Cream-breasted Fruit-Dove Ptilinopus merrilli Scientific name definitions

32–33 cm; 263 g. Large fruit-dove; general plumage deep green, shading to pale grey tinged with green on the head , neck and breast; throat whitish; grey of upper breast divided from creamy buff of lower breast and belly by narrow dark green band; flanks green; undertail-coverts and tibial feathers greenish with whitish tips; outer secondaries dark green with pale yellow edges to outer webs, primaries mostly greenish black; a patch on central secondaries formed by hair-like barbs, appearing purplish when viewed from side but bright crimson when viewed frontally; tail dark green with indistinct pale terminal band on outer feathers; underside of tail pale grey; bill red at base, dull yellow at tip; legs dark red. Sexes alike. Race faustinoi differs by having brownish-red patch on crown.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Primary and selectively logged forest from lowlands up to 1300 m.

No information available.

Fruit; the only specific information is a record of species feeding on fruits of the small tree Symplocos ahernii.

Advertising call is a series of very burry coos (duration c. 0·5–0·6 seconds, pitch 300–500 Hz) delivered at a rate of c. 1 note per second, e.g. “rrruuh...rrruuh...rrruuh...”.

Scant information available. A nest found in May 1997 contained a single egg (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ).

Not globally threatened. Currently considered Near Threatened. This species is at least vulnerable, since it occupies a limited range within an area undergoing severe deforestation and habitat loss and hunting have undoubtedly caused a moderately rapid decline. It was already listed as rare in 1946 and is considered to be endangered by conservation groups in the Philippines. However it has been found to be locally common in the Sierra Madre and on Patnanungan island and may have been overlooked to some extent (1 Gibbs, D., E. Barnes, and J. Cox (2001). Pigeons and Doves: A Guide to the Pigeons and Doves of the World. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ). Research and survey work required.