Chilean pigeon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Chilean pigeon |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Patagioenas
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| Species: |
araucana
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| Synonyms | |
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Columba araucana Lesson, 1827 |
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The Chilean pigeon (Patagioenas araucana) is a type of bird that belongs to the Columbidae family, which includes pigeons and doves. You can find this bird in Chile and Argentina.
Contents
About the Chilean Pigeon
The Chilean pigeon is a unique species, meaning it's the only one of its kind in its group. It might be related to other pigeons like the ring-tailed pigeon and the band-tailed pigeon.
What Does It Look Like?
The Chilean pigeon is about 35 to 37 centimeters (14 to 15 inches) long. It weighs between 220 and 340 grams (7.8 to 12 ounces).
Adult male pigeons are mostly a reddish-purple color. They have a shiny green neck with a thin white line across the top. Their lower back, rump, and tail are gray, and the tail has a wide black stripe in the middle. Their wings can be gray or black. Their eyes are orange, surrounded by a thin pink or yellow ring and some bare purple skin.
Female pigeons are usually duller and more brownish than the males. Young pigeons are mostly shades of gray.
Where Does It Live?
You can find the Chilean pigeon in Chile, from the Coquimbo Region down to the Aysén Region. It also lives in parts of Argentina that are next to southern Chile.
This bird mostly lives in cool, wet forests in the southern parts of its range. It especially likes forests with Araucaria and Nothofagus trees. In the northern areas, it lives in drier forests. Sometimes, it also looks for food in open areas close to forests.
How Does It Behave?
What Does It Eat?
The Chilean pigeon mainly eats fruit from trees. However, it will also eat seeds found in open grassy areas.
How Does It Raise Its Young?
The breeding season for Chilean pigeons is from December to at least March, and sometimes even until May. These birds like to nest together in large groups, sometimes with hundreds of pairs. They build their nests deep inside the forest, often in thick bamboo plants.
The nest is a simple platform made of sticks. It's so thin that you can sometimes see the single egg right through it!
What Does It Sound Like?
The Chilean pigeon's song is a series of deep "hoos." It can also sound like a deep, doubled "hooo-HOOOO hooo-HOOOO hooo-HOOOO..."
Is It in Danger?
The IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) says that the Chilean pigeon is a species of "Least Concern." This means it's not currently in danger of disappearing.
However, cutting down old forests is a problem for these birds. When forests are cut down, their homes get broken up into smaller pieces, and there's less space for them to live.
See also
In Spanish: Paloma araucana para niños
