European Turtle Dove

European Turtle Dove

Streptopelia turtur

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

LCNTVUVulnerableENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Paris

In 3 days <5%

9 Verified sightings at Paris
1,572 In all 11 parks From 2019 to 2026
July Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the European Turtle Dove

The European turtle dove (Streptopelia turtur) is a threatened or vulnerable member of the bird family Columbidae, the doves and pigeons. It breeds over a wide area of the south western Palearctic including north Africa but migrates to northern sub-Saharan Africa in winter.

The European turtle dove was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other pigeons in the genus Columba and coined the binomial name Columba turtur. The specific epithet turtur is the Latin word for a turtle dove. Linnaeus gave the locality as "India". This was an error, and the type locality has been designated as England. The species is now placed in the genus Streptopelia that was introduced in 1855 by the French ornithologist Charles Lucien Bonaparte.

Four subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →

Sounds

Song0:37

United Kingdom · 2026

© Ian Roberts · XC1105940 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Aberrant0:20

Netherlands · 2026

© Joost van Bruggen · XC1105933 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call1:30

United Kingdom · 2022

© Frank Lambert · XC741438 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Fertő-Hanság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~30%
2 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~20%
3 Niokolo-Koba National Park 🇸🇳 Senegal
~20%
4 Hortobágy National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
5 Camargue 🇫🇷 France
~10%
6 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
7 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
8 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
9 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
10 Biebrza National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
<5%
11 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Marrakesh 🇲🇦 Morocco
~20%
2 Tel Aviv 🇮🇱 Israel
~20%
3 Fez 🇲🇦 Morocco
~10%
4 Tunis 🇹🇳 Tunisia
~10%
5 Jerusalem 🇮🇱 Israel
~10%
6 Luxor 🇪🇬 Egypt
~10%
7 Naples 🇮🇹 Italy
<5%
8 Lisbon 🇵🇹 Portugal
<5%
9 Cairo 🇪🇬 Egypt
<5%
10 Ramallah 🇵🇸 Palestine
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Natura Artis Magistra 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
2 Zoo Pilsen 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
3 Parc des oiseaux 🇫🇷 France In captivity
4 Slimbridge Wetland Centre 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
5 Berlin Zoological Garden 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
6 Dierenpark Hoenderdaell 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
7 Wrocław Zoological Garden 🇵🇱 Poland In captivity
8 Diergaarde Blijdorp 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
9 Bristol Zoo Project 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
10 Hanover Zoo 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
11 Birdworld 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
12 Tierpark Hexentanzplatz 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
13 Santillana Zoo 🇪🇸 Spain In captivity
14 Birdland Park and Gardens 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
15 Storchenstation 🇨🇭 Switzerland In captivity
16 Africarium 🇵🇱 Poland In captivity
17 Oceanium 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
18 Aquarium Berlin 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
19 Cologne Zoo Aquarium 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
20 Landgoed Hoenderdaell 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
21 terrarium ogrodu zoologicznego we Wrocławiu 🇵🇱 Poland In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a European Turtle Dove in Paris?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a European Turtle Dove sighting in Paris on a given day, based on 9 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 135th most-seen of the 139 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a European Turtle Dove in Paris?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a European Turtle Dove in Paris on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a European Turtle Dove?

Between 8 and 11 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most European Turtle Dove sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Paris the best place to see a European Turtle Dove?

24th of 26

Of the 26 cities where we can rate European Turtle Dove sightings, Paris ranks 24th at under 5%. The best odds are in Marrakesh (Morocco, about 20%), Tel Aviv (Israel, about 20%) and Fez (Morocco, about 10%).

Which relatives of the European Turtle Dove live in Paris?

Same family: Columbidae

The closest relatives of the European Turtle Dove that you can see in Paris (family Columbidae, Pigeons and Doves) are Wood Pigeon (about 90%), Rock Pigeon (about 60%) and Stock Dove (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the European Turtle Dove sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the European Turtle Dove is recorded against all the birds logged in Paris (9 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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