Emerald Dove Husbandry Manual - Nswfmpa.org

Jennifer Brown ● Emerald Dove Chalcophaps indica ● Husbandry manual
numbers rarely exceed 12 individual animals. Even when flocks this large are observed
the animals have been seen arriving separately and they will depart separately and will
walk alone even with the other doves nearby.
There i s l ittle m igration d ata o n t hese b irds an d i t is thought t hat though th ere m ay be
small p opulations that d isplay l ocal m igration, o n a population l evel there i s n o m ajor
migration (Higgens et.al, 1996), with the birds staying in their own habitat all year round.
9.1.2 Captive Habits:
An observational study of two captive Emerald Doves was conducted by the author, in a
mixed species free flight walk through aviary. Instantaneous recording sheets were used,
see appendix 4B for raw data and 4A f or a sample recording sheet. The observation
sessions were an hour in length and were conducted on three separate occasions. The
results o f t he o bservation are d isplayed i n F ig 9 .1.21 (raw data i n Appendix 4B ). An
ethogram of the behaviours observed can be found in Appendix 4C.
Percentage
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Time spent on each Behaviour Type
Passive Active Other
Behaviour Type
Fig 9.1.21: Observation results of two captive Emerald Doves
As i t can be seen from Fig 9 .1.21, t he Emerald dove spends al most an ev en amount of
time in active behaviours such as grooming or foraging as i t does in passive behaviours
such as l oafing o n a t ree b ranch. The
observational study was conducted at
three different times to see a wide range
of d isplayed b ehaviours, including
feeding time- when they are most
active, m idday a nd du sk –when t hey
are preparing to roost for the night.
This d ata c an t hen b e u sed l ater o n t o
help d evelop a su ccessful en richment
program.
9.2 Reproductive Behaviour:
The m ale E merald Dove h as a v ery
specific mating dance that he will do in
order t o a ttract a f emale. Details o f t his
Fig 9.2.1 Emerald Dove foraging (bird forum, 2009)
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