Spinifex pigeon
| Spinifex pigeon | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Columbiformes |
| Family: | Columbidae |
| Genus: | Geophaps |
| Species: | G. plumifera |
| Binomial name | |
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Geophaps plumifera Gould, 1842 |
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The spinifex pigeon (Geophaps plumifera), also known as the plumed-pigeon, is one of four endemic Australian bird species within the genus Geophaps. It occurs within a broader group known as bronzewing pigeons. This species is listed under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List category ‘of least concern’. It most frequently occurs in arid and semi-arid habitats containing hummock-forming grasses of the genera Triodia and Plectrachne.
The spinifex pigeon is a small and compact pigeon, which weighs 80-110 g., has a mean body length of 200 - 235mm, and wingspan of 300–350 mm. Males are slightly larger than females, and generally difficult to visually differentiate.
The plumage is distinctively rufous-brown with thin black bars on the wings and back. The forehead, sides of crown and ear coverts are grey and the bill is black. The facial markings are bold and distinctive, a bright red facial mask is bordered by a black supercilium and moustacial stripe. A white band extends from the chin to behind the eye and the throat is black. A white stripe is present on the breast, and the legs and feet are grey. There is no seasonal variation in plumage.
There is substantial geographical variation in the colour of the plumage on the belly, which is reflected in the separation of the western brown-bellied birds from the other subspecies recognised.
The spinifex pigeon occurs throughout much of arid and semiarid northern and central Australia and there have been several revisions at both the species and subspecies level. The current taxonomy was determined through a comprehensive examination of twelve variables in 712 specimens from 54 localities. Three subspecies are recognised:
Geophaps p. subsp. plumifera, is found in the arid areas of north-western and northern Australia, Geophaps plumifera subsp. leucogaster inhabits central Australia and north-western Queensland, and Geophaps plumifera subsp. ferruginea, is found in the Pilbara, Western Australia.
The divergence of the subspecies recognised has been linked to isolation caused by aridity from climatic oscillations during the Pleistocene. It is thought that G. p. plumifera was originally present in the interior of Australia and much of north and central Australia in a less arid period. Subsequent aridity is thought to have resulted in the isolation of a western group, now recognised as G. p. ferruginea, followed by a later split of a northern group, currently recognised as G. p. leucogaster. The later split thought to have resulted in less divergence.
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Wikipedia