Puerto Rican Plain Pigeon: Status and Recovery

How to recognize a Plain Pigeon

It is a large pigeon, about the size and shape of a domestic pigeon. From a distance it looks pale blue-gray; up close it shows a wine-colored head, hindneck, breast, and wing patch, white margins on the wing coverts, and dark red legs. That white edge on the folded wing is one of the best field marks.

It is most often confused with the Scaly-naped Pigeon, which is darker, has a scaly nape, and lacks the white wing edge. The mix-up has consequences: the Scaly-naped is a legal game bird and the Plain Pigeon is not. If you see a pigeon with a white-edged wing in east-central Puerto Rico, it is worth photographing and reporting to eBird.

Where it lives and what it eats

The core range is east-central Puerto Rico: Aguas Buenas, Aibonito, Barranquitas, Bayamón, Caguas, Cayey, Cidra, Comerío, Guayama, Gurabo, Juncos, Naranjito, and San Lorenzo. It behaves as a forest-edge species: it nests, feeds, and roosts in trees near roads, crosses farmland and towns, and visits dairy farms and croplands. It prefers mature secondary forest near rivers and streams and has not been found nesting outside this region.

It eats fruits and seeds; about 70% of its food comes from branches and 30% from the ground, including grass seeds and grain residues. At Cidra its principal foods include royal palm (Roystonea borinquena), mountain immortelle (Erythrina poeppigiana), West Indies trema (Trema lamarckiana), and white prickle (Zanthoxylum martinicense). It drinks water held in bromeliads and in African tulip-tree blossoms.

From 52 birds to 31,000 and back to hundreds

Deforestation for agriculture from the 19th century, unregulated hunting, and nest predation shrank the species by the early 20th century. In 1963 about 52 birds were documented in Cidra. As farms and pastures were abandoned and secondary forest returned, the population grew: 1,534 birds in 1990 after Hurricane Hugo, a peak of 31,289 in 1998, and 11,350 in 1999 after Hurricane Georges.

From 2002 to 2017 it fluctuated between 12,100 and 4,257 birds. After Irma and Maria in September 2017, about 550 were estimated, the steepest drop since monitoring began in 1986. Surveys from 2018 to 2021 showed continued decline, and in 2024 the core-range estimate was 407 birds. The Fish and Wildlife Service describes a 'prolonged bottleneck.'

Nesting: one egg and many risks

The Plain Pigeon lays a single egg per clutch and builds its nest on bamboo branches, vines, or trees such as mango. Between 1986 and 1999, 377 nests were monitored, averaging 0.5 fledglings per nest. Since 2020, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the group Effective Environmental Restoration have resumed nest searches: in 2023 they documented 42 birds and 10 nests, 6 of which fledged a chick.

Nests face the Pearly-eyed Thrasher, considered the most important nest predator, plus rats, cats, dogs, and green iguanas, which have been seen about four feet from active nests. Red-tailed Hawks attack adult pigeons and were one of the main reasons releases of captive-bred pigeons failed in the mid-1990s. Night-herons and Green Herons have also been documented eating eggs or young.

Threats: private habitat, hurricanes, and hunting

Most of the breeding population lives on private land exposed to development. The species shows site fidelity: in Comerío, the 2023 cutting of a black olive tree (Terminalia buceras) used for nesting in 2022 coincided with less nesting activity. Cutting branches that support nests is one of the most common human disturbances.

Maria stripped more than 90% of vegetation in several municipalities and left pigeons without fruit. Illegal hunting and shots fired in confusion with the Scaly-naped Pigeon also play a role, though records are few. Interviews with residents revealed that many did not know the pigeon nested in their neighborhood, which raises the risk of unintentional disturbance.

The recovery plan and what you can do

The 1982 recovery plan calls for two distinct wild populations of at least 250 nesting pairs each, securing most of the Cidra-Cayey habitat, and establishing a second population in Río Abajo State Forest or an equivalent site. None of the three criteria has been met, and the Fish and Wildlife Service considers the plan essentially obsolete.

The 2025 review recommends predator control at nesting sites, community outreach that includes hunters, restoration on private land, rapid-response teams after disasters, and evaluating a restart of captive breeding. If you live in east-central Puerto Rico: do not trim trees with active nests, keep cats indoors, report sightings to eBird, and report hunting to the DNER.

How many Plain Pigeons are left in Puerto Rico?

The Fish and Wildlife Service estimated 407 birds (±125) in the east-central core range in April-June 2024. An analysis of 2018-2024 data estimated about 1,097 birds (±455) island-wide. Before Hurricane Maria in 2017 there were about 4,257.

Where can you see the Plain Pigeon?

In east-central Puerto Rico, especially Cidra, Cayey, Caguas, Comerío, Aguas Buenas, Aibonito, and San Lorenzo. It often perches in roadside trees and near streams. Watch from a distance and stay away from nests.

What is the difference between the Plain Pigeon and the Scaly-naped Pigeon?

The Plain Pigeon looks pale blue-gray with wine tones and a white edge on the folded wing. The Scaly-naped is darker, with a scaly nape and no white edge. The Scaly-naped is a game species; the Plain Pigeon is endangered and hunting it is illegal.

Why is the Plain Pigeon endangered?

Because of habitat loss on private land, hurricanes, nest predation by thrashers, rats, cats, and iguanas, and illegal hunting. It also lays a single egg per clutch, so it recovers slowly after each blow.

Is the Plain Pigeon endemic to Puerto Rico?

The species is not endemic: it also lives in Cuba, Hispaniola, and Jamaica. But the subspecies wetmorei is found only in Puerto Rico, and that subspecies is the one listed as endangered by the DNER and the federal government.

How can I help the Plain Pigeon?

Do not trim trees or bamboo with active nests, keep cats indoors, plant native fruiting trees, report sightings to eBird, and report illegal hunting to the DNER Ranger Corps. If you own land in east-central Puerto Rico, keeping secondary forest along streams is especially valuable.