, broad tail. The wings are broad and rounded in shape.David Gibbs, Eustace Barnes & John Cox (2001). ''A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World'' Yale University Press, . The Marquesan imperial pigeon is sooty-gray on the head, throat and breast, with a white band just behind the bill that can be seen from some distance. The belly is slightly browner in color than the rest of the underside. The upperparts, wings and tail are glossy green with a bluish tint. The underside of both the tail and the wings are black. The bill is black, with a swollen cere that gives the face a unique sloping look just above the bill. This bird has an cooing advertising call that consist of a loud, deep, guttural neah-ah, neah-ah, neah-ah, neah-ah'' or ''naw-aw, naw-naw'' or ''uh-wah, uh-wah, uh-wah''. This call is so deep in timber that it is sometimes described as

cow Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

-like. A call, probably consisting of an excitement call, has been described as a

crow A crow is a bird of the genus ''Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifical ...

-like ''krawk, krawk''.

Habitat

This was originally distributed throughout its native island, which at one time was almost completely covered in forest. Now it is basically restricted to

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

from above sea-level. A few on the island may still turn in sea-level forested groves and woods surrounded banana and orange plantations. Before ancient Polynesian settlers arrived there, subfossil bones show there was also a population of this bird on Henderson Island in the Pitcairn Islands.

Biology

The Marquesan imperial pigeon is normally seen singly or in pairs, often while perched around a fruiting tree. The species is not noticeably shy and may allow fairly close approach while feeding. It favors fruit of up to . Favored foods including ''

Mangifera indica ''Mangifera indica'', commonly known as mango, is a species of flowering plant in the family Anacardiaceae. It is a large fruit tree, capable of growing to a height of . There are two distinct genetic populations in modern mangoesthe "Indian type ...

'' (a

mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...

), ''

Psidium guajava ''Psidium guajava'', the common guava, yellow guava, lemon guava, or apple guava is an evergreen shrub or small tree native to the Caribbean, Central America and South America. It is easily pollinated by insects; when cultivated, it is pollina ...

'' (a

guava Guava () is a common tropical fruit cultivated in many tropical and subtropical regions. The common guava ''Psidium guajava'' (lemon guava, apple guava) is a small tree in the myrtle family ( Myrtaceae), native to Mexico, Central America, the ...

) and numerous smaller fruit of the genera ''

Ficus ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending in ...

'', ''

Cordia ''Cordia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the borage family, Boraginaceae. It contains about 300 species of shrubs and trees, that are found worldwide, mostly in warmer regions. Many of the species are commonly called manjack, while ''bocote' ...

'' and ''

Eugenia ''Eugenia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the myrtle family Myrtaceae. It has a worldwide, although highly uneven, distribution in tropical and subtropical regions. The bulk of the approximately 1,100 species occur in the New World tropics, ...

''. It often spends much of the day perched in tree canopies, often on or near cliffs. It flies to new foraging sites over forested ridges with deep, labored wing beats. While gliding it may fly with wings held quite far back and when descending to land below, it holds its wings along flat against its body. Nests have been observed in May, July, September and October, indicating that nesting may occur nearly year-around, or that breeding activities peak around the middle of the year. The parents build a flat structure of stick on a branch at mid-height, at or rarely as low as , in a forest tree. A single glossy white egg is laid. No further information is known of the species breeding habits.

Status

Formerly classified by the

IUCN 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 natu ...

as a critically endangered species with an estimated population of less than 150 adult birds, it was suspected to be more numerous than generally assumed. Following the evaluation of its population status, with an estimated 150 to 300 birds in total on the island, and it is consequently downlisted to

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 inva ...

status in 2008; it is still an exceedingly rare bird, but successful conservation measures have averted the threat of immediate

extinct Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...

ion at least for the time being.

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

(BLI) (2008)
[2008 IUCN Redlist status changes]
. Retrieved 2008-May-23. It was probably never common. Some authorities have claimed that the species once existed on other Marquesan islands, including Cook Islands, Society Islands and Pitcairn Islands. However, most now agree that these extinct forms were probably other species in the genus ''Ducula''. The species has been greatly depleted by habitat degradation.

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1264188

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 ...

Birds of the Marquesas Islands

Endemic fauna of French Polynesia