Brown doves are members of the genus Phapitreron in the pigeon family. Their common name refers to their overall brown coloration. They are endemic to the Philippines. All brown doves are tree-dwellers, but the different species occupy different types of wooded habitats; some are more restricted to old-growth forest while other make use of secondary forest and other woodland. Their main diet is fruit. They tend to be solitary in their habits and can be elusive. Some species in this genus have conspicuous black and white stripes on their faces and iridescent neck feathers. Males and females look alike.

Taxonomy

The genus Phapitreron was introduced in 1854 by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte for the white-eared brown dove (Phapitreron leucotis). The genus name Phapitreron combines the genus name Phaps introduced by the English naturalist Prideaux John Selby in 1835 for the bronze-wing pigeons with the Ancient Greek trērōn meaning "pigeon". The genus contains four species: Some ornithologists have split two of the above species: