Abstract
The Peruvian or Salviri's Pigeon (Columba oenops) is very closely related to the Reel-billed Pigeon ( Col um ha flaoirostris) with which it forms a superspecies. One or the more obvious morphological differences is that the Peruvian Pigeon has a black or bluish-gray bill tip, compared to a bone-colored tip in the Red-billed Pigeon. Also, the nape and shoulder areas in the Peruvian Pigeon are more of a reddish-brown compared to gray in the Red-billed Pigeon. The sexes are similar in appearance.
Range
The Peruvian Pigeon was recently found in Ecuador, occurring from southeast Ecuador to Peru. It also occurs in northern Peru, from The Upper Maranon Valley to La Libertad. The Peruvian Pigeon prefers riparian forest dominated by large willows. Bird Life International lists this bird as vulnerable due to loss of habitat. 77.?e Handbook Ql Birds of tbe World has listed the pigeon as vulnerable. Surveys are needed on this bird to establish its range and current numbers before conservation efforts can be started
At the Zoo
The San Antonio Zoo in San Antonio, Texas first acquired Peruvian Pigeons in February 1995. These birds were some of the first of their species to be imported into this country and were collected in the Maranon Valley of Peru. Two pairs were acquisitioned, and one pair went on exhibit after going through a forty-five-day quarantine. (All newly acquired birds undergo a thirty-day quarantine, with the exception of doves and parrots. These two
groups of birds are held longer for observation because of their vulnerability lo chlarnydiosis.) The second pair was set up as a breeding pair in our Avian Reproduction Center (ARC). The ARC is an off-exhibit outdoor facility dedicated to breeding priority avian species. The ARC consists of eleven pens measuring eight feet wide by eighteen feet long by seven and one-half feet tall. The heavily planted rear portion of each pen has a sand and soil substrate, while the keeper access area in the front pen has cement flooring. The Peruvian Pigeons were moved into the ARC on April 7, 1995 and were offered a diet consisting of Purina avian pellets with added yellow corn. The birds did not seem to eat anything for the first three clays in the new enclosure, but they settled in after that.
Breeding
The birds made no attempt to build a nest or use any of the baskets that were provided for them. In early October of 1995, a twelve inch wooden box was provided to them.
The front was open, with a threeinch lip across the bottom of the box, and the box was attached to the side of the pen six feet off the ground. Pine shavings were placed in the nest box. The pigeons showed little initial interest in their nesting box except for perching on top of it. On November 2, 1995, the male was observed spending some time in the box. On November 6, an egg was found in the nest box. The birds were observed taking turns incubating the egg, then on November 8, the birds were determined to have abandoned their nest and egg.
The egg was pulled and placed under Ring-necked Doves (Streptopelia capicola) in our foster dove colony. This has been a very beneficial husbandry technique and has worked well for us when eggs are abandoned, when eggs are laid by parents that will not raise their young, or when we have incubator problems. In fact, the foster dove colony at the San Antonio Zoo has foster-reared 12 species of columbiformes.