Pigeons and Doves (Columbidae)

Brown Cuckoo-dove (Macropygia phasianella) - HBW 4, p. 143

French: Phasianelle brune German: Maronentaube Spanish: Tórtola-cuco Parda
Other common names: Large Brown Cuckoo-dove, Pheasant(!)/Brown/Pheasant-tailed Pigeon

Taxonomy: Columba phasianella Temminck, 1821, Sydney, New South Wales.
May form superspecies with M. amboinensis, M. magna, M. rufipennis, M. tenuirostris and M. emiliana, and all six sometimes considered conspecific; various other combinations proposed with present species normally considered to be closest to M. amboinensis and M. magna; species limits poorly understood, and further study required in order to clarify precise relationships within this complex. Monotypic.

Distribution: E Australia from tip of Cape York Peninsula (N Queensland) to E Victoria, in coastal regions and adjacent highlands.