Yellow-footed Green Pigeon
Treron phoenicopterus
Summary 2
The Yellow-footed Green Pigeon (Treron phoenicoptera), also known as Yellow-legged Green Pigeon, is a common species of green pigeon found in the Indian Subcontinent. It is the state bird of Maharashtra. In Marathi it is called Hariyal. The species feeds on fruit, including many species of Ficus. They forage in flocks. In the early morning they are often seen sunning on the tops of emergent trees in dense forest areas.
Behaviour 3
"This Green Pigeon—as well as the numerous other species that inhabit our area—is exclusively arboreal and seldom, if ever, descends to the ground. It affects open well-wooded country as well as forest, and is frequently found in the vicinity of towns and villages, even entering gardens. The birds deftly climb about the twigs of fruit-bearing trees, often clinging upside down to get at some fig or berry, they keep in (locks of from 10 to 50 birds, and sometimes collect in enormous numbers on banyan or peepal trees to gorge themselves on the ripe figs, in association with mynas, hornbills, bulbuls and other frugivorous species. When a tree is approached, the green pigeons become immobile. Their plumage blends so perfectly with the surrounding leaves that inspite of their large size the birds become completely obliterated until an inadvertent movement here and another there gives their presence away. The unsuspected numbers that will flutter out of a fig-laden banyan when a gun is fired is often quite amazing. When thus disturbed the flock will settle in another tree not far off, returning to the feast as soon as their suspicion is allayed, in twos and threes and small parties until the foliage is once again a jostling mass of green pigeons all eager to make up for lost time. The birds spend the day doing the rounds of fruiting trees, resting at intervals on the topmost branches of a dry or leafless one. Their food consists entirely of fruits and berries—wild figs predominatingly—but buds and shoots are also eaten. They have pleasant, soft and mellow whistling calls which usually give the first indication of their presence in a locality. The flight is noisy, swift, strong, and direct."
Sources and Credits
- (c) c michael hogan, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by c michael hogan
- Adapted by c michael hogan from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treron_phoenicopterus
- (c) India Biodiversity Portal, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://eol.org/data_objects/26325633
