Mariana Fruit Dove
Ptilinopus roseicapilla
Range and population
Ptilinopus
roseicapilla is fairly common on four islands in the Northern Mariana Islands (to
USA), where it is primarily a bird of mature forest although it is also
found in some moderately disturbed mixed woodland and second growth habitats1,2,4.
It has become extirpated from
Guam
(to
USA
) owing to predation by the introduced brown tree
snake Boiga irregularis, and although single birds turn up once every few
years, these are almost certainly individuals dispersing from the
island
of
Rota
, 60 km to the north5. In 1982,
the total population was estimated at 9,443 birds, with 2,541 on Saipan, 3,075
on Tinian, 3,535 on Rota and 292 on Aguijan2. A recent
Protection through Pridecampaign on Rota has resulted in legislation fully
protecting the species from hunting and trapping3. However,
the species must be affected by habitat loss and is at risk from the accidental
introduction of B. irregularis to other islands in its range
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