Japanese wood pigeon
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
The Japanese wood pigeon builds a twig nest in a tree hollow or between rocks.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Japanese wood pigeon
- Scientific name
- Columba janthina
- Japanese name
- カラスバト
- Group
- Birds
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Columbiformes
- Family
- Columbidae
- Genus
- Columba
This page covers the Japanese wood pigeon as a species; the birds of the Ogasawara Islands are treated as the subspecies red-headed wood pigeon.
This pigeon lives south of central Honshu in Japan and on islands off southern Korea, in dense evergreen forests of warm regions.
Its feathers are black all over, but because of their structure they shine reddish purple on the head, green on the neck and purple from the breast to the tail.
It mostly lives in trees but also looks for food on the ground. It eats seeds, buds and fruits.
Basic data
- Size
- Total length: 37–43.5 cm
- Weight
- about 450 g
- Diet
- Plant seeds, buds, and fruit
- Range
- Japan, South Korea, and China
- Conservation status in Japan
- Near Threatened (NT)Assessed as Columba janthina janthinaMinistry of the Environment of Japan, 5th Red List (2026)
Where the Japanese wood pigeon has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- カラスバト
- 简体中文
- 黑林鸽
- 繁體中文
- 黑林鴿
- 한국어
- 흑비둘기
- Español
- Paloma japonesa
- Français
- Pigeon violet
- Deutsch
- Veilchentaube
- Português (Brasil)
- Pombo-japonês
- العربية
- حمام الغابات الياباني
- Русский
- Чёрный голубь
- Türkçe
- Mor güvercin
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 上野動物園 — カラスバトChecked: 2026-11-03
- Ministry of the Environment of Japan, 5th Red List (2026)Checked: 2026-11-07
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
The conservation status in Japan is the category in the Red Lists of the Ministry of the Environment of Japan, which assess the risk of extinction for wild animals in Japan.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeEXHIBIT INFORMATION
Places that keep or show the Japanese wood pigeon
Zoos, aquariums and other places whose official websites say they keep or show this animal.
Displays can change with the animals’ health and the seasons. Check each facility’s official website before you go.
RELATIVES
Others in Columbidae
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