The Negros fruit dove is a species of bird in the pigeon and dove family, Columbidae. It is endemic to the island of Negros in the Philippines. This fruit dove is known from a single female specimen collected from the slopes of Mount Kanlaon in the northern part of the island. While it was found at a high elevation, it is suspected that the species originally lived in the lowland dipterocarp forests and was driven to higher elevations by habitat destruction. While some have suggested that the specimen is either a runt or a hybrid instead of a valid species, this is not widely accepted. The female Negros fruit dove was a small fruit dove with vivid dark green plumage and an ashy-grey forehead. It had a distinctive ring of bare yellow skin around its eye, and yellow fringes to some of its feathers gave it the appearance of having a yellow wingbar when perched. The throat was white, while the undertail and vent were yellow.
Region
Central Philippines (Visayas)
Typical Environment
Confirmed only from the slopes of Mount Kanlaon on Negros Island. It likely favored primary and mature secondary lowland dipterocarp forest with seasonal movements to foothill and lower montane forest following fruiting trees. The single known record was at higher elevation, but this is thought to reflect habitat displacement rather than preference. If still extant, it would persist in remote or remaining forest tracts with abundant fruiting figs and laurels.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1500 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
Known only from a single female specimen collected on Mount Kanlaon, Negros, in the central Philippines. It may have been pushed upslope by extensive lowland forest loss, and it has not been reliably seen since its discovery, leading to fears it may be possibly extinct. Although some have questioned its validity as a species, most authorities accept it as a distinct fruit dove. Its striking yellow orbital ring and yellow-fringed wing feathers are distinctive among Philippine fruit doves.
Mount Kanlaon
Temperament
shy and elusive
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats through the canopy
Social Behavior
Presumed to occur singly or in pairs like other Ptilinopus fruit doves. Likely nests in trees with a simple platform of twigs, laying a single egg. Courtship and breeding behavior are undocumented but probably resemble related fruit doves, with quiet display coos and short flights between perches.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Vocalizations are unknown, but by analogy with close relatives they were likely soft, low coos delivered from concealed canopy perches. Calls probably carry poorly in dense forest, aiding secrecy but limiting detection.
