Part 68

Columba oceanica Lesson (part), Voy. "La Coquille," Zool.; Atlas, 1826, pl. 41; vol. 2, 1828, pp. 432, 708 (Oualan or Strong); idem, (part), Man. d'Ornith., 11, 1828, p. 166 (Oualan); Kittlitz (part), Kupfertaf. Naturgesch. Vögel, 3, 1833, p. 25, pl. 23, fig. 1 (Ualan); idem (part), Observ. Zool., in Lutké, Voy. "Le Séniavine," 3, 1836, p. 284 (Ualan); Lesson, Compl. de Buffon, 2d ed., 2, Oiseaux, 1839, p. 292 (Oualan); Prévost and Knip (part), Les Pigeons, 2, 1838-43, p. 47, pl. 24 (Oualan); Bonaparte, Comptes Rendus Acad. Sci. Paris, 39, 1854, p. 1072 (Oualan); Kittlitz, Denkw. Reise russ. Amer. Micron. und Kamchat., 1, 1858, pp. 39, 49, 62 (Ualan).

Carpohaga oceanica Hartlaub (part), Archiv f. Naturgesch., 18, 1852, pp. 115, 185 (Ualan); idem, Journ. f. Ornith., 1854, p. 168 (Carolinen = Kusaie); Hartlaub and Finsch (part), Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 1872, p. 101 (Ualan); Schlegel, Mus. Pays-Bas, 6, no. 35, 1873, p. 87 (Oualan); Salvadori (part). Cronaca del R. Liceo-Ginnasio Cavour, 1878, pp. 3, 8 (Oualan); Finsch (part), Ibis, 1880, pp. 220, 331, 332 (Taluit); idem (part), Journ. f. Ornith., 1880, pp. 292, 304 (Kuschai); idem, Ibis, 1881, p. 108 (Kuschai); idem, Mitth. Ornith. Ver. Wien, 1884, p. 50 (Kuschai, Jaluit); Hartert, Katalog Vogelsamml, Senckenb., 1891, p. 190 (Ualan); Wiglesworth (part), Abhandl. und Ber. Zool. Mus. Dresden, no. 6, 1890-1891 (1891), p. 52 (Ualan, Taluit); Matschie (part), Journ. f. Ornith., 1901, p. 113 (Ualan).

Globicera oceanica Bonaparte (part), Consp. Avium, 2, 1855, p. 31 (Oualan); idem, Comptes Rendus Acad. Sci. Paris, 43, 1856, p. 835 (Oualan); Reichenbach (part), Tauben, 1861, p. 120 (Oualan); Salvadori (part), Cat. Birds British Mus., 21, 1893, p. 176 (Kushai).

Carpophaga pacifica Finsch and Hartlaub (part), Fauna Centralpolynesiens, 1867, p. 145 (Ualan).

Carpophaga (Globicera) oceanica Gray (part), Cat. Birds Trop. Is. Pacific Ocean, 1859, p. 41 (Oualan).

Globicera oceanica oceanica Wetmore, in Townsend and Wetmore, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., 63, 1919, p. 191 (Kusaie); Momiyama (part), Birds Micronesia, 1922, p. 6 (Kusaie, Taluit); Kuroda (part), in Momiyama, Birds Micronesia, 1922, p. 55 (Kusaie, Taluit); Mathews, Syst. Avium Australasianarum, 1, 1927, p. 45 (Kusaie); Takatsukasa and Yamashina, Dobutsu. Zasshi, 44, 1932, p. 221 (Jaluit, Iringlob, Kusaie); Hand-list Japanese Birds, rev., 1932, p. 190 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore).

Muscadivora oceanica oceanica Neumann (part), Verhandl. Ornith. Ges. Bayern, 25, 1922, p. 234 (Kushai).

Ducula Oceanica oceanica Peters, Check-list Birds World, 3, 1937, p. 44 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore); Bequaert, Mushi, 12, 1939, p. 81 (Kusaie); idem, Occ. Papers Bernice P. Bishop Mus., 16, 1941, p. 266 (Kusaie); Hand-list Japanese Birds, 3d ed., 1942, p. 212 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore); Amadon, Amer. Mus. Novit., no. 1237, 1943, p. 11 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore); Mayr, Birds Southwest Pacific, 1945, p. 289 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore).

Geographic range.--Micronesia: Caroline Islands--Kusaie; Marshall Islands--Jaluit, Elmore.

Characters.--Adult male: A large knob-billed pigeon with breast gray, washed with buff; head and neck dark gray; feathers at base of bill and on chin buff-white; abdomen and under tail-coverts near "burnt sienna," sides grayer; mantle, back, rump, upper tail-coverts, wings and tail bronze-green edged with a dark bluish sheen; under side of wing and under side of tail brown; bill and knob black; feet blackish-red; iris reddish-brown. Adult female resembles adult male but smaller and possibly a little darker bluish-green on back, wings, and tail.

D. o. oceania resembles D. o. townsendi, but is smaller with upper parts slightly darker and abdomen and under side of tail lighter.

Measurements.--Measurements are presented in table 27.

Specimens examined.--Total number, 47 (25 males, 22 females), as follows: Caroline Islands, USNM--Kusaie, 2 (Feb. 8, 9,); AMNH--Kusaie, 45 (Jan., Feb., March).

Parasites.--Bequaert (1939:81 and 1941:266) obtained the fly (Hippoboscidae) Ornithoctona plicata from the pigeon at Kusaie.

Remarks.--The Micronesian Pigeon at Kusaie has been known since 1824, when from June 5 to June 15 of that year personnel from the corvette "La Coquille" visited the island and observed the bird. Kittlitz visited Kusaie and observed the pigeon in December, 1827, and January, 1828. Finsch (1880c and 1880d) found the bird in the Marshalls at Jaluit. Takatsukasa and Yamashina (1932:221) record the bird from Elmore in the Marshalls. Coultas (field notes) writes that the pigeon was numerous at Kusaie in 1931. He remarks that they appear stupid and are easily killed by the natives, who use a call to attract them. With regard to their habits he writes, "About four o'clock in the afternoon these birds begin congregating in the high trees of the lowlands close to the salt water where they roost for the night. At daybreak they begin migrating to the high mountain sides and peaks where they spend the time feeding."

=Ducula oceanica ratakensis= (Takatsukasa and Yamashina)

Micronesian Pigeon

Globecera oceanica ratakensis Takatsukasa and Yamashina, Dobutsu. Zasshi, 44, 1932, p. 221. (Type locality, Aruno.)

Columba australis Chamisso, in Kotzebue's, Voy. "Rurick," 3, 1821, p. 157 (Radak).

Carpophaga oceanica Finsch, Ibis, 1880, p. 331 (Arno); Wiglesworth (part), Abhandl. und Ber. Zool. Mus. Dresden, no. 6, 1890-1891 (1891), p. 52 (Arno); idem, Ibis, 1893, p. 211 (Marshalls).

Globicera oceanica oceanica Momiyama (part), Birds Micronesia, 1922, p. 5 (Arno); Kuroda (part), in Momiyama, Birds Micronesia, 1922, p. 55 (Arno).

Globicera oceanica ratakensis Hand-list Japanese Birds, rev., 1932, p. 190 (Arhno, Wotze); Mathews, Ibis, 1933, p. 87 (Aruno, Wozzie).

Ducala oceanica ratakensis Peters, Check-list Birds World, 3, 1937, p. 44 (Arno, Wotje); Hand-list Japanese Birds, 3d ed., 1942, p. 212 (Arhno, Wotze); Amadon, Amer. Mus. Novit., no. 1237, 1943, p. 12 (Arno, Wotje); Mayr. Birds Southwest Pacific, 1945, p. 289 (Arno, Wotje).

Geographic range.--Micronesia: Marshall Islands (Radak Chain)--Wotje, Arhno.

Characters.--Takatsukasa and Yamashina (1932:221) describe this subspecies as follows, "This form differs from all other forms of Globicera oceanica by its smaller size, more bronze-sheen on the back, more vinaceous grey on the breast and duller brown on the abdomen." On examining two specimens from Arno in the collection of the Museum of Comparative Zoölogy, Amadon (1943:12) writes that he finds no distinguishing color characters between D. o. oceanica and D. o. ratakensis. He also questions whether there is any difference in size between the two populations.

Measurements.--Measurements are listed in table 27.

Remarks.--Chamisso (1821), the naturalist on board the ship "Rurick," was the first person to write of the pigeon in the Radak Chain of the Marshall Islands. The ship visited this area in 1817. Finsch (1880b) published an account of the bird when he visited the area about 1880. Takatsukasa and Yamashina (1932:221) described this bird as new on the basis of an examination of nine skins taken at Arhno and Wotje.

Evolutionary history of Ducula oceanica in Micronesia.--The distribution and evolutionary history of Ducula oceanica have been treated by Mayr (1940) and Amadon (1943). These authors place D. oceanica within a superspecies containing D. pacifica (Melanesia to Samoa and Cook Islands), D. aurorea (Society Islands), D. galeata (Marquesas Islands), and possibly other species in Papua and Malaysia. According to Mayr (1942b:fig. 7), D. pacifica is the species which is ancestral to other species of pigeons in Oceania. Apparently D. oceanica was derived from this ancestral stock and reached Micronesia via the Ellice and Gilbert islands. Records of Ducula were obtained in the Gilbert Islands in the days of exploration; Amadon (1943:11) tentatively refers these to D. o. oceanica.