Red-eyed Dove

The Red-eyed Dove is the largest species of the Streptopelia genus in Africa. It is larger than the Cape Turtle Dove with which it can be confused. In the adult, the head is tinged with pink, the forehead and front of the crown being light grey, this colour may extend to the entire head in the nuptial adult. The bill is uniformly black. The dark red-orange iris eye is surrounded by an almond-shaped area of skin with a deep pink hue. The neck, chest and upper belly are of a vine-pink colour. A wide half-collar of black feathers with a variable width white border is visible around the nape. The top of the body and wings is a fairly dark brown-beige, locally shaded with grey. The remiges and tail are brown, the latter barred with dark brown two-thirds of the way down. From below, the tail appears distinctly bi-coloured, blackish at the base and whitish at the tip. The legs are pink, sometimes almost coral in colour. The juvenile is similar to the adult, but more muted in colour, with the bare parts not yet coloured. The half-collar is visible only faintly. The upper feathers are fringed with beige or reddish.