Animalia Life

Didunculus strigirostris
SUBFAMILY
Didunculinae
TAXONOMY
Gnathodon strigirostris Jardine, 1845, Australia, error _ Upolu, Samoa. Monotypic.
OTHER COMMON NAMES
French: Diduncule strigirostre; German: Zahntaube; Spanish: Paloma Manumea.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
12.2–15 in (31–38 cm); 14.1 oz (400 g). Stout hook-like bill with tooth-like notches in the lower mandible.
DISTRIBUTION
The islands Savai’i, Upolu, and Nu’utele of the Samoa archipelago.
HABITAT
Undisturbed primary forest. Dependent on a mahogany tree Dysoxylum (Meliaceae).
BEHAVIOR
Secretive bird that lives in small parties. The advertising call of the male given from the top of a tree lasts about 1.5 seconds.
FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET
Hooks out the hard pea-sized seed of Dysoxylum and removes the viscous flesh with a sawing movement of the lower mandible. No competition for food.
REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY
Not known.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Endangered. This species has a small fragmented range and population; both are declining due to deforestation. More than 50% of the population was probably lost over the past decade due to the effects of severe cyclones.
SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS
Hunting may occur.

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