The Sri Lanka wood pigeon (''Columba torringtoniae'') 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 an

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 ...

resident breeding bird in the mountains of

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. This species nests in damp evergreen woodlands in the central highlands, building a stick nest in a tree and laying a single white egg. Its flight is quick, with the regular beats and an occasional sharp flick of the wings which are characteristic of pigeons in general. Most of its food is vegetable. Normally silent it utters an owl-like ''hoo'' call in the breeding season. The Sri Lanka wood pigeon is 36 cm in length. Its upperparts and tail are dark grey, and the head and underparts are lilac, becoming paler on the belly. There is a black-and-white chessboard pattern on the nape. This pigeon can be quite easily seen in the woods of the

Horton Plains National Park Horton Plains National Park ( si, හෝර්ටන් තැන්න ජාතික උද්‍යානය, Hortan Thanna Jathika Udyanaya) is a national park in the central highlands of Sri Lanka that was designated in 1988. It is locate ...

Flickr - Rainbirder - Sri Lanka Wood Pigeon (Columba torringtoni) (1)

In culture

, this bird is known as ''Manila Goya'' - මානිලගොයා in

Sinhala Language Sinhala ( ; , ''siṁhala'', ), sometimes called Sinhalese (), is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken by the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka, who make up the largest ethnic group on the island, numbering about 16 milli ...

. This wood-pigeon in a 25c

n postal stamp.

References

* ''Birds of India'' by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp,

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q730301 Sri Lanka wood pigeon Birds of Sri Lanka Endemic birds of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka wood pigeon Sri Lanka wood pigeon Taxa named by Edward Frederick Kelaart