The Barbary dove, ringed turtle dove, ringneck dove, ring-necked turtle dove, or ring dove (''Streptopelia risoria'') is a domestic member of the

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 ...

and

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 ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

(

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 ...

). Although the Barbary dove is normally assigned its own systematic name, as ''Streptopelia risoria'', considerable doubt exists as to its appropriate classification. Some sources assert confidently that it is a domesticated form of the

Eurasian collared dove The Eurasian collared dove (''Streptopelia decaocto'') is a dove species native to Europe and Asia; it was introduced to Japan, North America and islands in the Caribbean. Because of its vast global range and increasing population trend, it ha ...

(''Streptopelia decaocto''), but the majority of evidence points to it being a domesticated form of the

African collared dove The African collared dove (''Streptopelia roseogrisea'') is a small dove found in the Sahel, northern parts of the Horn of Africa and southwestern Arabia. Although it lives in arid lands, it is found around water sources. This bird is typical ...

(''Streptopelia roseogrisea''). It appears that it can

hybridize Hybridization (or hybridisation) may refer to: *Hybridization (biology), the process of combining different varieties of organisms to create a hybrid *Orbital hybridization, in chemistry, the mixing of atomic orbitals into new hybrid orbitals *Nu ...

freely with either species, and its status as a species must therefore be regarded as doubtful. However, because of the wide use of both the common and systematic names, it is best to consider it separately from either of the putative parent species. Their time of domestication is also uncertain. While Linnaeus described them in 1756, they may have been imported into Italy from North Africa in the late 16th century. Barbary doves are easily kept and long-lived in captivity, living for up to 12 years. However, there have been cases of doves living over 20 years, and, in one case, of a dove living for 29 years In recent years they have been used extensively in biological research, particularly into the hormonal bases of reproductive behaviour, because their sequences of courtship, mating and parental behaviour have been described accurately and are highly consistent in form. Dove fanciers have bred them in a great variety of colours; the number of colours available has increased dramatically in the latter half of the 20th century, and it is thought that this has been achieved by interbreeding with ''Streptopelia roseogrisea''. Some of these doves carry a mutation that makes them completely white. These white Barbary doves are most commonly used in

stage magic Magic, which encompasses the subgenres of illusion, stage magic, and close up magic, among others, is a performing art in which audiences are entertained by tricks, effects, or illusions of seemingly impossible feats, using natural means. It ...

acts. White Barbary doves are also traditionally released in large public ceremonies, since it is a

peace symbol A number of peace symbols have been used many ways in various cultures and contexts. The dove and olive branch was used symbolically by early Christians and then eventually became a secular peace symbol, popularized by a ''Dove'' lithograph b ...

in several cultures, and "dove releases" are also sometimes found at weddings and funerals. However, a

release dove A release dove is usually a small white domestic rock dove used for events such as public ceremonies, weddings and funerals. They typically have a symbolic meaning for the event. Subspecies and types Typically one or more white doves are re ...

is, in fact, usually a homing pigeon, as Barbary doves lack the homing instinct. The ''coo'' of the Barbary dove is created by muscles that vibrate air sent up from the dove's lungs. These muscles belong to the fastest known class of

vertebrate Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () (chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, with c ...

muscles, contracting as much as 10 times faster than muscles vertebrates use for running. This class of muscles is usually found in high speed tissue such as a rattlesnake's tail. Barbary doves are the first bird species to have been found to have this class of muscle. File:Barbary_Dove_chick.jpg, A two-day-old newly hatched Barbary dove File:Streptopelia risoria, broeiend, a, Paarl.jpg, Adult and chick on nest File:RingneckDove2.jpg, A close-up of a pair of white Barbary doves File:Barbary_Dove.JPG, A pair of Barbary doves

References

* * * Michael W. Gos. (1989). "Doves." * Dorothy Hinshaw Patent. (1997). "Pigeons."
Doves and Pigeons as Pets
''Online Hobbyist.com, Inc. 2008''

''White Dove Releases 2008''
White Dove Releases or is it a Pigeon Release?
''All Events Party Planning Blog, June 2008''

External links

''The Place on the Internet for Doves''

{{Taxonbar, from=Q731131

barbary dove The Barbary dove, ringed turtle dove, ringneck dove, ring-necked turtle dove, or ring dove (''Streptopelia risoria'') is a domestic member of the dove and pigeon family (Columbidae). Although the Barbary dove is normally assigned its own sy ...

Domesticated birds Birds of Sub-Saharan Africa