A Royally-Named Bird With A Mohawk: The Crowned Victoria Pigeon

The Crowned Victoria Pigeon is a distinctive-looking bird, with its "mohawk" crest of feathers and blood-red eyes. It can be distinguished by from its similar-looking cousins, the Western Crowned Pigeon and the Southern Crowned Pigeon, by the white tips on its crests.

The Crowned Victoria pigeon lives in the lowlands and swamps forests of New Guinea, where it feeds on fruits, figs, seeds and bugs. Like common pigeons, it is tame, which is a setback for the species. They are easily hunted for their feathers and for their meat.

And yes, in case you were wondering, the Crowned Victoria pigeon's name does in fact come from Queen Victoria of Britain. Supposedly it was because she had a habit of wearing elaborate, feathered hats.