_Columba oceanica_ Lesson and Garnot, Dict. Sci. Nat., éd.,
Levrault, 40, 1826, p. 316. (Type locality, Oualan = Kusaie.)
_Columba oceanica_ Lesson (part), Voy. "La Coquille," Zool.;
Atlas, 1826, pl. 41; vol. 2, 1828, pp. 432, 708 (Oualan or
Strong); _idem_, (part), Man. d'Ornith., 11, 1828, p. 166
(Oualan); Kittlitz (part), Kupfertaf. Naturgesch. Vögel, 3, 1833,
p. 25, pl. 23, fig. 1 (Ualan); _idem_ (part), Observ. Zool., in
Lutké, Voy. "Le Séniavine," 3, 1836, p. 284 (Ualan); Lesson,
Compl. de Buffon, 2d ed., 2, Oiseaux, 1839, p. 292 (Oualan);
Prévost and Knip (part), Les Pigeons, 2, 1838-43, p. 47, pl. 24
(Oualan); Bonaparte, Comptes Rendus Acad. Sci. Paris, 39, 1854, p.
1072 (Oualan); Kittlitz, Denkw. Reise russ. Amer. Micron. und
Kamchat., 1, 1858, pp. 39, 49, 62 (Ualan).
_Carpohaga oceanica_ Hartlaub (part), Archiv f. Naturgesch., 18,
1852, pp. 115, 185 (Ualan); _idem_, Journ. f. Ornith., 1854, p. 168
(Carolinen = Kusaie); Hartlaub and Finsch (part), Proc. Zool. Soc.
London, 1872, p. 101 (Ualan); Schlegel, Mus. Pays-Bas, 6, no. 35,
1873, p. 87 (Oualan); Salvadori (part). Cronaca del R.
Liceo-Ginnasio Cavour, 1878, pp. 3, 8 (Oualan); Finsch (part),
Ibis, 1880, pp. 220, 331, 332 (Taluit); _idem_ (part), Journ. f.
Ornith., 1880, pp. 292, 304 (Kuschai); _idem_, Ibis, 1881, p. 108
(Kuschai); _idem_, Mitth. Ornith. Ver. Wien, 1884, p. 50 (Kuschai,
Jaluit); Hartert, Katalog Vogelsamml, Senckenb., 1891, p. 190
(Ualan); Wiglesworth (part), Abhandl. und Ber. Zool. Mus. Dresden,
no. 6, 1890-1891 (1891), p. 52 (Ualan, Taluit); Matschie (part),
Journ. f. Ornith., 1901, p. 113 (Ualan).
_Globicera oceanica_ Bonaparte (part), Consp. Avium, 2, 1855, p.
31 (Oualan); _idem_, Comptes Rendus Acad. Sci. Paris, 43, 1856, p.
835 (Oualan); Reichenbach (part), Tauben, 1861, p. 120 (Oualan);
Salvadori (part), Cat. Birds British Mus., 21, 1893, p. 176
(Kushai).
_Carpophaga pacifica_ Finsch and Hartlaub (part), Fauna
Centralpolynesiens, 1867, p. 145 (Ualan).
_Carpophaga (Globicera) oceanica_ Gray (part), Cat. Birds Trop.
Is. Pacific Ocean, 1859, p. 41 (Oualan).
_Globicera oceanica oceanica_ Wetmore, in Townsend and Wetmore,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zoöl., 63, 1919, p. 191 (Kusaie); Momiyama
(part), Birds Micronesia, 1922, p. 6 (Kusaie, Taluit); Kuroda
(part), in Momiyama, Birds Micronesia, 1922, p. 55 (Kusaie,
Taluit); Mathews, Syst. Avium Australasianarum, 1, 1927, p. 45
(Kusaie); Takatsukasa and Yamashina, Dobutsu. Zasshi, 44, 1932, p.
221 (Jaluit, Iringlob, Kusaie); Hand-list Japanese Birds, rev.,
1932, p. 190 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore).
_Muscadivora oceanica oceanica_ Neumann (part), Verhandl. Ornith.
Ges. Bayern, 25, 1922, p. 234 (Kushai).
_Ducula Oceanica oceanica_ Peters, Check-list Birds World, 3,
1937, p. 44 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore); Bequaert, Mushi, 12, 1939,
p. 81 (Kusaie); _idem_, Occ. Papers Bernice P. Bishop Mus., 16,
1941, p. 266 (Kusaie); Hand-list Japanese Birds, 3d ed., 1942, p.
212 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore); Amadon, Amer. Mus. Novit., no. 1237,
1943, p. 11 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore); Mayr, Birds Southwest
Pacific, 1945, p. 289 (Kusaie, Jaluit, Elmore).
_Geographic range._--Micronesia: Caroline Islands--Kusaie; Marshall
Islands--Jaluit, Elmore.
_Characters._--Adult male: A large knob-billed pigeon with breast
gray, washed with buff; head and neck dark gray; feathers at base
of bill and on chin buff-white; abdomen and under tail-coverts
near "burnt sienna," sides grayer; mantle, back, rump, upper
tail-coverts, wings and tail bronze-green edged with a dark bluish
sheen; under side of wing and under side of tail brown; bill and
knob black; feet blackish-red; iris reddish-brown. Adult female
resembles adult male but smaller and possibly a little darker
bluish-green on back, wings, and tail.
_D. o. oceania_ resembles _D. o. townsendi_, but is smaller with
upper parts slightly darker and abdomen and under side of tail
lighter.
_Measurements._--Measurements are presented in table 27.
_Specimens examined._--Total number, 47 (25 males, 22 females), as
follows: Caroline Islands, USNM--Kusaie, 2 (Feb. 8, 9,);
AMNH--Kusaie, 45 (Jan., Feb., March).
_Parasites._--Bequaert (1939:81 and 1941:266) obtained the fly
(Hippoboscidae) _Ornithoctona plicata_ from the pigeon at Kusaie.
_Remarks._--The Micronesian Pigeon at Kusaie has been known since 1824,
when from June 5 to June 15 of that year personnel from the corvette "La
Coquille" visited the island and observed the bird. Kittlitz visited
Kusaie and observed the pigeon in December, 1827, and January, 1828.
Finsch (1880c and 1880d) found the bird in the Marshalls at Jaluit.
Takatsukasa and Yamashina (1932:221) record the bird from Elmore in the
Marshalls. Coultas (field notes) writes that the pigeon was numerous at
Kusaie in 1931. He remarks that they appear stupid and are easily killed
by the natives, who use a call to attract them. With regard to their
habits he writes, "About four o'clock in the afternoon these birds begin
congregating in the high trees of the lowlands close to the salt water
where they roost for the night. At daybreak they begin migrating to the
high mountain sides and peaks where they spend the time feeding."
=Ducula oceanica ratakensis= (Takatsukasa and Yamashina)