Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This species was found in Japan's Ogasawara Islands, but it has not been recorded since 1889 and is now Extinct. Habitat clearance is likely to have been the major factor driving its extinction.
Population justification
None remain.
Columba versicolor was endemic to Nakondo Shima and Peel Island (Chichi-jima) and likely other islands in the Bonin Islands (Ogasawara-shoto), Japan (Goodwin 1967). It is known from four specimens, in Frankfurt, Leningrad and Tring (Brazil 1991) and was last recorded in 1889 (Stattersfield et al. 1998).
It inhabited the lush forested interior of the small islands in its range.
The reasons for its extinction are unknown, though it may have been due to habitat destruction (Hume 2017). Predation by introduced cats and rats may also have been a threat (Stattersfield et al. 1998).
Text account compilers
Vine, J.
Contributors
Brooks, T., Khwaja, N., Mahood, S. & Martin, R.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Bonin Woodpigeon Columba versicolor. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/bonin-woodpigeon-columba-versicolor on 23/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/11/2024.