Bonin Wood Pigeon

Bonin - pigeon ( Columba versicolor)

The Bonin - pigeon ( Columba versicolor) is an extinct pigeon of the genus field pigeons (Columba ). She was endemic to the Bonin Islands.

Features

The Bonin - pigeon reached a length of 45 centimeters. The back was metallic gold purple. The underside was light gray. The rump was green. The elytra were brighter and more gold. The skull was metallic green. At the back of the neck coloring turned into a dark purple and green. The iris was dark brown. The beak was greenish yellow. The feet were dark red.

Occurrence and habitat

The Bonin - dove came before in the Bonin Islands in forests on Nakodo -jima and Chichi -jima.

Way of life

When Heinrich von Kittlitz the kind discovered in 1828, he was often in association with the violet pigeon ( Columba janthina ) watch. She walked individually or in pairs in search of food and fed on the fruits of fan palms.

Extinction

The main cause of the extinction of the Bonin - pigeon was probably over-hunting. The last specimen was shot in 1889 on Nakodo -jima. There are four museum specimens in Shimane prefecture in Japan, in the Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt am Main, in Saint Petersburg and at the Natural History Museum in London.