EXCELLENCE IN SCIENCE PUBLISHING
Pigeons and Doves in Australia
- Publisher
CSIRO Publishing - Published
7th August 2015 - ISBN 9780643096332
 - Language English
 - Pages 360 pp.
 - Size 6" x 9.5"
 - Images 98 illus
 
Possibly the most successful urban birds, pigeons and doves in the Order Columbiformes are one of the most easily recognized groups. They are an ancient and very successful group with an almost worldwide distribution and are most strongly represented in tropical and subtropical regions, including Australia. In most species simple plumage patterns feature mainly grey and brown with black, white or dull reddish markings, but the highly colorful fruit-doves include some of the most beautiful of all birds. 
From dense rainforests of north Queensland, where brilliantly plumaged Superb Fruit-Doves Ptilinopus superbus are heard more easily than seen, to cold, windswept heathlands of Tasmania, where Brush Bronzewings Phaps elegans are locally common, most regions of Australia are frequented by one or more species. For more than a century after arrival of the First Fleet, interest in these birds focused on the eating qualities of larger species. In addition to contributing to declines of local populations in some parts of Australia, excessive hunting brought about the extinction of two species on Lord Howe Island and another species on Norfolk Island. 
In Pigeons and Doves of Australia, Joseph Forshaw and William Cooper have summarized our current knowledge of all species, including those occurring on Christmas, Norfolk and Lord Howe Islands, and with superb artwork have given readers a visual appreciation of the birds in their natural habitats. Historical accounts of extinct species are also included. Detailed information on management practices for all species is presented, ensuring that Pigeons and Doves in Australia will become the standard reference work on these birds for ornithologists and aviculturists.
BEST BIRD BOOK of 2015 by THE BIRDBOOKER REPORT
Ian Paulsen - The Birdbooker Report
"RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone who's a fan of Cooper's artwork. Also for anyone that collects bird family monographs or has a serious interest in the birds of Australia."
"This volume deserves a place among the classic bird books of the world. It can sit proudly among the works of Caley, Gould and Audubon and adds greatly to our knowledge of the many and varied members the pigeon tribe. William Cooper’s beautiful illustrations are a delight and for those who may not be all that interested in scientific description they alone would be reason enough to buy the book."
- NPA Quarterly Review
Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgements 
Introduction 
Australian pigeons and doves in aviculture 
Order COLUMBIFORMES 
Family COLUMBIDAE 
Subfamily COLUMBINAE
Tribe COLUMBINI Leach
Genus Columba Linnaeus
Subgenus Columba Linnaeus 
 FERAL PIGEON Columba livia Gmelin
Subgenus Janthoenas Reichenbach 
 WHITE-HEADED PIGEON Columba leucomela Temminck 
 WHITE-THROATED PIGEON Columba vitiensis Quoy and Gaimard 
Genus Streptopelia Bonaparte 
Subgenus Spilopelia Sundevall 
 SPOTTED TURTLEDOVE Streptopelia chinensis (Scopoli) 
 LAUGHING TURTLEDOVE Streptopelia senegalensis (Linnaeus) 
Subgenus Streptopelia Linnaeu 
 BARBARY TURTLEDOVE Streptopelia roseogrisea (Sundevall) 
Tribe MACROPYGIINI Bonaparte 
Genus Macropygia Swainson 
 BROWN CUCKOO-DOVE Macropygia amboinensis (Linnaeus) 
Subfamily RAPHINAE 
Tribe TURTURINI GR Gray 
Genus Chalcophaps Gould 
 EMERALD DOVE Chalcophaps indica (Linnaeus) 
Tribe PHABINI Bonaparte 
Genus Alopecoenas Sharpe 
Subgenus Terricolumba Hachisuka 
 NORFOLK ISLAND GROUND DOVE Alopecoenas norfolkensis sp. nov. 
Genus Leucosarcia Gould 
 WONGA PIGEON Leucosarcia melanoleuca (Latham) 
Genus Phaps Selby 
Subgenus Phaps Selby 
 COMMON BRONZEWING Phaps chalcoptera (Latham) 
 BRUSH BRONZEWING Phaps elegans (Temminck) 
Subgenus Histriophaps Salvadori 
 FLOCK BRONZEWING Phaps histrionica (Gould) 
Genus Ocyphaps G R Gray 
 CRESTED BRONZEWING Ocyphaps lophotes (Temminck) 
Genus Geophaps GR Gray 
Subgenus Lophophaps Reichenbach 
 SPINIFEX PIGEON Geophaps plumifera Gould 
Subgenus Geophaps GR Gray 
 SQUATTER PIGEON Geophaps scripta (Temminck) 
 PARTRIDGE PIGEON Geophaps smithii (Jardine and Selby) 
Genus Petrophassa Gould 
 WHITE-QUILLED ROCK PIGEON Geophaps smithii (Jardine and Selby) 
 CHESTNUT-QUILLED ROCK PIGEON Petrophassa rufipennis Collett 
Genus Geopelia Swainson 
 DIAMOND DOVE Geopelia cuneata (Latham) 
 PEACEFUL DOVE Geopelia placida Gould 
 BAR-SHOULDERED DOVE Geopelia humeralis (Temminck) 
Tribe PTILINOPODINI Selby 
Genus Ducula Hodgson 
Subgenus Ducula Hodgson 
 CHRISTMAS ISLAND IMPERIAL PIGEON Ducula whartoni (Sharpe) 
 COLLARED IMPERIAL PIGEON Ducula mullerii (Temminck) 
Subgenus Myristicivora Reichenbach 
 PIED IMPERIAL PIGEON Ducula bicolor (Scopoli) 
Genus Megaloprepia Reichenbach 
 WOMPOO FRUIT-DOVE Megaloprepia magnifica (Temminck) 
Genus Ptilinopus Swainson 
Subgenus Leucotreron Bonaparte 
 BANDED FRUIT-DOVE Ptilinopus cinctus (Temminck) 
Subgenus Lamprotreron Bonaparte 
 SUPERB FRUIT-DOVE Ptilinopus superbus (Temminck) 
Subgenus Sylphitreron Bonaparte 
 ORANGE-BELLIED FRUIT-DOVE Ptilinopus iozonus (GR Gray) 
Subgenus Ptilinopus Swainson 
 ROSE-CROWNED FRUIT-DOVE Ptilinopus regina Swainson 
Genus Lopholaimus Gould 
 TOPKNOT PIGEON Lopholaimus antarcticus (Shaw) 
Genus Hemiphaga Bonaparte 
 NORFOLK ISLAND PIGEON Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae (Gmelin) 
References 
Appendix: Vagrants 
 RED TURTLEDOVE Streptopelia tranquebarica (Hermann) 
 ORIENTAL TURTLEDOVE Streptopelia orientalis (Latham) 
 NICOBAR PIGEON Caloenas nicobarica (Linnaeus) 
 ELEGANT IMPERIAL PIGEON Ducula concinna (Wallace) 
 WALLACE’S FRUIT DOVE Ptilinopus wallacii (GR Gray) Gazetteer 
Locality map of Australia
Index
Joseph Forshaw
Joseph M. Forshaw AM is a Research Associate in the Ornithology Section at the Australian Museum and the author of a number of award-winning natural history books. In 2015, he was made a Member of the Order of Australia for services to ornithology and wildlife conservation. His previous books include Vanished and Vanishing Parrots (2017) and Pigeons and Doves in Australia (2015).
William T. Cooper, AO
William T. Cooper AO (1934–2015) originally painted landscapes and seascapes but turned to painting birds because of a lifelong love of natural history. He collaborated on many bird monographs with Joseph M. Forshaw. In 1990, William was awarded the Philadelphia Academy of Science Gold Medal, and in 1994 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for his contribution to art and to ornithology. A collection of his original paintings is owned by the National Library of Australia and many others are in private collections around the world.
Other books illustrated by William T. Cooper include Pigeons and Doves in Australia written by Joseph M. Forshaw, and Australian Rainforest Fruits: A Field Guide, written by Wendy Cooper.