Crested Pigeon

Ocyphaps (Geophaps) lophotes

Family: Columbidae (Pigeons and Doves, 25 species in Australia)
Size: 31-35 cm
Distribution: Most of Australia except TAS and Southeast WA and the very top end of Australia
Status: Common
Habitat: Lightly wooded grasslands near water, farms, rail yards, towns in grain crop areas
References: Simpson and Day, Reader's Digest

The Crested Pigeon is often seen in the lower Blue Mountains, and in much of Sydney. It is a native pigeon, unlike the common feral pigeon (also called the Rock Dove) which it looks a little bit like (apart from the obvious crest on the top of its head).

Crested Pigeon - Ocyphaps (Geophaps) lophotes
Photo: Featherdale Wildlife Park, Sydney NSW. High Resolution (2357 x 1655)

Crested Pigeon - Ocyphaps (Geophaps) lophotes
Artwork: John Gould, 'The Birds of Australia', 1848. Original Scanned Image.

Some Birdwatching Resources

The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia, Graham Pizzey and Frank Knight. This is the other of the two best bird field guides for Australia. It is the one preferred by many serious birdwatchers. However I find the pictures a bit dull looking for my taste — the birds all kind of look the same to me, making it harder to remember them in my mind. The illustrations are meant to be the most anatomically correct, though. The text descriptions are better than in Simpson and Day. If you want the most serious bird field guide get this one otherwise get Simpson and Day.

Purchase 9th ed. from Australia (Booktopia)

Purchase 9th ed. from Australia (Angus & Robertson)

Click here to purchase 9th ed. from Australia (The Nile)

Click here to purchase from Australia (Fishpond)

Click here to preorder the 9th ed. from Amazon

Field Guide to the Birds of Australia, Nicolas Day, Ken Simpson, Peter Trusler.This is known to birdwatchers as "Simpson and Day". I like the pictures in this one the best out of all the major field guides. The information is still very highly regarded compared to most of the other guides. Many serious birdwatchers think "Pizzey and Knight" (listed here) is the best though. I bought this one since I liked the pictures so much I figured (correctly) that I would spend more time looking through it. I feel that I made the right choice since I love the pictures in this one so much. I have the 6th edition, the current one is the updated version of the 8th edition, which has a different colour cover to the original 8th edition with a black cover. I'm not sure why they haven't called this the 9th edition.

Purchase 8th ed. updated from Australia (Booktopia)

Purchase 8th ed. updated from Australia (Angus & Robertson)

Click here to purchase 8th ed. updated version from Australia (The Nile)

Click here to purchase from Australia (Fishpond)

Click here to purchase 8th ed. original version from Amazon

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