Overview
Adult have a blue-grey crown, a whitish forehead and a grey neck showing purple iridescence. They have a whitish throat and the eye-ring is red. The upperparts and wings are grey-brown, and the underparts are whitish shading to pinkish-buff on the chest. The underwing coverts are rufous. The white tip to the tail is narrower than in the white-tipped dove. The bill is black, the legs red and the iris is yellow. L. r. hellmayrii has a paler forehead and darker, more rufous, breast.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Bird
- Family
- Columbidae
- Genus
- Leptotila
- Species
- rufaxilla
Habitat
The grey-fronted dove inhabits humid forest and woodland.
Diet
The food of this species is mainly seeds obtained by foraging on the ground, but it will also take insects.
Behavior
It builds a large stick nest in a bush or on a stump and lays two white eggs.
Hunting
This is species is typically hunted while passing over. A hunter will strategically place themself in between feed, water, or a roost to get a shot at the bird. Sometimes decoys are used to make the bird feel more comfortable.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern by IUCN.