BTO BirdFacts | Woodpigeon

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Page updated:16-January-2013

	Order: Columbiformes	Family: Columbidae
	BTO Codes: WP, WOODP	EURING No: 6700
	Number in Britain: 2.7 million territories (Summer)
	Conservation Status:
	UK: GREEN
	European: Not a species of concern
	Global: (Details)
Links to: Images Videos Sound

Status in UK: (A) Resident Breeder, Winter Visitor
Subspecies: palumbus recorded in Britain (of 5 subsp. in the world)
.
Length: 41 cm	Wingspan: 78 cm	Weight: M/F: 450 g

Scientific name from:	L.: columba=a pigeon or dove and L.: palumbes=woodpigeon
World Distribution:	Europe, se&c Asia, nw Africa

Habitat:	Towns, woodland
Diet:	Seeds, leaves, fruit (esp. of Ivy), buds and root crops
TitBit:	Rather than feed their young insects, pigeons feed them a milk formed from sloughing off fluid-filled cells in the crop lining and is more nutritious than human or cow's milk.

	Population Trend:	BirdTrends
	Regional Trends:	Scotland Wales England English Regions
	Distribution:	Atlas Maps BBS Maps
	Abundance Maps:	Population Density Change in Density Guide to Interpretation

British Population Size:

Summer: 2.5 to 3 million territories in 2000 Baker, H. et al. (2006) British Birds 99:25-44

First Record: Recorded in Anglo-Saxon times Bircham, P. 2007. A history of ornithology, Collins. [805 BIR]

[Fossil evidence from Devensian (last) glaciation, 10-120,000 yr ago]

Conservation Status: GREEN Eaton, M.A. et al. 2009. British Birds 102:296-341

Previous Assessments: 2002-2007 GREEN Gregory, R.D. et al. 2002. British Birds 95:410-448

1996-2001 GREEN Gibbons, D.W. et al. 1996. RSPB Conservation Review 10:7-18

Races of Concern: palumbus GREEN

Habitat Occupancy (in the Breeding Season):

Most frequent in: Deciduous Wood

Also common in: Scrub, Arable Farmland, Pasture Farmland, Villages, Towns

And found in: Coniferous Wood

Relative Frequency in Each Habitat:

Migration routes: Map of foreign ringing recoveries

European Population Size:

Summer: 8 to 14 million pairs (Trend in Numbers) Bufield, I. & Van Bommel, F. (2004) Birds in Europe. Birdlife International, Cambridge.

Population Assesment from Birds in Europe

Distribution in Europe mapped by the EBCC Atlas

Listed on the Appendices/Schedules of: WCA(III),WBD(I*,II*, III*)

Survey Results:	Results from BirdTrack
	Results from Garden BirdWatch
	Results from GBW Factsheet

Breeding and Survival
Egg Size: 41 x 29 mm	Egg Weight: 18.9 g (of which 7 % is shell)

Number of Nest Records: 757
Clutch Size: 2 eggs
Incubation: 17 days		by the: Male + Female
Fledging: 33 - 34days		as: Altricial, downy

First Clutches Laid: 30 Apr (22 Feb - 20 Aug)
Number of Broods: 1-2
See trends in Breeding Productivity

Number Ringed: Annual Totals
Adult Survival: 0.607 ± 0.016
Juvenile Survival: 0.520 (to age . )

Age at First Breeding: 1 year	Typical Lifespan: 3 years
Maximum Recorded Age: 17 years 8 months 19 days (set in 1999)
Read a summary of Ringing Recoveries

Biometrics
Ring Size: F
Wing Length	Adult:	252.5 ± 8.2 Range 209.0 - 284.0 mm, (N = 1881)
	Juvenile:	238.2 ± 13.0 Range 195.0 - 270.0 mm, (N = 1242)
	Male:	257.5 ± 7.3 Range 232.0 - 276.0 mm, (N = 75)
	Female:	251.4 ± 8.0 Range 227.0 - 274.0 mm, (N = 84)

Weight	Adult:	517.0 ± 71.37 Range 186.0 - 740.0 g , (N =1180)
	Juvenile:	402.4 ± 75.7 Range 187.7 - 670.0 . , (N =980)
	Male:	532.7 ± 72.68 Range 188.0 - 680.0 g , (N =38)
	Female:	500.6 ± 76.53 Range 186.0 - 640.0 g , (N =55)
	Seasonal:	Summer 501.2 ± 55.98 (N = 2084) Autumn 514.3 ± 61.99 (N = 842) Winter 539.7 ± 71.71 (N = 1377)
	Source:	British Trust for Ornithology (2005) Ringing Scheme data

For More Information...
Books and Monographs:
Goodwin, D. 1983 Pigeons and doves of the world (3rd ed) Cornell University Press, Ithaca [598.623 GOO]
Murton, R.K. 1965 The wood-pigeon Collins, London [598.523 MUR]
Colquhoun, M.K. 1951 The wood-pigeon in Britain HMSO, London

See Also:
Find scientific papers on Google Scholar or Scirus by clicking the icon
Wikipedia entry
BirdLife species page
Recent sightings and information from BirdGuides
Read State of the Nations Birds by Chris Mead

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