African green pigeon

The African green pigeon is a species of bird in the family Columbidae, and one of 5 green pigeon species in the Afrotropics. The species has a wide range in Sub-Saharan Africa with around 17 accepted races.

Description and subspecies

Adult African green pigeons have maroon patches on the top of their wings and the juveniles have an olive color. The upperparts are grayish-green to yellowish-green; the thighs are yellow; and the feet and bill are red with the bill having a white tip.

T. c. calvus: eastern Nigeria to northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and central Angola
T. c. virescens: Principe Island
T. c. sharpei: Sierra Leone to south Nigeria and north Cameroon
T. c. nudirostris: Senegal to Gambia and Guinea-Bissau
T. c. poensis: Bioko Island
T. c. uellensis: South Sudan, northern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda
T. c. brevicera: Southwest Ethiopia to north Tanzania east of Rift Valley
T. c. salvadorii: eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, southwestern Tanzania, Zambia, northern Malawi, and Mozambique
T. c. wakefieldii: coastal Kenya and northeastern Tanzania
T. c. schalowi: eastern Angola, northeastern Namibia, northern Botswana, and northwestern Zimbabwe
T. c. ansorgei: West Angola
T. c. vylderi: Northwest Namibia
T. c. gibberifrons: southeastern South Sudan south to the Lake Victoria Basin in Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, western Kenya, and northwestern Tanzania
T. c. : coast from southeastern Tanzania south to South Africa
T. c. granti: Lowlands of east Tanzania and Zanzibar

Range

They may occur and breed in high densities but are prone to regular local movements. Their range includes Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Habits

As with others in their genus, they frequent tree canopies where their parrot-like climbing ability enable them to reach fruit, but rarely also forage on the ground. Their call is a series of flowing whistles, rendered as 'thweeeloo, thweeeoo'. They inhabit riparian forest, woodland and savanna, where they associate with fruiting trees, especially wild fig species, including Ficus sycomorus and Ficus sur, and in cities the ornamental Chinese banyan. They also take fruit of Saffrons, Jacket plum, Cordia africana, Buffalo thorn, Water berry and Jackalberry. They may also feed on exotic Loquats and Mulberries, or on carrion by occasion.

Nesting

They nest in a tree fork that offers an adequate vantage point of their surrounds. The nest is a weak platform of sticks, collected by the male and arranged by the female.