Ecuadorian Ground Dove Columbina buckleyi Scientific name definitions

The Ecuadorian Ground-dove is widespread and fairly common throughout varied woodland habitats on the east slope (200-1000m), ranging from SW Colombia into NW Peru. It is found primarily in areas with patchy thickets and an open understory near forest edges. Likened to a paler Ruddy Ground-dove, it is a smooth grayish brown upperparts with sparse black streaking on the folded wing, and a dull grayish-pink below. Males showing a faint, pearly blue wash on the head and upper mantle, surrounding a tan face with dark brown eyes and a uniform, dark bill in both sexes. Remiges and underwing coverts are black (as opposed to rufous in similar species), and the nominate buckleyi race is grayer, while the dortsi race (found in the southern extent of its range) is rosier.

18 cm; c. 57 g. Forehead and face greyish pink darkening on breast and underparts to deep mauve pink; crown and nape bluish grey; upperparts brownish grey, wing-coverts pinkish grey and spotted as in C. talpacoti; black primaries and outer secondaries; central tail feathers grey, the rest black with white tips on the outermost; black underwing. Female browner with less pink flush. Juvenile brown with pale edges or centres of feathers.

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NW Ecuador (Esmeraldas) S to extreme NW Peru (Tumbes).

Fairly common in open, dry, deciduous and semi-deciduous woodlands, as well as thicker woodland with patchy tickets. It can be common even in gardens, clearings, agricultural areas and young secondary vegetation in the more humid lowlands, from sea level up to 2000 m. asl. (2 Ingels, J. and Greeney, H.F. (2011). A comparative look at the nest and eggs of the Ecuadorian and Croaking Ground-Doves (Columbina buckleyi and Columbina cruziana) in Ecuador. Bol. Soc. Antioqueña Orn.. 20(2): 56–60. Close )

None known, but in Bosque Nacional de Tumbes, NW Peru, only recorded in Jun–Jul and not seen during fieldwork in Feb–Mar.

No information available. Probably feeds mainly on small seeds, like congeners.

Song is a series of evenly-spaced, low-pitched slighty upslurred cooing notes at a rate of c. 0.6-0.9 notes per second. Notes are usually bi-syllable but from a distance this is hardly audible: "huWOO...huWOO...huWOO....". Length of notes is shorter than length of pauses. Song is very similar to C. talpacoti, but on average pace of notes is slightly slower and first syllable of note less articulated.

Little information. Nest substantial and cup-shaped, unlike most dove nests (2 Ingels, J. and Greeney, H.F. (2011). A comparative look at the nest and eggs of the Ecuadorian and Croaking Ground-Doves (Columbina buckleyi and Columbina cruziana) in Ecuador. Bol. Soc. Antioqueña Orn.. 20(2): 56–60. Close ). Four active nests found in Feb–Mar were in bushes or trees, including Acacia and Delonix, at 1–7 m above the ground; three had clutches of 2 eggs (2 Ingels, J. and Greeney, H.F. (2011). A comparative look at the nest and eggs of the Ecuadorian and Croaking Ground-Doves (Columbina buckleyi and Columbina cruziana) in Ecuador. Bol. Soc. Antioqueña Orn.. 20(2): 56–60. Close ). Eggs elliptical and white, c. 23·3 mm x 17·3 mm on average; fresh weight c. 3·8 g (n = 4) (2 Ingels, J. and Greeney, H.F. (2011). A comparative look at the nest and eggs of the Ecuadorian and Croaking Ground-Doves (Columbina buckleyi and Columbina cruziana) in Ecuador. Bol. Soc. Antioqueña Orn.. 20(2): 56–60. Close ).

Not globally threatened. Occurs only in the Tumbesian Endemic Bird Area, within which it is considered to be fairly common. Hitherto it has been thought to be relatively secure but more recently it is tentatively assessed as being in decline due to habitat loss (3 Tracewski, L., S. H. M. Butchart, M. Di Marco, G. F. Ficetola, C. Rondinini, A. Symes, H. Wheatley, A. E. Beresford, and G. M. Buchanan (2016). Toward quantification of the impact of 21st-century deforestation on the extinction risk of terrestrial vertebrates. Conservation Biology 30(5):1070–1079. Close ). The very small range and almost total lack of information regarding its biology indicate that at least some basic research is highly desirable.