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Pink-necked Green Pigeon: Nesting in an urban garden

on 2nd April 2008

Joyce Kok and her husband had a pair of Pink-necked Green Pigeons (Treron griseicauda) nesting in their garden recently. The birds built a simple platform of twigs at the top of their potted Dracaena fragrans plant along their balcony (below left). As the nesting was so accessible, they kept watch on the progress, documenting the stages from eggs to chicks. It was through the efforts of Patricia Thong that we received the details of their observations and the images that are posted here.

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The birds laid two white eggs (top right). One egg hatched, but they failed to notice it as the chick was brooded close to the parent and under one of the wings. And the nest was never empty as there was always one parent in it. The male sitting in the nest (below left) is actually brooding a chick that she failed to notice. The other image where the the male is with an old chick, shows the other egg that remained unhatched.

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What Joyce did notice was that both parents helped in egg incubation and chick brooding. She especially noticed that the male incubated the eggs and brooded the chick the entire day (below left) while the female took over the night shift (below right).

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In the image on the left, notice the distinct upper eyelid of the male bird. The eye of the chick is covered by a translucent membrane, the nictitating membrane, also called the third eyelid. This membrane moves sideways across the eye and helps to clean the surface of the eye as well as keep it moist.

Pink-necked Green Pigeons are now becoming common around our urban areas and it is not unusual to see pairs nesting in trees, bushes and potted plants found in small gardens.

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If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

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