From Wikipedia,
By- Vinuri Randhula Silva,
The Nicobar
pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica is a bird found on small islands and in coastal
regions from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, east through the Malay
Archipelago, to
the Solomons and Palau. It is the only living member of the
genus Caloenas alongside
the extinct spotted green pigeon,
It is a large pigeon, measuring 40 cm (16 in) in
length. The head is grey, like the upper neck plumage, which turns into green
and copper hackles. The tail is very short and pure white. The rest of its
plumage is metallic green. The strong legs and feet are dull red. The irises are
dark.
Females are slightly smaller than ales; they have a smaller bill
knob, shorter hackles and browner underparts. Immature birds have a black tail
and lack almost all iridescence.
There is hardly any variation across the birds' wide range. Even the
Palau subspecies C. n. pelewensis has
merely shorter neck hackles, but is otherwise almost identical.
It is a very vocal species, giving a low-pitched repetitive call
The Nicobar pigeon's breeding range encompasses the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India, the Mergui Archipelago of Myanmar, offshore islands of south-western Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, southern Cambodia and Vietnam, and many of the small islands between Sumatra, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands. On Palau, the only distinct subspecies C. n. pelewensis is found.
The white tail is the most conspicuous feature
of adult Nicobar pigeons, particularly when seen at a distance in the twilight.
The Nicobar pigeon roams in flocks from island to island,
usually sleeping on offshore islets where no predators occur and spends the day in areas with better food
availability, not shying away from areas inhabited by humans. Its food consists
of seeds, fruit and buds, and it is attracted to areas
where grain is available. A gizzard stone helps to grind up hard food items. Its
flight is quick, with regular beats and an occasional sharp flick of the wings,
as is characteristic of pigeons in general. Unlike other pigeons, groups tend
to fly in columns or single file, not in a loose flock. The white tail is
prominent in flight when seen from behind and may serve as a sort of "taillight", keeping flocks together when crossing the sea at dawn or
dusk. The young birds' lack of a white tail is a signal of their immaturity
clearly visible to conspecifics – to an adult Nicobar pigeon, it is obvious at a glance
which flock members are neither potential mates, nor potential competitors for
mates, nor old enough to safely guide a flock from one island to another
This species nests in dense forest on offshore islets, often in
large colonies. It builds a loose stick nest in a tree. It lays one elliptical
faintly blue-tinged white egg
In 2017, several individual Caloenas nicobarica were
sighted in the Kimberley region of Western Australia with a juvenile captured at Ardyaloon (One
Arm Point), near Broome - the first time
the bird has been sighted on the Australian mainland.
Conservation
Nicobar pigeons are hunted in considerable numbers for food, and
also for their gizzard stone which is used in jewellery. The species is also trapped for the local pet market, but as
it is on CITES Appendix I, commercial international trade is
prohibited. Internationally, captive breeding is able to supply the birds demanded
by zoos, where this attractive and unusual bird is often seen. Direct
exploitation of the species, even including the illegal trade, might be
sustainable on its own; however, its available nesting habitat is decreasing. The offshore islets which it requires are
often logged for plantations, destroyed by construction activity, or polluted by
nearby industry or harbours. Also, increased travel introduces
predators to more and more of the breeding sites, and colonies of the Nicobar
pigeon may be driven to desert such locations or be destroyed outright. Though
the bird is widely distributed and in some locations very common --even on
small Palau it is still reasonably plentiful, with an estimated 1,000 adult
birds remaining—its long-term future is increasingly jeopardized. For these
reasons, the IUCN considers C. nicobarica a near threatened species.
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