Silvery Wood-Pigeon Columba argentina Scientific name definitions

34–38 cm. Mostly very pale bluish grey with black primaries and secondaries ; tail greyish white on basal half, black distally; hint of green iridescence on hindneck; iris reddish brown, orange-brown, orange or yellow; orbital skin dark red; bill brownish or purplish at base with pale green or yellowish-green tip; legs grey with red tinge or blotching. Female slightly darker and less silvery than male when both in fresh plumage. Juvenile has sandy-buff breast and sandy-buff edging to feathers.

Recent records only from islands off W Sumatra: Simeulue; Nias (1 Svensson, B. and Yong, D.L. (2016). First record of the Critically Endangered Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina from Nias Island, Sumatra, Indonesia. BirdingASIA. 26: 73–75. Close ); and islets of Bojo (Batu Is) and Masokut and Simaimu (off S Siberut) (2 Eaton, J.A. and Rossouw, J. (2011). Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina on Simeuluë and the Batu islands, Sumatra, Indonesia. BirdingASIA 15: 78–79. Close ). Formerly also on islands off E Sumatra (Riau and Lingga Archipelagos) and off W Borneo (Karimata, Anambas and Natuna Is); single confirmed historical records on main islands, one each from Sumatra and Borneo.

Mangroves, woodland , coconut groves in lowlands and hills. Mostly on small islands around Sumatra and Borneo but very rarely on the mainland coast below 100 m.

Known to disperse between islands in response to alterations in food supply.

No information available.

Unknown.

Season unknown. Typical pigeon nest placed in a tree or shrub. Clutch one white egg, rather chalky in texture. Species found breeding in large numbers with Ducula bicolor on Burong I in 1899.

CRITICALLY ENDANGERED. Once locally common, but has undergone a catastrophic decline, with few recent reliable records, as possible confusion with superficially rather similar Ducula bicolor frequently frustrates confirmation of identification (3 Yong Ding Li (2009). Notes on the status and identification of the Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina. BirdingASIA. 11: 53–58. Close ). No confirmed sightings between 1931 and 2008. Photographic records for the islands off W Sumatra near Masokut, off Siberut, in Oct 2008 (4 Lee, M.T., Yong Ding Li and Ong Tun Pin (2009). A photographic record of Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina from the Mentawai Islands, Indonesia, with notes on identification, distribution and conservation. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club. 129(3): 122–128. Close ), and Simeulue, in Dec 2010 (5 Eaton, J. (2011). Silvery Wood Pigeon Columba argentina rediscovered. Suara Enggang. 19(1): 6–7. Close ), as well as other possible records in Siberut I (6 Verbelen, P. (2010). Silvery Pigeon on Siberut, Mentawai Islands, Sumatra, Indonesia. BirdingASIA. 13: 9. Close ) and the Batu Is (7 Eaton, J. and Rossouw, J. (2011). Little-known Asian bird: Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina on Simeuluë and the Batu islands, Sumatra, Indonesia. BirdingASIA. 15: 78–79. Close ). Now extinct on Burong I. No definite records from mainland Sumatra, although several possible sightings down SE coast in recent years (8 Iqbal, M. (2010). In search of the Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina in South Sumatran province, Indonesia. BirdingASIA. 13: 9–10. Close ); not recorded in recent surveys of Batam and Bintan. Two captive birds have been photographed in Hong Kong (4 Lee, M.T., Yong Ding Li and Ong Tun Pin (2009). A photographic record of Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina from the Mentawai Islands, Indonesia, with notes on identification, distribution and conservation. Bull. Brit. Orn. Club. 129(3): 122–128. Close ), suggesting that previously-overlooked bird trade might now be a threat (9 Eaton, J. A., C. R. Shepherd, F. E. Rheindt, J. B. C. Harris, S. (B.) van Balen, D. S. Wilcove, and N. J. Collar (2015). Trade-driven extinctions and near-extinctions of avian taxa in Sundaic Indonesia. Forktail 31:1–12. Close ), while two birds trapped on Nias I, off NW Sumatra, in Jun 2016, reinforce these concerns, although local people report that songbirds are much more valuable and hence more prized (1 Svensson, B. and Yong, D.L. (2016). First record of the Critically Endangered Silvery Pigeon Columba argentina from Nias Island, Sumatra, Indonesia. BirdingASIA. 26: 73–75. Close ). Probably threatened by hunting and deforestation; disturbances associated with industrial and other development in this region may also pose a serious threat to the species. Previously considered Vulnerable; uplisted to Critically Endangered in 2000 due to fears for future of presumed tiny population BirdLife International (2015) Species factsheet: Columba argentina. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 25/05/2015. . Urgently requires study.