Mourning Dove
by Dave Zittin
The Mourning Dove is one of the most abundant bird species in the United States. The U.S. population of this species is estimated at about 350 million. It is the leading game bird of North America and over 20 million Mourning Doves are taken each year by hunters. It’s no wonder they are so shy around humans.
The Mourning Dove. Note dark smudge on the face and dark spots on the wings.
Mourning Doves are members of the family Columbidae which includes pigeons and doves. As an aside, there is no biological distinction between pigeons and doves. Usually, large columbids are called pigeons and small ones are often called doves.
In May, Mourning Doves are busy reproducing which means a lot of nest building activity. The nest is usually a platform of loosely woven twigs and conifer needles. Last year we had a Mourning Dove enter our garage and I had to shoo it out more than once. It did not occur to me that it was trying to establish a nest there until weeks later when I was looking for something on a high shelf and much to my surprise there was a dove’s nest. Fortunately there was no evidence of eggs, I am sure that the nest builder I disturbed resumed building elsewhere. Some of us are fortunate to have nests we can watch as young are raised. Mourning Doves have two nestlings at a time and like other columbids, produce “crop milk”, a nutritious fluid that is fed to the young. Watching this feeding is quite a sight (see the Explore section).
Mourning Doves by Julie McKinnon
This dove gets its name from the mournful song or cooing of unmated males. I have had people think they are hearing an owl when in fact it was a Mourning Dove. When Mourning Doves take off, a distinct whistling sound is produced by their wings. The adaptive reason for this sound isn’t clear, but it is thought to be either a warning of danger to others in the flock or a means of startling nearby predators.
Attracting Mourning Doves to Backyards
Mourning Doves are easy to attract by throwing seeds on the bare ground. They are granivourous and will eat almost any type of grain. They rarely consume insects. They have a well-developed crop, an enlargement of the esophagus, in which a large amount of food material is stored before moving on to the stomach.
Mourning Dove by Steve Patt
Description
A bird with a full body, a small head and a long tail that tapers to a point. They are gray-brown or bluish-brown on top and buff-colored below. Large black spots occur on the upper wings. The beak is black and the legs and feet are a dull red.
Mourning Dove by Tom Grey.
Distribution
Mourning Doves occur in every state in the United States, as well as in southern Canada, northern Mexico, and the Carribean. They are partially migratory. Most of the Mourning Doves in our area do not migrate at all or may migrate relatively short distances.
Similar Species
There are four columbid species commonly seen in Santa Clara County: the Mourning Dove, the Eurasian Collared-Dove, the Rock Pigeon and the Band-tailed Pigeon. The introduced Eurasian Collared-Dove looks somewhat similar to a Mourning Dove, although it is easy to tell the two apart. The Mourning Dove has black dots on its back and a black smudge on its cheek. The Eurasian Collared-Dove lacks both but has a conspicuous black crescent on the back of its neck. The end of the tail of the Mourning Dove is pointed whereas the end of the tail of the Eurasian Collared-Dove is squared. They are also easy to tell apart by their sounds.
The Eurasian-collared Dove is larger than the Mourning Dove. Note the lack of dark smudging on the face, a black crescent collar at the back of the neck and the squared end of the tail. Photo by Edward Rooks.
The other two species, the Rock Pigeon (aka city pigeon) and the Band-tailed Pigeon have different colors, sizes and shapes and are easy to distinguish from the gray-brown Mourning Dove.
Band-tailed Pigeon by Tom Grey
Rock Pigeons by Curt Bianchi
Explore
All About Birds: Mourning Dove
Sounds
Listen to the California song and the wing sound recordings of the Mourning Dove
Listen to the song and calls of the Eurasian Collared-Dove
Video: Female Mourning Dove feeding crop milk to young birds
More Backyard Bird Information
View more common Santa Clara County Backyard Birds
Visit our Backyard Birding page
Read our Notes and Tips from a Backyard Birder series
Tell us what you’re seeing in your yard! Send your notes, photos, and sound clips to backyardbirds@scvas.org. We’ll feature your submittals on our website.
Banner Photo: Mourning Dove by Suresh Thirumalai