the partridge pigeon. It is sometimes placed in the genus Ocyphaps with the crested pigeon. Table 1.1, shows the following information- Common name, scientific name/s, sub-species, size, distribution and IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) Red List Status, Feeding, behaviour and ecology. Feeding Geophaps species are ground feeding granivores, with studies finding that seeds make up their diet almost entirely, with a small number of insects found in the crops of Geophaps smithii. While the Spinifex pigeon is found in arid tussock/spinifex grasslands, the spinifex grass seeds have not been found to make up a large portion of their diet. Breeding All Geophaps pigeons exhibit a bowing display during courtship. The Spinifex pigeon and Crested pigeon's display is performed with a raising and fanning out of the tail with their folded wings partly opened to display their iridescent wing marks to their potential partner. The other members of the Geophaps displays and bows in a very similar manner. G.scripta has been recorded to have performed its courtship ritual where it stood fully erect on an exposed branch, with plumage slightly fluffed out. The male then bobs up and down rapidly and rhythmically, he displays alone and waits for a female to fly from cover to pair with him. Rainfall and food abundance has been shown to effect breeding cycles Crested pigeons have been observed to build nests on a platform of branches, with both sexes collecting nest building material. The female builds the nest, lacing thin twigs through the substructure. They are thought to learn to build nests through trial and error. Parasites Pigeons and doves are parasitised by two major groups of lice; wing lice and body lice. Most birds are host to both groups, which eat the downy parts of feathers that are close to the body. Body lice have been found to be more likely to be host specific than wing lice, possibly due to their host ecology where terrestrial pigeons feeding on the ground may create an easier transfer of lice and therefore be more likely to carry host specific body lice than arboreal birds. Threats to conservation Columbidae species are amongst the most threatened bird families around the world. Geophaps species' conservation is largely threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation caused predominantly by agriculture and human interference as well as by predation by introduced predators, namely cats. As arid environments are