Scaled Pigeon
Patagioenas speciosa
Silhouette: Ferran Sayol · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderColumbiformes (Pigeons and Doves)
- FamilyColumbidae (Pigeons and Doves)
- GenusPatagioenas (New World Pigeons)
- SpeciesPatagioenas speciosa (Scaled Pigeon)
About the Scaled Pigeon
The scaled pigeon (Patagioenas speciosa) is a large New World tropical dove. It is a resident breeder from southern Mexico south to western Ecuador, southern Brazil, northern Argentina, and Trinidad. The scaled pigeon is fairly common in semi-open forest. It builds a stick platform nest in a tree and lays two white eggs.
Its flight is high, fast and direct, with the regular beats and an occasional sharp flick of the wings which are characteristic of pigeons in general. It is usually very wary, since it is frequently hunted. The scaled pigeon was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other doves and pigeons in the genus Columba and coined the binomial name Columba speciosa. Gmelin based his description on "Le Ramiret" and the "Pigeon ramier de Cayenne" that had been described and illustrated in 1871 by the French polymath Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon. The scaled pigeon was moved to the resurrected genus Patagioenas based on a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2001. The genus had been introduced by the German naturalist... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Scaled Pigeon in Volcán Barú National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Volcán Barú National Park
Band-tailed Pigeon
Patagioenas fasciata
Ruddy Pigeon
Patagioenas subvinacea
Pale-vented Pigeon
Patagioenas cayennensis
Short-billed Pigeon
Patagioenas nigrirostris
Maroon-chested Ground-dove
Claravis mondetoura
White-tipped Dove
Leptotila verreauxi
Buff-fronted Quail-Dove
Zentrygon costaricensis
Mourning Dove
Zenaida macroura
Chiriqui Quail-Dove
Zentrygon chiriquensis
Ruddy Ground-Dove
Columbina talpacoti
Blue Ground-Dove
Claravis pretiosa
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.