Spot-breasted cuckoo-dove
The spot-breasted cuckoo-dove, also known as Mackinlay's cuckoo-dove, is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. It is found in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. It is rated as a species of least concern on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Endangered Species.
Taxonomy
The specific epithet is named after the Scottish naturalist Archibald Mackinlay.Description
The spot-breasted cuckoo-dove is a small greyish brown or reddish brown cuckoo-dove; these two distinct color morphs are unique among pigeons. It measures in length, and weighs about. It has a relatively short beak. The breast feathers have black bases and are bifurcated, the lack of the feather tip exposing adjoining feather bases and giving the breast a spotted appearance. The juvenile is barred, and similar to the female spot-breasted cuckoo-dove or the juvenile Amboyna cuckoo-dove.The spot-breasted cuckoo-dove is similar in appearance to the slender-billed cuckoo-dove which is relatively larger, has a longer beak, and its upperparts are darker brown than the buffier underparts. In females of that species, the breast is barred with black above and across, and the breast feathers do not bifurcate.
It is also similar to the bar-tailed cuckoo-dove which is slightly larger than it is and has richer reddish brown plumage but not the paler head and underparts of the Mackinlay's cuckoo-dove. The underparts of the female bar-tailed cuckoo-dove are rufous-buff but the feathers are not bifurcated and the breast lacks the black speckling of the spot-breasted cuckoo-dove.