The squatter pigeon (''Geophaps scripta'') 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 lightweigh ...

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 elsew ...

to northeastern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. According to Australia's then

Department of the Environment and Energy The Department of the Environment and Energy (DEE) was an Australian government department in existence between 2016 and 2020. The department was responsible for matters including environment protection and conservation of biodiversity as well ...

, the nominate subspecies, southern squatter pigeon (''Geophapa scripta scripta'') is listed as vulnerable. It lives in arid and semi-arid areas, including grasslands and dry

sclerophyll Sclerophyll is a type of vegetation that is adapted to long periods of dryness and heat. The plants feature hard leaf, leaves, short Internode (botany), internodes (the distance between leaves along the stem) and leaf orientation which is paral ...

forests. File:Geophaps scripta 0931.jpg, The northern form differs with pink skin around the eye. The squatter pigeon is identifiable by its distinctive markings; it has black and white facial markings and a white stripe up each of its sides.

References

squatter pigeon The squatter pigeon (''Geophaps scripta'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to northeastern Australia. According to Australia's then Department of the Environment and Energy, the nominate subspecies, southern squatter ...

Birds of Queensland Endemic birds of Australia

Taxonomy articles created by Polbot {{Columbiformes-stub a