Snow Pigeon

The snow pigeon is a grey, black, pale brown and white pigeon of the hilly regions of central Asia. It has a blackish head contrasting with a white neck collar and white underparts shading to ashy on the abdomen, with a brownish-grey back and a white patch on the lower back. Two subspecies are recognised, the nominate form occurring in the western Himalayas from Afghanistan to Sikkim (Wikipedia, general species account).

Birds forage in open country in pairs or small groups on berries, grain, buds, bulbs, seeds and shoots, and often feed in fields by day but roost in cliffs. They breed in colonies, nesting in crevices or caves in cliff faces or on ledges. The nests are untidy interlaced structures of sticks, grass, straw and feathers, usually reused each year with minor repairs, with generally two white eggs.