Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This species is known from Choiseul, Solomon Islands, but it has not been recorded with certainty since 1904 and is now Extinct. It is likely to have been heavily predated by introduced dogs and cats.
Population justification
No extant population remains.
Microgoura meeki was probably endemic to Choiseul, Solomon Islands, from where it is known from six skins and a single egg (Knox and Walters 1994). Claims that it may have occurred on islands from Bougainville to Malaita are speculative (Tennent 2009). It has not been recorded since 1904 (Diamond 1987) despite searching and interviews with villagers (Collar et al. 1994). There have been unsubstantiated reports from the early 1940s (Tennent 2009) and more recently (Pikacha 2005), but these are not considered to be accurate; it has often been confused with the extant Crested Cuckoo-dove (Reinwardtoena crassirostris) and Yellow-legged Pigeon (Columba pallidiceps) (Tennent 2009). There have been several unsuccessful searches for it (Dutson 2011) and it is now considered Extinct.
It was probably a species of lowland forests and swamps, and reportedly nested on the ground (Tennent 2009). It occurred in small groups and was reported to be tame (Dutson 2011).
Its extinction was presumably caused by predation by feral dogs and especially cats (Tennent 2009), as suitable habitat remains on the island (Collar et al. 1994). The species was likely also hunted.
Text account compilers
Vine, J.
Contributors
Brooks, T., Khwaja, N. & Mahood, S.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Species factsheet: Choiseul Pigeon Microgoura meeki. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/choiseul-pigeon-microgoura-meeki on 26/01/2025.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2025) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 26/01/2025.