How big is a White-headed Fruit Dove?

The White-headed Fruit Dove is a medium sized bird weighing about 114 g.

Where can you see a White-headed Fruit Dove?

The White-headed Fruit Dove is endemic to the Solomon Islands, which is the only country where it occurs.

What birds look similar to a White-headed Fruit Dove?

The White-headed Fruit Dove is most easily confused with the Atoll Fruit Dove, the Makatea Fruit Dove and the Henderson Fruit Dove.

Is the White-headed Fruit Dove endangered?

The White-headed Fruit Dove is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

White-headed Fruit Dove

Ptilinopus eugeniae

Doves and Pigeons · Columbiformes · Legendary

The White-headed Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus eugeniae) is a legendary doves and pigeon found only in the Solomon Islands, weighing about 114 g. The white-headed fruit dove is a species of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae.

Least ConcernLegendaryEndemicEats fruitforest114 g

White-headed Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus eugeniae), photo 1 — Photo: Euan Moore · http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

White-headed Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus eugeniae), photo 2 — Photo: Euan Moore · http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

White-headed Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus eugeniae), photo 3 — Photo: Euan Moore · CC BY 4.0

White-headed Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus eugeniae), photo 4 — Photo: Auckland Museum Collections from Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand · Public domain

White-headed Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus eugeniae), photo 5 — Photo: (c) Euan Moore, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY

About the White-headed Fruit Dove

The white-headed fruit dove is a species of bird in the pigeon family Columbidae. It was described by the English ornithologist John Gould in 1856, and the specific name eugeniae honours the French empress Eugénie de Montijo. Adults of the species have white heads, a purplish-red breast patch, a grey shoulder patch, olive-green upperparts, greenish underparts with a blue tinge, and a yellowish vent. Juveniles have green heads with the white restricted to the forehead and upper throat, a much smaller grey shoulder patch, and the red breast patch restricted to the centre of the breast.

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

How to identify it

The white-headed fruit dove is a small, plump, and short-tailed species of fruit dove, with a length of 18–22 cm (7.1–8.7 in). The entire head and upper throat are snowy white, while the back of the neck is white with a pale yellow tinge. The rest of the upperparts are mainly olive green, with the neck, mantle and scapulars having a coppery luster and the wing being darker green with a bluish gloss. The marginal coverts are pale grey and form a well-defined shoulder patch and there are also small grey spots on the covert feathers and tertiary feathers.

Where it lives

Solomon Islands

When to see it

Best months: January, March, April, May, June, July, October, November, December, with peak activity in March. It is a variable species across most of its range.

Easily confused with

Quick questions

How do you identify a White-headed Fruit Dove?: The white-headed fruit dove is a small, plump, and short-tailed species of fruit dove, with a length of 18–22 cm (7.1–8.7 in). Full identification notes are on this page.
How big is a White-headed Fruit Dove?: The White-headed Fruit Dove is a medium sized bird weighing about 114 g.
Where can you see a White-headed Fruit Dove?: The White-headed Fruit Dove is endemic to the Solomon Islands, which is the only country where it occurs.
What birds look similar to a White-headed Fruit Dove?: The White-headed Fruit Dove is most easily confused with the Atoll Fruit Dove, the Makatea Fruit Dove and the Henderson Fruit Dove.
Is the White-headed Fruit Dove endangered?: The White-headed Fruit Dove is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Learn the White-headed Fruit Dove for real

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