The red collared dove (Streptopelia tranquebarica), also known as the red turtle dove, is a small pigeon in the tropics of Asia which is a resident breeding species. This dove is basically a plain species, ranging across the Malaysian archipelago to Taiwan and the Philippines but rare, avoiding rocky foothills and an oriental species. There is however a summer migration into the broader cultivated valleys of Balochistan and also the Afghania where it breeds. They’ll be found in flatland open forest, farmlands, and even human settlements. The male contains a blue-grey head and a red-brown body. The feminine is far plainer, with pale brown plumage almost like that of the larger Eurasian collared dove. It is the most common dove in the whole of Punjab. It is a visitor of summer migrants to Pakistan and the Republic of India where he is more or less resident. It abounds in the plains of Punjab. They prefer better-wooded tracts such as canal or tree plantations along the roadside and avoid vast desert regions. They are always in small flocks when they arrive first, but they will soon break up and begin pain forming and breeding. The red turtle dove is now in the genus Streptopelia which was introduced by the French ornithologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1855. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek streptos meaning “collar” and peleia meaning “dove”.
The red collared dove with a round body and short tail measures 23 centimeters, and a weight of around 104 g (3.7 oz). Males have a black bill, a grey head on the back of the neck with a dark line, and a red-brown body. The flight feathers on the sides are black, the tail is central-grayish and blackish, with white edges on the outermost pair of feathers. The undertail coverts are white, the bill is black or dark grayish and also the legs and feet are purplish-black or redness. The call of the Red Collared-Dove is described as “cru-u-u-u-u” or “goo-goo-goo”, repeated several times. Like many doves, this species builds a flimsy twig nest base, typically positioned 3-8 m away. Tall in a tree or in a forest. Two eggs are normally laid. The collared red dove possesses an incredibly wide range. The size of the population was not quantified but it is thought to be high. There is some evidence for a decline in the population, but the decline is slow and the species has been evaluated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as of Least Concern.
