Macropygia phasianella
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~80% in a week >90%
The brown cuckoo-dove (Macropygia phasianella) is a dove in the genus Macropygia found in Australia from Weipa and Aurukun in the north to Bega in the south, and most inland at Atherton and Toowoomba. It is sometimes called the "brown pigeon" or "pheasant pigeon", but both terms are best avoided, as they can lead to confusion with the brown doves and the true pheasant pigeon. It was one of three new species defined when the slender-billed cuckoo-dove was split in 2016.
The brown cuckoo-dove was formally described in 1821 by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck from a specimen collected near Port Jackson in New South Wales, Australia. He coined the binomial name Columba phasianella. The specific name is a diminutive of the Latin phasianus, meaning "pheasant". The brown cuckoo-dove is now placed in the genus Macropygia, which was introduced by the English naturalist William Swainson in 1837.
Three subspecies are recognised: Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Booderee National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Healesville Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Woodland Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Taronga Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Australian Reptile Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Sea Life Sydney Aquarium | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Wild Life Sydney | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Dallas World Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Cuckoo-Dove sighting in Springbrook National Park on a given day, based on 282 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 10th most-seen of the 136 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 80%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March
In that month about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Cuckoo-Dove in Springbrook National Park on a given day, against about 30% in May to July, the lowest months. That is one of Springbrook National Park's wettest months, with about 190 mm of rain against 45 mm in August.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Brown Cuckoo-Dove sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 7 parks where we can rate Brown Cuckoo-Dove sightings, Springbrook National Park ranks 2nd at about 50%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Lamington National Park (Australia, about 50%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Columbidae
The closest relatives of the Brown Cuckoo-Dove that you can see in Springbrook National Park (family Columbidae, Pigeons and Doves) are Bar-shouldered Dove (about 20%), Wonga Pigeon (about 20%) and White-headed Pigeon (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Brown Cuckoo-Dove is recorded against all the birds logged in Springbrook National Park (282 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
