Columba hodgsonii
The Speckled Wood Pigeon, Columba hodgsonii, is a striking, medium-sized pigeon found across the Himalayan region and Southeast Asia. Measuring approximately 38-41 cm in length, its most distinctive feature is the rich purplish-chestnut head and nape, contrasting with a dusky greyish-brown body adorned with large, pale rufous-buff spots across its mantle and upper back, creating its characteristic 'speckled' appearance. Iridescent green and purple gloss often shimmers on its neck. Its bill is...
This species primarily inhabits montane evergreen and mixed deciduous forests, frequently found near cultivation. It thrives at elevations ranging from 1,200 to 4,000 meters, descending to lower altitudes in winter.
This pigeon is predominantly frugivorous, feeding mainly on a wide variety of fruits and berries, including those from oaks, laurels, and wild cherries. It also consumes seeds, buds, and occasionally grains, typically foraging arboreally within the forest canopy.
The Speckled Wood Pigeon is a diurnal species, often forming large, spectacular flocks outside the breeding season, sometimes numbering hundreds, particularly at abundant fruiting trees. These communal roosts and feeding aggregations are a sight for birders. Foraging occurs predominantly in the c...
The Speckled Wood Pigeon's breeding range spans the formidable Himalayan arc, extending from northeastern Afghanistan, through northern Pakistan, northern India (Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh), Nepal, and Bhutan, eastward into southern China (Tibet, Yunnan, Sichuan), an...
Least Concern
- The scientific name, *hodgsonii*, honors Brian Houghton Hodgson, a British naturalist and ethnologist who worked extensively in Nepal. - It is one of the highest-dwelling pigeon species, regularly found at elevations of up to 4,000 meters in the Himalayas. - Outside the breeding season, it ofte...