Victoria crowned pigeon
Goura victoria
— Where the name comes from
Goura is the bird’s name in one of the languages of New Guinea, collected by Dutch naturalists. Victoria is the queen, to whom the European nineteenth century dedicated waterfalls, lakes, deserts and this pigeon: the species was described in 1844, six years after the coronation. The common name comes from the fan of crest feathers, each ending in a white lace-like point.
— Facts
- Group
- Birds · Aves
- Order
- Pigeons and doves
- Habitat
- Lowland and swamp rainforest
- Range
- Northern New Guinea and nearby islands
- Size
- 73–75 cm, 2.1–2.5 kg
- Diet
- Fallen fruit, seeds, invertebrates
- Lifespan
- 25 years in captivity
— Characteristics
- 01
It is the largest pigeon in the world: it weighs as much as a small turkey.
- 02
It walks the forest floor and flies only to reach its night roost.
- 03
It lays a single egg, which both parents incubate in turn.
— What sets it apart
The crest feathers end in a frayed tip like lace, and for that the bird was hunted almost to nothing: in the nineteenth century crowned pigeons went by the thousand into European hats alongside egrets and birds of paradise. The danger today is more prosaic — it is large, slow, feeds on the ground and has not learned to fear people, which makes it the easiest prey in the forest for anyone with a gun.
