White-crowned Pigeon

White-crowned Pigeon exhibit a range of behaviors that are closely tied to their habitat and daily activities. They are known to form substantial colonies, especially during the breeding season, with nest territories defended primarily around the nest's immediate vicinity. A quintessential day for white-crowned Pigeon involves foraging for fruit, which dictates their breeding schedules, aligning with the times of fruit abundance. Courting rituals are distinct, with males conducting a showy but calculated flight display followed by a series of bows, coos, and tail spreads. Pairs demonstrate affection through mutual preening, highlighting a strong bond. Seasonal migrations are common among white-crowned Pigeon, with many relocating to warmer climates or island habitats like the Bahamas during winter months, showcasing their adaptability to environmental changes.

It is a resident breeder mainly in the Bahamas, Cuba, Jamaica and Antigua. It breeds in smaller numbers in Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti), Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Anguilla and other Caribbean islands. It also breeds along the Caribbean coast of Central America. In the United States it is found only in the Florida Keys, Everglades, and the southern tip of mainland Florida. They will often spend the wintertime in the Caribbean islands. The white-crowned pigeon primarily lives and breeds in nest colonies or individually in low lying, coastal, mangrove forests, and will travel inland to feed on the fruits and seeds of a wide variety of plants. In Florida, the white-crowned pigeon has historically been documented nesting exclusively on remote, tidally inundated mangrove islands in wildlife refuges. Recent observations have confirmed nesting on the southern tip of mainland Florida. With few exceptions, this species requires isolated offshore mangrove islets with limited disturbance for breeding. These tidally inundated mangrove islands which provide some protection from predators such as raccoons. However, several instances of white-crowned pigeons nesting in heavily-trafficked, urban areas, such as downtown Key West and Miami Florida, have recently been observed. This could be due to habitat loss as a result of hurricanes, and/or increased predation pressure in their historic nesting habitat.

The main threat to this species is hunting. In Florida a major cause of mortality is collision with man-made objects. Another main threat to this species is loss of habitat. The white-crowned pigeon needs two distinct habitats, one for nesting and one for feeding. They typically breed in coastal red mangroves (Rhizophora mangle), which continue to be clear-cut for crops such as sugarcane. Agriculture and deforestation have become a problem for the species' feeding grounds, typically inland hardwood forests. The bird is very skittish, and is known to simply abandon its nest when it is encroached upon. Like the extinct passenger pigeon this species "illustrates a very important principle of conservation biology: it is not always necessary to kill the last pair of a species to force it to extinction. These birds are "threatened by the slaughter of nesting birds on its Caribbean breeding grounds."