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Project Noah Nature School
Ocyphaps lophotes
Ocyphaps lophotes, commonly known as the crested pigeon and top notch pigeon, is a bird found widely throughout mainland Australia (except for the far northern tropical areas). It is the only member of the genus Ocyphaps. Plumage is grey with tinges of brown and green. It has a feathered but slender, black spike on top of the head. They run with the crest erect... which always amuses me! Here's a spotting of a pair involved in a courtship ritual.... https://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/10...
Found in grasslands, brush and wooded areas but they can also be seen at watercourses, homestead gardens, pastoral areas, sports grounds, and golf courses. They are common in urban areas. This pair was spotted sitting in a garden at the Metroplex on Gateway estate in Murarrie, Brisbane.
These two were sitting quietly side-by-side preening each other. Not too long before they do the 'wild thing' and little chicks appear. I really like these bird. They're quiet and totally inoffensive, and I think they're quite beautiful. The flight feathers are really colourful and in the right light they're iridescent. NB: The last photo in this series shows the coloured feathers. One of the same individuals but spotted on a different day.
Spotted on Aug 26, 2013
Submitted on Aug 26, 2013
6 Comments
Very nice :)
So Romantic.
I know. It's funny when they have their chicks too, and the only time I've ever seen them behave aggressively. To watch them charge the magpies and kurrawongs, it's a hoot! Very protective.
They can slap very hard with those wing of theirs! But yes very pretty, I love how the male will fan his tail feathers like a Peacock. Very beautiful birds :-)
They weren't too worried about me, Marta. I watched them for over 5 minutes and they were taking turns at preening each other. I should have been working... but the birds were more important at that moment.
The last pic is so cute, one preening the other :-)