Columba palumbus
Silhouette: Anthony Caravaggi · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The common wood pigeon (Columba palumbus), also known simply as the wood pigeon, is a large pigeon native to the western Palearctic. It belongs to the genus Columba, which includes closely related species such as the rock dove (Columba livia). It has a flexible diet, feeding mainly on plant material, including cereals, and is therefore considered an agricultural pest. Wood pigeons are extensively hunted over much of their range, but this does not appear to have a major impact on their population numbers.
The common wood pigeon 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 palumbus. The specific epithet palumbus is an alternate form of the Latin palumbes for a wood pigeon.
Five subspecies are recognised, one of which is now extinct: Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 2 | Madrid | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Paris | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 4 | Birmingham | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 5 | Manchester | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 6 | Brussels | 🇧🇪 Belgium | |
| 7 | Leeds | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 8 | London | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 9 | Berlin | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 10 | Essen | 🇩🇪 Germany |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moscow Zoo | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 2 | Lusen National Park Centre | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 3 | Yerevan Zoo | 🇦🇲 Armenia | |
| 4 | Wildwood Discovery Park | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 5 | Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 6 | Santillana Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 7 | World of Birds Wildlife Sanctuary and Monkey Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 8 | Yalta Zoo | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | |
| 9 | Zoo Koki (Parque zoológico y botánico) | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 10 | Castellar Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 11 | Parco Gallorose | 🇮🇹 Italy |
Very likely
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Wood Pigeon sighting in Rotterdam [The Hague] on a given day, based on 1,239 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 3rd most-seen of the 175 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March–April, June and August
In those months about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Wood Pigeon in Rotterdam [The Hague] on a given day, against about 60% in December and January, the lowest months.
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Wood Pigeon sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
23rd of 63
Of the 63 cities where we can rate Wood Pigeon sightings, Rotterdam [The Hague] ranks 23rd at about 70%. The best odds are in Liverpool (United Kingdom, about 90%), Madrid (Spain, about 90%) and Paris (France, about 90%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Wood Pigeon is recorded against all the birds logged in Rotterdam [The Hague] (1,239 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.
