The grey-spotted dove (Latin name: Streptopelia decaocto) belongs to the "three haves" protected animals. A medium-sized 32 cm bird of the genus Dove in the family Pigeonidae , it is widely distributed , but the population is sparse and uncommon. The whole body is grayish brown, with blue-gray patches on the wings, the tip of the tail feather is white, and there is a black neck ring at the back of the neck, surrounded by white feathers outside the ring. The iris is red, the eyelids are also red, the bare skin around the eyes is self-wrapped or light gray, the mouth is nearly black, and the feet and toes are dark pink, which are distributed in North And Northwest China, and are also recorded in the lower Yangtze River and South China. It is found in southeastern Europe, Central Asia, India, Myanmar and Japan. The subspecies stoliczkae is distributed in kashgar and Tianshan regions of Xinjiang; the nominate subspecies ranges from north China, Sichuan to India; xanthocyclus is a lost bird that occasionally appears in Anhui, Fuzhou and Yunnan.
Appearance characteristics
The gray-spotted dove has a gray forehead and the front of the head, gradually turning backwards to a light pinkish gray. There is a half-moon-shaped black collar at the base of the back of the neck, and its anteroposterior and posterior edges are off-white or white, making the black collar more eye-catching. The small coverts on the back, waist, shoulders and wings are pale grape colours, the rest of the wings are pale grey or blue-grey, the flight feathers are black brown, and the inner primary flight feathers are gray. The upper tail feathers are also pale grape greyish brown, the longer tail feathers are grayed, the central tail feathers are grape grayish brown, the outer tail feathers are grayish white or white, and the base of the feathers is black. The chin and throat are white , the rest of the underparts are pale pinkish grey , the thorax is more pink , the undertail coverts and two flanks are bluish gray , and the underwing coverts are white.
The size measures are: weight male 170 to 200 g, female 150 to 192 g, body length male 285 to 340 mm, female 250 to 320 mm, mouth peak male 14 to 17 mm, female 15 to 17 mm, wing male 169 to 183 mm, female 165 to 183 mm, tail male 135 to 150 mm, female 124 to 145 mm; tarsal male 20 to 23 mm, female 21 to 24 mm.
Habitat
It inhabits plains, foothills and low hilly areas in the woods, and is also commonly found in farmland, arable land, orchards, shrubland, towns and villages.
Habits of life
Adult grey doves nest in trees and lay white eggs in nests woven from branches. Hatching takes 14-18 days, and young birds will be full-fledged after 15-19 days. These birds are not wary of humans and are often spotted around human settlements.
The grey-spotted dove is a gregarious species that forms a sizable community in places where food is plentiful, such as cereals. The call of the grey-spotted dove is "grunt-grunt", the second sound is heavier, and it is repeated many times. Because its call sounds like a Greek decaocto (eighteen), it got the scientific name. Occasionally it also emits a loud, harsh and dull hollow chirp for about 2 seconds, especially during a summer landing.
The Grey-spotted Dove and the Pink-headed Dove (Streptopelia roseogrisea) have been arguably wild ancestors of the domestic ring pigeon (Streptopelia risoria). One of the reasons for this is that the bird can mate and breed with ring pigeons.
Distribution range
Afghanistan, Albania, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg; Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russian Federation, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Svalbard and Jan Mayen, Sweden, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan.