The Andaman wood pigeon (Columba palumboides) is a large grey pigeon found only on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. It lives in the canopy of dense evergreen forest, eats fruit, and has a pale silvery head and a red bill with a yellowish tip. It is listed as Near Threatened because of logging and hunting.
How to identify an Andaman wood pigeon
The Andaman and Nicobar forest department describes it as about the size of a domestic pigeon but with a longer tail (Andaman and Nicobar administration (opens in new tab)). The features to look for are:
- a whitish to silvery-grey head, with a chequered pattern on the neck
- dark slate-grey upperparts with a metallic green sheen
- pale blue-grey underparts
- a reddish bill with a yellowish tip
- purplish-red bare skin around the eye
It keeps to the treetops and is usually seen in pairs or small groups (BirdLife International (opens in new tab)), so a clear view of the head and bill is often the hardest part.
Where it lives
The species is endemic to the Andaman and Nicobar archipelagos, including Great Nicobar, Nancowry, Car Nicobar and Batti Malv, and is a resident that does not migrate (BirdLife International (opens in new tab)). BirdLife International describes it as uncommon in the Andamans and suspects the same is true in the Nicobars.
It lives only in trees, in dense broadleaved evergreen forest. BirdLife gives its extent of occurrence as 81,700 km², a figure that draws a line around the whole island chain and so includes a great deal of sea. The State of India’s Birds (opens in new tab) report, which maps the range differently, gives a distribution range of about 6,200 km².
What it eats
It is a fruit eater. It takes a wide range of large berries and other fruit and wanders from island to island in search of fruiting trees, especially figs (BirdLife International (opens in new tab)). That diet makes it quite unlike the seed-eating feral pigeon of towns; for comparison, see what pigeons eat.
Breeding and lifespan
Very little has been recorded. There is no published description of its nest, clutch size or breeding season that we could find, and its lifespan in the wild has not been measured. BirdLife uses a modelled generation length of 5.6 years, which is the average age of parents in the population rather than a lifespan.
Why it is Near Threatened
The species has been listed as Near Threatened, or the older equivalent Lower Risk/Near Threatened, in every IUCN assessment since 1988. The latest assessment, from 2017, estimates 2,500 to 9,999 mature birds (BirdLife International (opens in new tab)).
That number is an estimate, not a count. Surveys in the Andamans in 1996 and 2007 found the bird rare, so BirdLife based the figure on population densities of related pigeons and assumed it occupies only part of its range. There are no trend data, but a decline is suspected. The State of India’s Birds (opens in new tab) report also lists its long-term and current trends as insufficient data.
| Topic | Evidence | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Range | Recorded | Andaman and Nicobar Islands only; resident |
| Habitat | Recorded | Canopy of dense broadleaved evergreen forest |
| Diet | Recorded | Large berries and fruit, especially figs |
| Population | Estimate | 2,500 to 9,999 mature birds (2017) |
| Trend | Estimate | Decline suspected; no trend data |
| Nest, eggs and season | Not known | Not described in published sources we found |
| Lifespan | Not known | Not measured in the wild |
BirdLife lists two main threats. The first is forest loss: as the human population of the larger islands grows, land is cleared for farming and building, and forest is logged. The second is hunting, which appears to be common on the islands. In India it is protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, where it is listed in Schedule II (State of India’s Birds (opens in new tab)).
Conservation
BirdLife has identified 16 Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas for the species, among them Mount Harriet National Park, Saddle Peak National Park, Little Andaman and Great Nicobar. The Andaman and Nicobar Department of Environment and Forests has started work on the islands’ endemic and threatened birds, and the Zoological Survey of India is monitoring bird populations. There is no recovery plan and no captive population.
The actions BirdLife proposes are surveys to measure the population, regular monitoring, research into how well the bird copes with degraded forest and how much it is hunted, awareness campaigns to reduce hunting, and protection of large areas of intact forest on several islands.
Name and history
Allan Octavian Hume described the species in 1873 in his journal Stray Feathers (Biodiversity Heritage Library scan (opens in new tab)). It belongs to Columba, the same genus as the rock dove and the common wood pigeon. The Andaman and Nicobar administration has made it the territory’s state bird (Andaman and Nicobar administration (opens in new tab)). The islands are also home to the Nicobar pigeon, which is not an endemic species but is found there.
For other threatened members of the family, see which pigeons are endangered.
Andaman wood pigeon: FAQs
Is the Andaman wood pigeon endangered?
No. It is listed as Near Threatened, one step below Vulnerable. The 2017 IUCN assessment estimates 2,500 to 9,999 mature birds and suspects a decline from forest loss and hunting.
Where does the Andaman wood pigeon live?
Only on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India, in the canopy of dense evergreen forest. It does not migrate but moves between islands to find fruiting trees.
What does the Andaman wood pigeon eat?
Fruit. It takes a wide range of large berries and other fruit, particularly figs.
Is the Andaman wood pigeon the state bird?
Yes. It is the state bird of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India.
Can you keep an Andaman wood pigeon as a pet?
No. It is a wild species protected under Indian law, and there is no captive population.
Sources
References used for this page:
- BirdLife International: Andaman Woodpigeon Columba palumboides species factsheet (IUCN Red List assessment 2017). (opens in new tab)
- State of India’s Birds: Andaman Wood Pigeon species page (2025 update). (opens in new tab)
- Government of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, CGEWCC: State bird, animal and tree. (opens in new tab)
- Hume, A.O. (1873). Stray Feathers: Journal of Ornithology for India and its Dependencies, vol. 1 (Biodiversity Heritage Library). (opens in new tab)
Last updated 12 November 2026 · Types