Wood Pigeon
Latin: Columba palumbus (Linné 1758)
Svenska: Ringduva
Deutsch: Ringeltaube
Flight display
The male wood pigeon loves to show off. He flies upwards, and claps his wings together with a smack. Then, he gently glides downwards with wings extended and tailfeathers fanned (Fancy!).
Wood pigeons are found all over Uppland. Their numbers have increased throughout the 20th century and today you can see them in parks in central Uppsala.
These pigeons migrate in mid-september to October towards western Europe. They return in March or April. Kjell Kolthoff, who painted many of the murals in Biotopia, wrote in the 1930s that the wood pigeon's average arrival time was around the 12-15th april, and that the earliest recorded arrival date was the 23rd of March, 1887.
Photo: Axel Mauruszat©
Latest sightings of wood pigeons in Uppland
NatureGate on the common wood pigeon
Wikipedia article on the common wood pigeon