The Mindoro imperial pigeon (''Ducula mindorensis''), also known as Mindoro zone-tailed pigeon (''Zonophaps mindorensis''), Great Mindoro pigeon or Pink-throated Imperial pigeon, is a

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Columbidae Columbidae is a bird Family (biology), family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the Order (biology), order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with small heads, relatively short necks and slender bills that in ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only 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 foun ...

to the mountains of

Mindoro Mindoro is the seventh largest and eighth-most populous island in the Philippines. With a total land area of 10,571 km2 ( 4,082 sq.mi ), it has a population of 1,408,454, as of the 2020 census. It is located off the southwestern coast of ...

in central

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

and is the largest pigeon in the country reaching 50cm in length.BirdLife International (2019) Species factsheet: ''Ducula mindorensis''. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 15/10/2019 It is classified as a

Near-threatened species A near-threatened species is a species which has been categorized as "Near Threatened" (NT) by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as that may be vulnerable to endangerment in the near future, but it does not currently qu ...

according to the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

. Its main threats are habitat loss and hunting. The

roughly estimates the population to be 800 to 3,000 remaining mature individuals.

Description

The Mindoro imperial pigeon is the largest

Philippine The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

pigeon. It measures from 42cm to 50cm in length. Its wings are about 24cm long and its tail measures from 15cm to 17cm. Its forehead and throat are both pinkish grey. The head, neck and most underparts are bluish grey, darkest on the belly and under the tail. The hind neck goes from dark grey to black around the upper part of its back. The rest of the back and the inner wings go from a bronzy red colour to a green colour. The majority of the upper parts of the bird are emerald green. It has a black ring around and extending behind the eye. The tail is greenish black with an obvious grey band in the centre. The feathers under the tail are grey with a cinnamon coloured tinge. They have a black bill and their legs are pinkish red. In males, the iris is bright yellow, and the eyelids are red. In females, the iris is brownish yellow, and the eyelids are yellow orange. No information on juvenile

plumage Plumage () is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, there can b ...

was recorded.

Taxonomy

The Mindoro imperial pigeon is a bird from the genus ''

Ducula ''Ducula'' is a genus of the pigeon family Columbidae, collectively known as imperial pigeons. They are large to very large pigeons with a heavy build and medium to long tails. They are arboreal, feed mainly on fruit and are closely related to t ...

'', otherwise known as the group consisting of imperial pigeons. The species ''Ducula mindorensis'', formerly known as ''Carpophaga mindorensis'' and ''Zonophaps mindorensis'', was first described by John Whitehead in 1896. Together with ''

Ducula radiata The grey-headed imperial pigeon (''Ducula radiata'') is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is endemic to Sulawesi in Indonesia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist m ...

'', it forms a

superspecies In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

. It is also known to be closely related to ''

Ducula poliocephala ''Ducula'' is a genus of the pigeon family Columbidae, collectively known as imperial pigeons. They are large to very large pigeons with a heavy build and medium to long tails. They are arboreal, feed mainly on fruit and are closely related to t ...

'' and ''

Ducula forsteni The white-bellied imperial pigeon (''Ducula forsteni'') is a species of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. First described by the French ornithologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1854, it is endemic to Indonesia, where it is found on Sulawes ...

'', and these three species together may relate ''

Ptilinopus The fruit doves, also known as fruit pigeons, are a genus (''Ptilinopus'') of birds in the pigeon and dove family (Columbidae). These colourful, frugivorous doves are found in forests and woodlands in Southeast Asia and Oceania. It is a large gen ...

'' fruit doves to other imperial pigeons.

Behaviour

The Mindoro imperial pigeon can be seen singly, in pairs or in groups up to four individuals. This species tends to roost together with ''

'' and ''

Columba vitiensis The metallic pigeon (''Columba vitiensis'') also known as white-throated pigeon, is a medium-sized, up to 37 cm long, bird in the family Dove, Columbidae. Identification The adult has an iridescent purple and green crown, black wing and upp ...

'' in the canopy. They tend to be inconspicuous, making it difficult to observe when

roosting 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 lightweight ...

Vocalization

No recordings were found, but it is known to be a distinct

disyllabic A syllable is a basic unit of organization within a sequence of speech sounds, such as within a word, typically defined by linguists as a ''nucleus'' (most often a vowel) with optional sounds before or after that nucleus (''margins'', which are ...

call. Their voice is similar to the other imperial pigeons of Mindoro, but much more resonant and deeper. The Mindoro imperial pigeon's call is frequently heard at dawn.

Diet

Little to no information is known about their diet. The Mindoro imperial pigeon was seen feeding on fruits, from small berries up to large ones as big as the size of a pigeon's egg.

Reproduction

No information can be found about their breeding behaviours. One male was recorded as being in breeding conditions in April and one immature was found in August.

Habitat and conservation status

Ducula mindorensis 1979 stamp of the Philippines

The Mindoro imperial pigeon is distributed throughout

, where sufficient closed canopy forests remain. They used to be found mostly in mountain forests above 1000m. However, in 1991, most of the observations were made in understory trees of the remaining low altitude forests of Mindoro (800-950m). IUCN previously assessed this bird as

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, inv ...

with an estimate of 600 - 1,700 mature individuals but in 2024 this species was reassessed as

with a population estimate of 800 - 3,000 mature individuals. This revised estimate is not a sign that numbers are increasing but rather a reassessment of a very rough estimates based on theorized population density and its theorized extent of occurrence. This species is rare and uncommon but known to be found more easily in Mount Ilong and Mount Halcon. Its habitat is threatened by logging, cultivation, deforestation and forest destruction. Conservation actions proposed include more surveys to better understand population, distribution and ecology, along with efforts to protect the remaining forest on Mount Halcon and lobby for higher priority protection status.

References

External links

BirdLife Species Factsheet.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1079197 Mindoro imperial pigeon Birds of Mindoro Mindoro imperial pigeon Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Endemic birds of the Philippines