Common ground dove
| Common ground dove | |
|---|---|
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| near Salton Sea, California, USA | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Columbiformes |
| Family: | Columbidae |
| Genus: | Columbina |
| Species: | C. passerina |
| Binomial name | |
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Columbina passerina (Linnaeus, 1758) |
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| Approximate range | |
| Synonyms | |
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Columbigallina passerina |
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Columbigallina passerina
The common ground dove (Columbina passerina) is a small bird that inhabits the southern United States, parts of Central America, the Caribbean and northern South America. The common ground dove is considered to be the smallest dove that inhabits the United States. As its name suggests, the bird spends the majority of its time on the ground walking but still has the ability to fly.
The common ground dove is North America's smallest dove and is one of the world's smallest by mass. This species ranges from 15–18 cm (5.9–7.1 in) in length, spans 27 cm (11 in) across the wings and weighs 26–40 g (0.92–1.41 oz). The common ground dove has a yellow beak with a black tip. Feathers surrounding the beak are pink in colour. The feathers on the head and the upper breast have a scale like appearance. The tail feathers are very short and similar colour to the back. The plumage on the back of the bird is brown. The coverts and wing feathers are also brown but have black spotting on them. The common ground dove has chestnut primaries and wing borders, which can only been seen when the bird is flying. The common ground dove shows some sexual dimorphism in their plumage. The males have slate gray feathers on the top of their heads and pink-gray colouration on their belly. Females on the other hand are more gray than their male counterparts and are more evenly coloured.
The common ground dove is member of the genus Columbina, which are the new world ground doves. There are six other members in this genus including the Inca dove (Columbina inca) and the scaled dove (Columbina squammata). The genus Columbina is in the family Columbidae within the order Columbiformes, which are commonly known as the pigeons and doves.
There are also 15 different subspecies or races, which differ mainly in geographical location.
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Wikipedia