BEHAVIOURAL NOTES OF Zentrygon goldmani oreas (NELSON, 1912) AND OTHER WILD DOVES AT THE CHUCANTÍ PRIVATE NATURAL RESERVE (CPNR), DARIEN, PANAMA

Abstract

The province of Darien in eastern Panama is well known for its endemic doves.  Most of them are poorly studied and threatened. The aim of this study was to recognize the wild dove’s diversity from CPNR and describe an ethological baseline. We compiled 38,592-day hours, with information on circadian activity and behavioral data from camera traps from December 2012 to May 2014 in a cloud forest. We detected four species of wild doves and obtained information on circadian activity for the most frequent species detected. An ethogram was built for Zentrygon goldmani and Leptotila cassinii in five categories: transversal walking, foraging, courtship, copulation and walking together. Courtship occurred during December, February, July and September, in both the dry and rainy seasons. We also detected Geotrygon montana and Zentrygon lawrencii for the Pacific slope of Panama and for the Chucanti Private Natural Reserve. The diversity found regarding wild doves represents a unique opportunity to study this endemic species at CPNR, and another important reason for its conservation.