19-3-2015 SINGAPORE - VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON (Goura cristata)

The Victoria crowned pigeon (Goura victoria) is a large, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like crests, maroon breast and red irises. It is part of a genus (Goura) of four unique, very large, ground-dwelling pigeons native to the New Guinea region. The bird may be easily recognized by the unique white tips on its crests and by its deep 'whooping' sounds made while calling. Its name commemorates the British monarch Queen Victoria.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is distributed in the lowland and swamp forests of northern New Guinea and surrounding islands. It usually occurs on areas that were former alluvial plains, including sago forests. Though typically found at or near sea level, occasionally birds of this species may venture up in the hills to an elevation up to about 3,000 feet.

9-6-2023 MANDAI BIRD PARADISE, SINGAPORE - VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON (Goura victoria)

The Victoria crowned pigeon (Goura victoria) is a large, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like crests, maroon breast and red irises. It is part of a genus (Goura) of four unique, very large, ground-dwelling pigeons native to the New Guinea region. The bird may be easily recognized by the unique white tips on its crests and by its deep 'whooping' sounds made while calling. Its name commemorates the British monarch Queen Victoria.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is a deep blue-grey colour with a small, black mask. Its feather crest (the signature feature of crowned pigeons other than their size) is conspicuously white-tipped. On the wing coverts is a row of feathers that are a paler blue-gray with maroon tips. These form a distinct wing bar. The chest is a deep purple-maroon color. As in all crowned pigeons, melanism has been observed. The other two crowned pigeons are somewhat superficially similar, but only the western crowned pigeon overlaps in range with the Victoria species. The Scheepmaker's crowned pigeon does not. In the western species, the crown is more scraggly and hair-like, the chest is a uniform blue-gray and not maroon, and a less distinct wing-bar is present. Both sexes are similar.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is distributed in the lowland and swamp forests of northern New Guinea and surrounding islands. It usually occurs on areas that were former alluvial plains, including sago forests. Though typically found at or near sea level, occasionally birds of this species may venture up in the hills to an elevation up to about 3,000 feet. They fly from sea to tree every day.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is now the most rarely occurring of the three crowned pigeon species in the wild, although it is the most widely kept species in captivity. Perhaps the most pressing threat to the species is continuing habitat loss due to logging. It's now quite uncommon near human habitations because it is heavily hunted around them, particularly in areas where gun possession is prevalent. It can be quite tame and easily shot, though it now seems to be fearful of humans in the wild. Most hunting is for its plumes and meat. Trapping of pigeons to be kept alive for captive collections is now illegal but is still likely to be occurring. The Victoria crowned pigeon is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

2-6-2023 BALI BIRD PARK, BALI - VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON (Goura victoria)

The Victoria crowned pigeon (Goura victoria) is a large, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like crests, maroon breast and red irises. It is part of a genus (Goura) of four unique, very large, ground-dwelling pigeons native to the New Guinea region. The bird may be easily recognized by the unique white tips on its crests and by its deep 'whooping' sounds made while calling. Its name commemorates the British monarch Queen Victoria.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is distributed in the lowland and swamp forests of northern New Guinea and surrounding islands. It usually occurs on areas that were former alluvial plains, including sago forests. Though typically found at or near sea level, occasionally birds of this species may venture up in the hills to an elevation up to about 3,000 feet. They fly from sea to tree every day.

Like other crowned pigeons, the Victoria crowned pigeon is a gregarious species. They usually travel in pairs or small parties as they search for food. They walk with an unhurried gait along the forest floor. Their food typically consists of fallen fruit. Birds of this species in captivity are particularly fond of eating figs. Seeds and invertebrates may occasionally supplement the diet. When disturbed, these birds fly straight up into the canopy or a large horizontal branch of a large forest tree. After being disturbed, they may remain on their perch for a considerable time engaging in contact calls and flicking their tails. In the wild, this species tends to be shier than the western crowned pigeon, but can still occasionally be quietly approached. The males regularly engage in aggressive displays to establish dominance. In these interactions, the pigeons puff up their chests and repeatedly raise their wings as if preparing to strike their opponent. They also make short dashes at each other and may actually hit one another, but rarely make contact and can be completely peaceful towards other males outside of the early mating season. 

4-12-2015 JURONG, SINGAPORE - VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON (Goura victoria)

The Victoria crowned pigeon (Goura victoria) is a large, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like crests,

maroon breast and red irises. It is part of a genus (Goura) of four unique, very large, ground-dwelling pigeons native to the New Guinea region. The bird may be easily recognized by the unique white tips on its crests and by its deep 'whooping' sounds made while calling. Its name commemorates the British monarch Queen Victoria.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is a deep blue-grey colour with a small, black mask. Its feather crest (the signature feature of crowned pigeons other than their size) is conspicuously white-tipped. On the wing coverts is a row of feathers that are a paler blue-gray with maroon tips. These form a distinct wing bar. The chest is a deep purple-maroon color. As in all crowned pigeons, melanism has been observed. The other two crowned pigeons are somewhat superficially similar, but only the western crowned pigeon overlaps in range with the Victoria species. The Scheepmaker's crowned pigeon does not. In the western species, the crown is more scraggly and hair-like, the chest is a uniform blue-gray and not maroon, and a less distinct wing-bar is present. Both sexes are similar.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is distributed in the lowland and swamp forests of northern New Guinea and surrounding islands. It usually occurs on areas that were former alluvial plains, including sago forests. Though typically found at or near sea level, occasionally birds of this species may venture up in the hills to an elevation up to about 3,000 feet.

Like other crowned pigeons, the Victoria crowned pigeon is a gregarious species. They usually travel in pairs or small parties as they search for food. They walk with an unhurried gait along the forest floor. Their food typically consists of fallen fruit. Birds of this species in captivity are particularly fond of eating figs. Seeds and invertebrates may occasionally supplement the diet. When disturbed, these birds fly straight up into the canopy or a large horizontal branch of a large forest tree. After being disturbed, they may remain on their perch for a considerable time engaging in contact calls and flicking their tails. In the wild, this species tends to be shier than the western crowned pigeon, but can still occasionally be quietly approached. The males regularly engage in aggressive displays to establish dominance. In these interactions, the pigeons puff up their chests and repeatedly raise their wings as if preparing to strike their opponent. They also make short dashes at each other and may actually hit one another, but rarely make contact and can be completely peaceful towards other males outside of the early mating season.

26-11-2015 JURONG, SINGAPORE - VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON (Goura victoria)

Sclater's crowned pigeon (Goura sclaterii) is a large, terrestrial pigeon confined to the southern lowland forests of New Guinea. This pigeon was previously considered as conspecific with Scheepmaker's crowned pigeon (Goura scheepmakeri) with the English name "southern crowned pigeon".

It has a bluish-grey plumage with elaborate blue lacy crests, red iris and very deep maroon breast. Both sexes have a similar appearance. It is 66–73 cm (26–29 in) in length and weighs 2.00–2.24 kg (4.41–4.94 lb).

Sclater's crowned pigeon was originally described by the Italian zoologist Tommaso Salvadori in 1876. He introduced the current binomial name Goura sclaterii. The specific epithet sclaterii was chosen to honour the English ornithologist Philip Sclater (1829–1913). A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2018 found that Sclater's crowned pigeon was most closely related to the western crowned pigeon (Goura cristata).

3-1-2016 HONG KONG - VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON (Goura victoria)

The Victoria crowned pigeon (Goura victoria ) is a large, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like crests, maroon breast and red irises. It is part of a genus (Goura ) of four unique, very large, ground-dwelling pigeons native to the New Guinea region. The bird may be easily recognized by the unique white tips on its crests and by its deep 'whooping' sounds made while calling. Its name commemorates the British monarch Queen Victoria.

The Victoria crowned pigeon is a large, bluish-grey pigeon with elegant blue lace-like crests, maroon breast, and red eyes. It is part of a genus (Goura) of four unique, very large, ground-dwelling pigeons native to the New Guinea region. The bird may be easily recognized by the unique white tips on its crests and by its deep 'whooping' sounds made while calling.

Victoria crowned pigeons are found in northern New Guinea and surrounding islands and in parts of Indonesia. They inhabit lowland moist and swamp forests and often occur in areas that were former alluvial plains, including sago forests.

Victoria crowned pigeons are gregarious birds. They usually travel in pairs or small groups as they search for food. They walk with an unhurried gait along the forest floor. Victoria crowned pigeons spend most of their time on the ground and fly up into trees only when disturbed or to roost at night. When disturbed, these birds fly straight up into the canopy or a large horizontal branch of a large forest tree. After being disturbed, they may remain on their perch for a considerable time engaging in contact calls and flicking their tails. The males regularly engage in aggressive displays to establish dominance. In these interactions, the pigeons puff up their chests and repeatedly raise their wings as if preparing to strike their opponent. They also make short dashes at each other and may actually hit one another, but rarely make contact and can be completely peaceful towards other males outside of the early mating season. Victoria crowned pigeons use various calls to communicate with each other. Their contact call is a deep, muffled, and rather human-like 'ummm' or 'hmmm'. They make a loud clapping sound when they take flight and their mating calls consist of a deep 'hoota-hoota-hoota-hoota-hoota' sound. When defending their territories, these birds make a resounding 'whup-up, whup-up, whup-up' call.