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The New Zealand pigeon or kererū (''Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae'') is a bird endemic to New Zealand. Māori call it ''kererū'' in most of the country but ''kūkupa'' and ''kūkū'' in some parts of the North Island, particularly in Northland. Commonly called wood pigeon,〔("Drunk kereru fall from trees" ), Feb 22, 2013, Laura Mills & Kurt Bayer, nzherald.co.nz〕 they are distinct from the wood pigeon (''Columba palumbus'') of the Northern Hemisphere, which is a member of a different genus. The New Zealand pigeon belongs to the family Columbidae, and the subfamily Treroninae, which is found throughout Southeast Asia, Malaya, Africa and New Zealand. The members of this subfamily feed largely on fruits, mainly drupes.〔Falla, R. A., R. B. Sibson, and E. G. Turbott (1979). The new guide to the birds of New Zealand and outlying islands. Collins, Auckland.〕 New Zealand pigeons are members of the pigeon genus ''Hemiphaga'' (Bonaparte, 1854), which is endemic to the New Zealand archipelago and Norfolk Island. However recently a ''Hemiphaga'' bone was found on Raoul Island.〔Worthy, T. H., and R. Brassey. (2000). New Zealand pigeon (''Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae'') on Raoul Island, Kermadec Group. ''Notornis'' 47 (1): 36–38〕 The Chatham pigeon or Chatham Island pigeon (''Hemiphaga chathamensis'') is traditionally considered a subspecies of the kererū, but is here treated as a separate species. ==Description== The New Zealand pigeon is a large, , arboreal fruit-pigeon〔Clout, M. (1990). The Kereru and its forests. ''Birds International'' 2:10–19.〕 found in forests from Northland to Stewart Island/Rakiura, ranging in habitats from coastal to montane.〔Clout, M. N., P. D. Gaze, J. R. Hay, and B. J. Karl. (1986) Habitat use and spring movements of New Zealand pigeons at Lake Rotoroa, Nelson Lakes National Park. ''Notornis'' 33:37–44.〕 The general morphology is that of a typical pigeon, in that it has a relatively small head, a straight soft-based bill and loosely attached feathers. It also displays typical pigeon behaviour, which includes drinking by suction, a wing-threat display, hitting with the wing when threatened, a diving display flight, a 'bowing' display, ritualised preening and 'billing' during courtship. New Zealand pigeons build flimsy, shallow, twiggy nests and feed crop milk to hatchlings.〔〔James, R. E. (1995). Breeding ecology of the New Zealand pigeon at Wenderholm Regional Park. p93. ''School of Environmental and Marine Science''. University of Auckland, Auckland.〕 The mainland New Zealand pigeon grows to some in length and in weight, compared to and for the Chatham Island variant.〔Robertson, Hugh, and Barrie Heather. 1999. The Hand Guide to the Birds of New Zealand. Penguin Books. ISBN 0-19-850831-X〕 The head, throat and wings are generally a shiny green-purple colour, but with a bronze tinge to the feathers. The breast is typically white and the bill red with an orange-ish tip. The feet and eyes are red. Juveniles have a similar colouration but are generally paler with dull colours for the beak, eyes and feet and a shorter tail. The New Zealand pigeons make occasional soft ''coo'' sounds (hence the onomatopoeic names), and their wings make a very distinctive "whooshing" sound as they fly. The bird's flight is also very distinctive. Birds will often ascend slowly before making impressively steep parabolic dives; it is thought that this behaviour is often associated with nesting, or nest failure. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「New Zealand pigeon」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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