About Columba hodgsonii Vigors, 1832
General characteristics: Adult speckled wood pigeons typically measure 38–40 cm (15–15.5 in) in length. Adult males have a pale gray head, while females have a grayish-brown head. Juveniles resemble females but are browner and paler than adult females. Adult males have a pinkish-silver breast and side of the neck, speckled with black spots. Each feather on the breast has a silver base, a dark central streak, and a silvery-pink tip. Hindneck feathers have black or purplish-black bases with silver tips, which creates an overall speckled appearance. Females have less vibrant neck and breast coloration compared to males. Plumage: On adult males, the upper part of the mantle and wing-coverts is dark reddish-purple, burgundy, or maroon, transitioning to bluish-gray on the outer wing-coverts. The upper mantle has silver flecks, and white spots appear on the inner and median wing-coverts. In females, maroon coloration is absent from the scapulars and mantle, and is replaced by slaty dark brown. Juveniles have indistinct speckles. The tail and primaries are black or blackish-brown in both males and females, and the underwing and undertail are blackish. In males, the belly and abdomen are maroon or dark reddish-purple with pinkish-white streaks; each feather is purplish with white fringes. Females have dark brownish-gray underparts with no maroon coloration. In adults, the legs are brownish yellow-green, and the claws are bright yellow. The beak changes color from blueish-purple at the base to black at the tip. The iris is white-gray in males, has gray-brown tinges in females, and is paler in juveniles than in adults. Distribution and habitat: The speckled wood pigeon is distributed across the Himalayas, from Kashmir to western and central China, including southern Gansu, western Sichuan, and western Yunnan. This species is also found in India, Myanmar, northern and western Thailand, northern and western Laos, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, and Afghanistan. Speckled wood pigeons inhabit tall evergreen and semi-evergreen hill forests, especially those dominated by oak and Rhododendron, at altitudes between 1,800 and 4,000 meters (5,900–13,100 ft). Depending on food availability, it may descend to as low as 1,350 meters (4,430 ft) in winter, and is sometimes observed in open, treeless valley bottoms.
