Speckled Wood Pigeon

The speckled wood pigeon, also called Hodgson's pigeon or the jungle pigeon, is a medium-sized pigeon 38–40 cm long. Males have a pale grey head and a distinctive pinkish-silver breast speckled with black spots and a maroon belly, while females have a greyish-brown head and less vivid colouring. Hindneck feathers have black or purplish-black bases with silver tips, giving a speckled look, and both sexes have blackish-brown tails and primaries (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is distributed across the Himalaya from Kashmir to western and central China, and in parts of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar. It mostly eats acorns, berries and fruit, including those of Prinsepia utilis, and also herbs and cereals, foraging in small flocks. Breeding is from May to August, on platforms of interlaced twigs 3–8 m up in oak trees or in nullahs, with a single bright white egg. SoIB 2023 rates it a Moderate conservation priority, a resident forest bird with a current decline of nearly 6% a year and a Moderate range of about 80,000 km² (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).