Red Collared-Dove

The red collared dove is a relatively small species, with a length of 20.5–23 cm (8.1–9.1 in) and a weight of around 104 g (3.7 oz). The male has a bluish head and light red-brown body with a black ring round its neck, while the female is similar but pinkish all over.

This dove is essentially a plains species, extending to Taiwan and the Philippines but uncommon on the Indonesian archipelago (avoiding rocky foothills), and an Oriental species. There is, however, a summer migration into the broader cultivated valleys of Afghania where it breeds. It is the most common dove throughout Punjab. It is a summer migrant visitor to India, where it is more or less resident. It prefers better-wooded tracts such as canal or roadside tree plantations and avoids extensive desert regions. When they first arrive they are often in small flocks, but they soon split up and start pair formation and breeding.