Superb Fruit Dove
Also known as: Ptilinopus superbus (scientific name) · Purple-crowned fruit dove
Definition
The Superb Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus superbus), also called the purple-crowned fruit dove, is a medium-sized, colourful fruit dove in the family Columbidae whose range extends from the Philippines through Indonesia and New Guinea to Australia. The male wears a purple crown, orange nape patch, and contrasting breast band, while the female is almost entirely green. In the Philippines it inhabits forest from the lowlands into the hills, where it feeds on figs and other small forest fruits. (Wikipedia)
Identities
| Source Type | Identity |
|---|---|
| Wikipedia | Superb fruit dove |
| Wikidata | Q277782 |
| DBpedia | N/A |
| ProductOntology | N/A |
| Wiktionary | N/A |
| Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) | N/A |
| MeSH | N/A |
| NCBI Taxonomy | Ptilinopus superbus |
| AGROVOC | N/A |
| Google Scholar | Ptilinopus superbus superb fruit dove Philippines fig dispersal frugivory |
| ConceptNet | bird |
| OpenCyc | N/A |
Also Known As
- Ptilinopus superbus (scientific name)
- Purple-crowned fruit dove
Examples and Analogies
- A Flying Color Chart: The male’s violet crown and orange shoulder make it one of the most vividly arranged birds in Philippine forests, a palette the female deliberately abandons for green camouflage on the nest.
- Same Trade, Different Islands: Its role in Philippine forests is identical to that of other island fruit doves across the Pacific, showing how evolution fills the fruit-eating niche with similarly shaped birds wherever fig forests grow.
Usage Scenarios
1. Frugivore Network Research
Studies of Philippine forest birds include the species when mapping which animals disperse which fig species, informing reforestation tree mixes.
2. Birding by Fruit Tree
Naturalists locate the species by staking out fruiting figs, a technique that also generates educational opportunities for park visitors.
Strategies
- Protect fig-rich forest patches, since the dove’s abundance tracks the erratic fruiting of fig trees across the landscape.
- Use the species’ visual detectability to train community bird surveyors in canopy observation.
- Incorporate fruit dove habitat needs in management plans for lowland and lower montane protected areas.
Security and Safety Measures
- Covered by Republic Act No. 9147 protections on wild birds.
- Photography at fruiting trees should avoid netting or baiting that could habituate or harm birds.
- Hunting with slingshots and airguns, common near forest-edge settlements, should be reported to authorities.
Historical Context
Described from Australasian material in the eighteenth and nineteenth century era of Pacific voyaging, the species was later documented across a vast arc from the Moluccas to Australia, with Philippine populations forming the northwestern edge of its range. Philippine ornithological surveys of the twentieth century recorded it on major forested islands, usually in small numbers wherever fig trees stood. Its wide distribution distinguishes it from the country’s single-island fruit dove endemics.
Challenges and Controversies
Regional Status Uncertainty
Because the species is secure globally, its local Philippine decline through deforestation receives less conservation attention than endemic relatives.
Subspecies Boundaries
The treatment of Philippine populations relative to Indonesian and Australian forms has shifted across taxonomic checklists, complicating regional comparisons.