Spotted dove
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The spotted dove or eastern spotted dove (Spilopelia chinensis) is a small and somewhat long-tailed pigeon that is a common resident breeding bird across its native range on the Indian subcontinent and in East and Southeast Asia. The species has been introduced to many parts of the world and feral populations have become established.
This species was formerly included in the genus Streptopelia with other turtle-doves, but studies suggest that they differ from typical members of that genus. This dove is long tailed buff brown with a white-spotted black collar patch on the back and sides of the neck. The tail tips are white and the wing coverts have light buff spots.
There are considerable plumage variations across populations within its wide range. The species is found in light forests and gardens as well as in urban areas. They fly from the ground with an explosive flutter and will sometimes glide down to a perch. It is also called the mountain dove, pearl-necked dove, lace-necked dove, and spotted turtle-dove.
TaxonomyEdit
The spotted dove was formally described in 1786 by the Austrian naturalist Giovanni Antonio Scopoli and given the binomial name Columba chinensis.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Scopoli based his account on "La tourterelle gris de la Chine" that had been described and illustrated in 1782 by the French naturalist Pierre Sonnerat in the second volume of his book Voyage aux Indes orientales et à la Chine.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This species was formerly included in the genus Streptopelia.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2001 found the genus was paraphyletic with respect to Columba.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> To create monophyletic genera the spotted dove as well as the closely related laughing dove were moved to the resurrected genus Spilopelia that had been introduced by the Swedish zoologist Carl Sundevall in 1873. Sundevall had designated Columba tigrina as the type species, a taxon that is now considered a subspecies of the spotted dove.<ref>Template:Cite book Although the title page in dated 1872, the part containing pages 100 and 186 was published in 1873.</ref><ref name=ioc/>
Several subspecies have been proposed for the plumage and size variation seen in different geographic populations. The nominate form is from China (Canton), which is also the origin of the introduced population in Hawaii. Subspecies formosa from Taiwan has been considered as doubtful and indistinguishable from the nominate population. The population in India suratensis (type locality Surat) and ceylonensis from Sri Lanka have fine rufous or buff spots on the back. There is a size reduction trend with specimens from southern India being smaller, and ceylonensis may merely be a part of this cline. The lesser and median wing-coverts are also spotted at the tip in buff.<ref name=fbi2>Template:Cite book</ref> This spotting is lacking on populations further north and east of India, such as tigrina, which also differ greatly in vocalizations from the Indian forms. The population from Hainan Island is placed in hainana. Others like vacillans (=chinensis) and forresti (= tigrina) and edwardi (from Chabua = suratensis) have been considered invalid.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name=hbk/>
Five subspecies are recognised:<ref name=ioc>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Spilopelia chinensis suratensis (Gmelin, JF, 1789) – Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan
- Spilopelia chinensis ceylonensis (Reichenbach, 1851) – Sri Lanka (has shorter wings than suratensis<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>)
- Spilopelia chinensis tigrina (Temminck, 1809) – Bangladesh and northeast India through Indochina to Philippines and the Sunda Islands
- Spilopelia chinensis chinensis (Scopoli, 1786) – northeast Myanmar to central and east China, Taiwan
- Spilopelia chinensis hainana (Hartert, 1910) – Hainan (off southeast China)
The subspecies S. c. suratensis and S. c. ceylonensis differ significantly from the other subspecies in both plumage and vocalization.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This has led some ornithologists to treat S. c. suratensis as a separate species, the western spotted dove.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Spotted dove -- Spilopelia chinensis cropped & noise-processed.png
S. c. tigrina
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - Spilopelia chinensis Zhengzhou 20220915, crop.jpg
S. c. chinensis
Zhengzhou, China
DescriptionEdit
The ground colour of this long and slim dove is rosy buff below shading into grey on the head and belly. There is a half collar on the back and sides of the neck made of black feathers that bifurcate and have white spots at the two tips. The median coverts have brown feathers tipped with rufous spots in the Indian and Sri Lankan subspecies which are divided at the tip by a widening grey shaft streak.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=fbi2/>
The wing feathers are dark brown with grey edges. The centre of the abdomen and vent are white. The outer tail feathers are tipped in white and become visible when the bird takes off. Sexes are similar, but juveniles are duller than adults and do not acquire the neck spots until they are mature. The length ranges from 28 to 32 centimetres (11.2 to 12.8 inches).<ref name=fbi2/><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Abnormal plumages such as leucism can sometimes occur in the wild.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
- Bifidfeather.jpg
The bifid neck feathers<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
- Streptopelia chinensis-flying.jpg
In flight
- Juvenile Spotted Dove.jpg
A juvenile bird
Distribution and habitatEdit
The spotted dove in its native range in Asia is found across a range of habitats including woodland, scrub, farmland and habitation. In India it tends to be found in the moister regions, with the laughing dove (S. senegalensis) appearing more frequently in drier areas. These doves are mostly found on the ground where they forage for seeds and grain or on low vegetation.<ref name=hbk>Template:Cite book</ref>
The species has become established in many areas outside its native range. These areas include Hawaii, southern California,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Mauritius,<ref>Roger Safford and Frank Hawkins, The Birds of Africa: Volume VIII: The Malagasy Region: Madagascar, Seychelles, Comoros, Mascarenes, A&C Black, 2013.</ref> Australia<ref name="BirdLifeAus">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and New Zealand.<ref>Barrie Heather and Hugh Robertson, The Field Guide to the Birds of New Zealand, Viking, 1996.</ref>
In Australia they were introduced into Melbourne in the 1860s and have since spread but there is insufficient evidence that they compete with native doves. They are now found in streets, parks, gardens, agricultural areas, and tropical scrubs in diverse locations throughout eastern Australia and around the cities and major towns across southern Australia.<ref name="BirdLifeAus"/> The original populations appear to be S. c. chinensis and S. c. tigrina in varying proportions.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Behaviour and ecologyEdit
Spotted doves move around in pairs or small groups<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> as they forage on the ground for grass seeds, grains, fallen fruits and seeds of other plants.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> They may however take insects occasionally and have been recorded feeding on winged termites.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The flight is quick with regular beats and an occasional sharp flick of the wings. A display flight involves taking off at a steep angle with a loud clapping of the wing and then slowly gliding down with the tail spread out.<ref name="hbk" /> The breeding season is spread out in warm regions but tends to be in summer in the temperate ranges.<ref name=hbk/> In Hawaii, they breed all year round, as do all three other introduced species of doves. Males coo, bow and make aerial displays in courtship.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In southern Australia, they breed mostly from September to January, and in the north in autumn.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> They nest mainly in low vegetation, building a flimsy cup of twigs in which two whitish eggs are laid. Nests are sometimes placed on the ground or on buildings and other structures.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Both parents take part in building the nest, incubating and feeding the young. The eggs hatch after about 13 days and fledge after a fortnight.<ref name=hbk/> More than one brood may be raised.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
The vocalizations of the spotted dove include cooing softly with a Krookruk-krukroo... kroo kroo kroo with the number of terminal kroos varying in the Indian population and absent in tigrina, chinensis and other populations to the east.<ref name=hbk/>
The species has been extending its range in many parts of the world. Populations may sometimes rise and fall rapidly, within a span of about five years.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> In the Philippines, the species may be outcompeting the Streptopelia dusumieri.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Their habit of flushing into the air when disturbed makes them a hazard on airfields, often colliding with aircraft and sometimes causing damage.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>