European Turtle Dove

Streptopelia turtur

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderColumbiformes (Pigeons and Doves)
FamilyColumbidae (Pigeons and Doves)
GenusStreptopelia (Turtle-Doves and Collared-Doves)
SpeciesStreptopelia turtur (European Turtle Dove)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Picos de Europa National Park

1 Verified sightings at Picos de Europa National Park From 2019 to 2026

2,481 Verified sightings across all 22 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the European Turtle Dove

The European turtle dove (Streptopelia turtur) is a threatened or vulnerable member of the bird family Columbidae, the doves and pigeons. It breeds over a wide area of the south western Palearctic including north Africa but migrates to northern sub-Saharan Africa in winter.

The European turtle dove was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other pigeons in the genus Columba and coined the binomial name Columba turtur. The specific epithet turtur is the Latin word for a turtle dove. Linnaeus gave the locality as "India". This was an error, and the type locality has been designated as England. The species is now placed in the genus Streptopelia that was introduced in 1855 by the French ornithologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte.

Four subspecies are recognised: S. t. turtur (Linnaeus, 1758) – Europe, Madeira and the Canary Islands to western Siberia S. t. arenicola (Hartert, 1894) – Northwest Africa to Iran and western China S. t. hoggara (Geyr von Schweppenburg, 1916) – Air Massif and Hoggar Mountains (southern Sahara)

S. t. rufescens (Brehm, CL, 1845) – Egypt and northern Sudan... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Picos de Europa National Park

Columba palumbus

Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Fertő-Hanság National Park	🇭🇺 Hungary	~30%
2	Kiskunság National Park	🇭🇺 Hungary	~20%
3	Niokolo-Koba National Park	🇸🇳 Senegal	~20%
4	Hortobágy National Park	🇭🇺 Hungary	~10%
5	Camargue	🇫🇷 France	~10%
6	Monfragüe National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	~10%
7	Doñana National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	~10%
8	Pyrénées National Park	🇫🇷 France	<5%
9	Sierra Nevada National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	<5%
10	Sierra de Guadarrama National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	<5%
11	Biebrza National Park	🇵🇱 Poland	<5%
12	Bavarian Forest National Park	🇩🇪 Germany	<5%
13	Wadden Sea National Park	🇩🇪 Germany	<5%
14	Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	Insufficient data
15	Cévennes National Park	🇫🇷 France	Insufficient data
16	Awash National Park	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	Insufficient data
17	Tatra National Park	🇸🇰 Slovakia	Insufficient data
18	Mercantour National Park	🇫🇷 France	Insufficient data
19	Białowieża National Park	🇵🇱 Poland	Insufficient data
20	Triglav National Park	🇸🇮 Slovenia	Insufficient data
21	Picos de Europa National Park	🇪🇸 Spain	Insufficient data
22	Cairngorms National Park	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	Insufficient data

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