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Wood Pigeon

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Birds

                   iWood Pigeon

                             Conservation status

   Least Concern (LC)
            Scientific classification

   Kingdom: Animalia
   Phylum:  Chordata
   Class:   Aves
   Order:   Columbiformes
   Family:  Columbidae
   Genus:   Columba
   Species: C. palumbus

                                Binomial name

   Columba palumbus
   Linnaeus, 1758

   The Wood Pigeon (Columba palumbus) is a member of the family
   Columbidae, doves and pigeons.

   In the colder northern and eastern parts of its European and western
   Asiatic range the Wood Pigeon is a migrant, but in southern and western
   Europe it is a well distributed and often abundant resident.

   The three Western European Columba pigeons, Wood Pigeon, Stock Pigeon,
   and Rock Pigeon, though superficially alike, have very distinctive
   characteristics; the Wood Pigeon may be identified at once by its
   larger size at 38–43 cm, and the white on its neck and wing. It is
   otherwise a basically grey bird, with a pinkish breast.

   Juvenile birds do not have the white patches on either side of the
   neck. When they are about 6 months old (about 3 months out of the nest)
   they gain a small white patch on both sides of the neck, which
   gradually enlarge until they are fully formed when the bird is about
   6–8 months old (approx. ages only). Juvenile birds also have a greyer
   beak and an overall lighter grey appearance than adult birds.

   It breeds in trees in woods, parks and gardens, laying two white eggs
   in a simple stick nest which hatch after 17 to 19 days. Wood pigeons
   seem to have a preference for trees near roadways and rivers. The nests
   are vulnerable to attack, particularly by crows, the more so early in
   the year when the leaf cover is not fully formed. The young usually fly
   at 33 to 34 days; however if the nest is disturbed some young may be
   able to survive having left the nest as early as 20 days from hatching.

   Its flight is quick, performed by regular beats, with an occasional
   sharp flick of the wings, characteristic of pigeons in general. It
   takes off with a loud clattering. It perches well, and in its nuptial
   display walks along a horizontal branch with swelled neck, lowered
   wings, and fanned tail. During the display flight the bird climbs, the
   wings are smartly cracked like a whiplash, and the bird glides down on
   stiff wings. The noise in climbing flight is caused by the whipcracks
   on the downstroke rather than the wings striking together.

   The Wood Pigeon is gregarious, often forming very large flocks outside
   the breeding season. Most of its food is vegetable, taken from open
   fields or gardens and lawns; young shoots and seedlings are favoured,
   and it will take grain.

   The call is a characteristic cooing (coo-coo-coo-cu-cu). This species
   can be an agricultural pest, and it is often shot, being a legal quarry
   species in most European countries. It is wary in rural areas, but
   often quite tame where it is not persecuted.

Gallery

   A Wood Pigeon in an English garden

   Wood Pigeon in an ivy-covered tree. Ivy berries are an important winter
   food for them.

Subspecies

     * Azores Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus azorica Hartert, 1905
     * Asian Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus casiotis (Bonaparte, 1854)
     * North African Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus excelsa (Bonaparte 1856)
     * Iranian Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus iranica (Zarudny, 1910)
     * Madeiran Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus maderensis Tschusi, 1904 †
     * European Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus palumbus Linnaeus, 1758

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_Pigeon"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
