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  1. Species
  2. ›
  3. Columbidae
  4. ›
  5. Petrophassa
  6. ›
  7. Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon
Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon
Photo · John Gerrard Keulemans

BirdUp · Species

Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon

Petrophassa rufipennisCollett, 1898

Updated 21 March 2026

Also known asGundalk

Conservation status: Least ConcernOrigin: Endemic
Order
COLUMBIFORMES
Family
Columbidae
Genus
Petrophassa

At a glance

The Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon is a medium-sized bird, about 30 cm long, listed as Least Concern and endemic to Australia. It can be seen year-round.

Size
30 cm
Conservation status
Least Concern
Origin
Endemic
Best seen
Year-round
Commonness
Endemic
  • Identification
  • Where
  • When
  • Behaviour
  • Gallery

01 · Identification

How to tell it apart

What does a Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon look like?

The Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon is a medium-sized bird, about 30 cm long and weighing 130–186 g.

The chestnut-quilled rock pigeon is a dark sooty brown pigeon with a distinctive bright chestnut patch on its wing visible in flight. It has distinctive pale lines across its face curving above and below its eye. A species of bird in the family Columbidae, it is very similar in behaviour and habitat to the white-quilled rock pigeon but it is only found on rocky escarpments in western Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia.

Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Field specs

Length
30 cm
Weight
130–186 g

Measurements · avonet · CC BY 4.0

03 · When

When to look

When can you see a Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon?

The Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec

05 · Behaviour

Habits and haunts

What does a Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon eat?

The Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon feeds on seeds, usually foraging in flocks.

06 · Gallery

Plumage up close

4 photos

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02 · Where

Where to find it

Where does the Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon live in Australia?

The Chestnut-quilled Rock Pigeon is endemic to Australia, recorded across 5 of Australia’s bioregions.

BreedingNorth-central Top End, north NT (north-central Australia)

Distribution from BirdUp Australia community data

Legend

  • Vagrant
  • Resident

5 regions recorded