Nicobar Pigeon

Common Name: NICOBAR PIGEON
Scientific Name: Caloenas nicobarica
Local Name: Siete Colores (Pilipino)

Conservation Status: This species is classified by the IUCN as Near-threatened; however it is banned for trade (unless permitted in exceptional circumstances) under CITES Appendix 1.

A rare species usually confined to small uninhabited islands where it can be found feeding and walking on the ground but may be in trees up into the canopy.

It is a non-endemic species distributed in small islands from SE Asia to the Nicobars south to New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, including Sumatra, Java, Lesser Sundas, Moluccas, Sulawesi, Borneo. In the Philippines, the resident race Caloenas nicobarica nicobarica has been recorded in Apo Reef, Basilan, Mindanao, Mindoro, Negros. Siquijor, and Palawan, among others. In the Palawan Faunal Region, it has been recorded in the islands of Balabac, Cauili, Lumbucan, Mangsi, Rasa, and Ursula; and on the Mainland at El Nido.

It is reported to be common on some islands, absent on others with inter-island movements likely to take advantage of fruiting trees.