Mourning Doves
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The Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) is a member of the bird family Columbidae, which includes doves and pigeons.
In many parts of the United States the Mourning Dove is hunted as a game bird.
The bird is resident and abundant over much of its range, but many northern birds migrate south in winter. This bird is found in a range of open and semi-open habitats. Its mournful cooOOoo-coo-coo-coo call is familiar throughout its range, as is the whistling of its wings as it takes flight. The mourning dove's name originates from its call and the dark plumage beneath the eye that often looks like teardrops.
Mourning Doves are generally monogamous. Pairs typically reconvene in the same area the following breeding season, or sometimes may remain together throughout the winter. However, lone doves will find new partners if necessary.
Taxonomy and distribution
The Mourning Dove has a large range of nearly 11 million square kilometers. The species is resident throughout the Greater Antilles, most of Mexico, the Continental United States, and extreme southern Canada. Much of southern Canada and the extreme northern central United States sees these birds in summer, and Central America sees them in winter. It is presumably Canadian birds which give rise to the very rare occurrences of this species in western Europe, such as the one report from Great Britain.
The Mourning Dove inhabits most areas of its range, including urban areas, farms, prairie, grassland, and lightly wooded areas. It avoids thick forest and swamps.
The Mourning Dove migrates. The migration is mainly overland. Spring migration south begins around late March through April and ends in May. Fall migration north runs from late August to November. Migration is usually during the day in flocks.
Birds in Canada migrate the farthest, probably wintering in Mexico or further south. Those further south are more sedentary, and nearly resident, with much shorter migrations.
The Mourning Dove is a close relation of Z. auriculata (Eared Dove) and Z. graysoni (Socorro Dove) and some authorities describe them as forming a superspecies. These three birds were sometimes classified in the seperate genus Zenaidura.
There are five subspecies, the nominate West Indian (Z. m. macroura), Eastern (Z. m. carolinensis), Western (Z. m. marginella), Clarion Island (Z. m. clarionensis), and Panama (Z. m. turturilla). The ranges of most of the subspecies overlap somewhat, with three in the United States or Canada and not easily distinguishable.
Physical description
The Mourning Dove is a medium-sized dove approximately 31 cm (12 in) in length. The wings are All subspecies are similar in appearance.
It has a long tapered tail, and is greyish-brown above and pinkish below. The wings have black spotting, and the outer tail feathers are white. The male has bright purple-pink patches on the neck sides; these are more muted in the female. Young birds have a scaly appearance, and are generally darker.
Mourning Doves have perching feet, with three toes forward and one reversed. The legs are short and reddish colored.
This species' call is a distinctive, plaintive oo-woo-woo. In flight, the wings make a fluttery whistling sound.
Reproduction
The Mourning Dove lays two white eggs on a flimsy platform built in a tree or shrub, sometimes on a building.
These birds may raise six or more broods in a season and Mourning Doves are the only birds in the world to have so many broods a year. Eggs take approximately two weeks to hatch, and the young, called squabs, typically fledge after only two weeks in the nest.
The species is strongly altricial. Both parents feed the young dove milk, a nutrient rich substance regurgitated from their crop. Mourning Dove nests are very rarely left unattended by their parents.
Squabs often fall from the nest and some people make special wire cones to assist the chicks from falling.
Ecology and behaviour
Mourning Doves usually forage on the ground, though sometimes they will perch on stems and feed from there. They eat almost exclusively seeds, which make up more than 99% of their diet. Rarely, they will eat snails or insects.
At bird feeders, Mourning Doves are attracted to one of the largest ranges of seed types of any North American bird, with a preference for corn, millet, safflower, and sunflower chips.
They often swallow grit such as fine gravel or sand to assist with digestion.
Copyright: Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia.org
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