Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This species has a moderately small population, and may be declining in some areas owing to habitat loss and hunting. It therefore qualifies as Near Threatened.
Population justification
Rivera-Milan et al. (2003) reported a population size of 1,497-6,106 individuals, rounded here to 1,500-6,100 individuals, roughly equivalent to 1,000-4,100 mature individuals. The subpopulation structure has not been assessed, but it is tentatively assumed that the species forms several relatively small subpopulations (see records on eBird 2020).
Trend justification
There are no new trend data; however, the species is suspected to be slowly declining, owing to habitat loss and hunting. Forest loss within the species's range is currently estimated at ~4% across three generations (Tracewski et al. 2016).
Patagioenas inornata was once abundant and widespread in the Caribbean, but has undergone considerable declines. In Cuba, it was widespread, but has now declined; it was thought to be now restricted to six areas: the Guanahacabibes (c.100 pairs, the largest population) and Zapata peninsulas, the sierras de Najasa and del Chorrillo, cayos Romano and Sabinal and the Esteros de Birama (A. Kirkconnell in litt. 1999), but has subsequently been found at another eleven localities (Sanchez et al. 2006). In Jamaica, it was scarce as early as 1840 (BirdLife Jamaica in litt. 1998), and is now rare and local. On Puerto Rico (to USA), it numbered less than 100 in the 1970s, but had increased to c.700 by 1996 (Norton 1996) and recent information suggests that this population totalled 1497-6106 individuals during 1997-2001 (Rivera-Milán et al. 2003). This population increase is attributed to increased food and nesting habitat availability following the recovery of second growth forests, resulting from the abandonment of marginally productive pasture and cropland as Puerto Rico gradually became industrialised from the 1940s onwards (Rivera-Milán et al. 2003). In the Dominican Republic, extensive searches in 1986 failed to find the species, and sites with records in the 1970s had been cleared. However, it has been recently described as locally common (Raffaele et al. 1998), especially in the Sierra de Baoruco (S. Latta in litt. 1998, G. M. Kirwan in litt. 1999). In Haiti, there have been reports of birds in significant numbers, although numbers in Hispaniola overall are not reported to be increasing (C. Rimmer in litt. 2005).
It is found mainly in lowland forest, mangrove and swampy areas in Cuba, highland pine and broadleaf forest, and occasionally coastal desert and mangroves in Hispaniola, and wet limestone forests in west, and drier woodlands in southern Jamaica (BirdLife Jamaica in litt. 1998). In Puerto Rico, it formerly occurred in primary lowland forests, but now mainly inhabits secondary growth, pasture and farmland (Baptista et al. 1997). Breeding is during April-July in Cuba and Hispaniola, and year-round in Puerto Rico (Baptista et al. 1997).
Hunting, logging and clearance for plantation agriculture, combined with the devastating effects of hurricanes, have reduced populations (Baptista et al. 1997); forest loss is currently estimated at ~4% across three generations (Tracewski et al. 2016). Few birds are shot in Jamaica and this does not appear to explain the species's current scarcity on the island (BirdLife Jamaica in litt. 1998) however, legal hunting in Puerto Rico between 2008-2014 resulted in sharp population declines, a trend furthered by increased illegal hunting since 2015 (Rivera-Milán et al. 2016). Nest predation may affect reproduction in key areas on Puerto Rico (Rivera-Milán et al. 2003).
Conservation Actions Underway
A recovery programme is underway in Puerto Rico (Miyamoto et al. 1994). Funding is being sought for conservation in Cockpit Country, Jamaica (BirdLife Jamaica in litt. 1998). It is legally protected in Cuba (but this is not enforced), and has been recorded from several protected areas, including the Guanahacabibes Biosphere Reserve, where it has been the subject of an education programme.
38-40 cm. Large, brownish pigeon. Pale grey-brown, reddish on wings and breast, narrow white fringes to wing-coverts, forming white bar in flight and white leading edge when perched. Similar spp. Scaly-naped Pigeon C. squamosa lacks reddish on wing and breast, and white in wing. Ring-tailed Pigeon C. caribaea has red eye and eye-ring, black tail-band and no white in wing. Voice Resonant whoo, wo-oo or oo-oo.
Text account compilers
Everest, J.
Contributors
Benstead, P., BirdLife Jamaica, Harding, M., Isherwood, I., Kirkconnell, A., Kirwan, G.M., Latta, S., Mahood, S., Mitchell, A., Rimmer, C., Sharpe, C.J., Sutton, A. & Wege, D.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Plain Pigeon Patagioenas inornata. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/plain-pigeon-patagioenas-inornata on 25/12/2024.
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 25/12/2024.