Wallace's Fruit Dove

About the Wallace's Fruit Dove

Wallace's fruit dove is a species of a bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. The name commemorates the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace. It is a rather large, long-tailed fruit dove with a length of 24–28 cm (9.4–11.0 in) and has been described as "one of the most beautiful" fruit doves. The forehead and crown are dull crimson, the lower face and throat are white, and the rest of the head, breast, neck, and upper back are pale bluish-grey. The wings and lower back are green and the belly is orange, separated from the chest by a white band. Both sexes look similar, but females have less extensive red on the head and a greenish tinge to their grey parts.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

ID tip

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Where it lives

When to see it

Peak activity in October · a variable species across most of its range

Easily confused with

Knob-billed Fruit DovePtilinopus insolitusThe knob-billed fruit dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae. Geelvink Fruit DovePtilinopus speciosusThe male has a dark green head and upperparts, a mauve belly, a bright yellow breast band bordered by white, and bold lime-yellow bare skin around the eyes. Yellow-bibbed Fruit DovePtilinopus solomonensisThe yellow-bibbed fruit dove or yellow-banded fruit dove is a species of bird in the family Columbidae.