Grenada dove
| Grenada dove | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Columbiformes |
| Family: | Columbidae |
| Genus: | Leptotila |
| Species: | L. wellsi |
| Binomial name | |
|
Leptotila wellsi (Lawrence, 1884) |
|
The Grenada dove (Leptotila wellsi) is a medium-sized New World tropical dove. It is endemic to the island of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles. Originally known as the pea dove or Well's dove, it is the National Bird of Grenada. It is considered to be one of the most critically endangered doves in the world (Bird Life International 2000).
The Grenada dove is characterised by a white throat; face and forehead pale pink shading to dull brown on crown and nape; upperparts olive brown; underwing chestnut; neck and upper breast pink-buff fading to white on lower breast, belly and undertail coverts.
First described in 1884 by Lawrence as a member of the genus Engyptila, it was established as a distinct species using sonographic analysis by Blockstein and Hardy (1988). Now officially known as the Grenada dove, it was designated as the national bird in 1991 and is one of the flagship species for conservation efforts in Grenada.
The Grenada dove is a little-known species endemic to the main island of Grenada, West Indies. Historically, it has been recorded from locations throughout Grenada, including offshore islands, and the type specimen was collected from Fontenoy, on the west coast.
Some surveys imply that Grenada doves are associated with dry forest communities in the west and southwest parts of the main island (Blockstein 1988, Blockstein and Hardy 1989, Bird Life International 2000). True dry forest ecosystems are remnants of a type of xeric scrub habitat that dominated the West Indies at the end of the , and most areas classified as dry forest in the Caribbean are mosaics of degraded habitat, and do not represent natural ecosystems (Murphy and Lugo 1986, Vidal and Casado 2000). Beard noted the degraded nature of forested areas in Grenada in 1949.
Results from the Grenada Dry Forest Biodiversity Conservation Project indicate that Grenada doves are found most often in areas composed primarily of degraded mosaics of evergreen forest. The overall uniting factors in Grenada dove habitat issues are the degraded nature of the habitat and close proximity to human habitation. This is readily apparent at the Mount Hartman sanctuary, which is an old government cattle farm with vegetation composed primarily of exotic species such as Leucaena leucocephala and Heamatoxylon. Populations of doves associated with the old golf course below Jean Anglais, in the Richmond Hill Watershed, are under heavy pressure from development for private homes, and are well outside the boundaries of the Mount Hartman Sanctuary as are most Grenada doves. Mount Hartman could be considered prime cattle habitat and has been developed as such until recent times.
...
Wikipedia