Laughing Dove

Streptopelia senegalensis

Lake Baringo National Park, Kenya. October 2010.

Laughing Dove, so called because of the bird's calling sound, is found throughout Kenya in arid and semi-arid regions. It forages for food on the ground picking grass and other seeds. The best characters for identification are the black speckles in a rusty orange band across the upper chest and the bluish wings against a tawny-pink ground color.

Columbidae -- Pigeon Family

Books:

• Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania by Zimmerman et al.
• Birds of East Africa by Stevenson and Fanshawe

More Information:

• World Bird Database
• Wikipedia includes recording of call
• Encyclopedia of Life
• Google Images
• Google Scholar Literature Search