The Wompoo Fruit-Dove is identified by its large size, rich purple throat, chest and upper belly, and yellow lower belly. It has mostly green underparts, with a paler grey head and a conspicuous yellow wing-bar. It is perhaps the most beautiful of all the doves found in Australia, and both sexes are similar in plumage. Birds from the north are smaller than those in the south. Young Wompoos are duller and greener than the adults. The call is a deep resonant "wollack-a-woo" and, occasionally, a more abrupt "boo".
Not Threatened.
The Wompoo Fruit-Dove is identified by its large size, rich purple throat, chest and upper belly, and yellow lower belly. It has mostly green underparts, with a paler grey head and a conspicuous yellow wing-bar. It is perhaps the most beautiful of all the doves found in Australia, and both sexes are similar in plumage. Birds from the north are smaller than those in the south. Young Wompoos are duller and greener than the adults. The call is a deep resonant "wollack-a-woo" and, occasionally, a more abrupt "boo".
35-50 cm, 156 g
Taxonomy:
- Columba magnifica Temminck, 1821, New South Wales. Formerly placed in genus Megaloprepia; most closely allied to P. bernsteinii; affinities have also been suggested with P. subgularis and P. leclancheri. Most of accepted races are poorly defined, and variation clinal. Eight subspecies recognized. (source: Handbook of the Birds of World)
Subspecies and Distribution:
- * alaris (Stresemann & Paludan, 1932) - W Papuan Is, on Waigeo, Misool, Batanta and Salawati. * puella (Lesson, 1827) - Vogelkop (NW New Guinea). * interposita (Hartert, 1930) - S part of Geelvink Bay, Onin Peninsula, lower Snow Mts and E along S coast of New Guinea to R Eilanden. * septentrionalis (A. B. Meyer, 1893) - N New Guinea from R Memberamo E to Astrolabe Bay, and islands of Yapen, Kairiru, Manam, Karkar and Bagabag. * poliura (Salvadori, 1878) - SE New Guinea from Huon Gulf and R Edrich eastwards. * assimilis (Gould, 1850) - Cape York region (N Queensland). * keri (Mathews, 1912) - Bellenden Ker Range (NE Queensland). * magnificus (Temminck, 1821) - S Queensland and New South Wales.
The most favoured habitat is rainforest, and birds are rarely seen in other areas. The birds do not travel large distances, but move around in small, localised areas in search of fruit-bearing trees.
Feed on a variety of rainforest fruits. The fruits are eaten whole and may be quite large in size. The birds are hard to see when feeding, and are best located by their calls or the sound of falling fruit. They may form large feeding flocks where food is plentiful, and the birds acrobatically pluck the fruit from trees and vines high up in the canopy area.
In the north of the Wompoo Fruit-Dove's range the breeding season may vary in response to suitable weather conditions. Both sexes share the construction of the twig nest, which may be placed quite low down in a tree. A white egg is laid, and both sexes share the incubation and care of the chick. Only one chick is raised in a season, but birds may breed a second time if the first attempt fails. Breeding season: July to January