Mourning Dove

The Mourning Dove is among the most abundant and widespread terrestrial birds endemic to North and Middle America. Their soft mournful calls are a common sound throughout their range and have given rise to their name. Breeding occurs in parts of southern Canada, all of the lower 48 US states, and into temperate Mexico. The Mourning Dove is a partial migrant; most breeding populations in northerly latitudes are migratory, and individuals in southern latitudes are primarily resident. Nonbreeding birds winter in Mexico and Central America.

Adult Male (spring/summer)

Face gray-brown with pale bluish orbital ring and black cheek spot. Short, thin black bill often appears down curved. Pinkish-buff breast and belly; undertail coverts buffy. Nape, back gray-brown; rump and uppertail coverts buffy brown. Wings are brown with black spots. Tail is long and tapered with white tips and black subterminal bands. Tail projects far beyond wingtips.

Adult Female (spring/summer)

Slightly less colourful than male, with tannish breast versus pale rosy breast of male. Female has a brownish crown and nape.

Juvenile

Similar to adults but often appears smaller. Face is patterned, breast is spotted and back has scaled appearance.

General:

Streamlined, mid-sized dove with small head and long graduated tail. Length: 23-34cm. Wing: 45cm. Weight: 96-170grams.

Behaviour:

The Mourning Dove is capable of swift direct flights and rapid changes of pace and altitude. On the ground it walks or runs rather than hops. It uses open ground and avoids dense ground cover. It takes advantage of seasonally available food resources among a wide variety of habitats. Diet consists mostly of seeds from cultivated and wild plants.

Habitat:

As a habitat generalist, the species has benefited from human changes to the North American landscape. Habitats vary widely in both rural and urban landscapes; open habitats are preferred and the species generally shuns only extensively forested areas and wetlands.

Information:

The Mourning Dove occurs widely, nests readily around yards and farmsteads, and is a frequent visitor to bird feeders. Reproductive strategy of the Mourning Dove is characterized by a determined clutch size of 2 white eggs and a protracted breeding season in which multiple nesting attempts can occur every 30 days. Birds in southern latitudes may nest during almost the entire year. As with other pigeons and doves, adults of both sexes share incubation duties, and both parents feed newly hatched young on “crop milk,” a unique secretion of the cells of the crop wall. The Mourning Dove is a short-lived species, with an average adult life span of about one year. It is the leading game bird in North America in terms of total harvest and the widespread distribution of hunting effort. Approximately one million hunters annually harvest more than 20 million birds, which exceed the annual harvest of all other migratory game birds combined. (USFWS 2007)

Similar species:

Inca Dove, White-winged Dove, Eurasian Collared-Dove.

Conservation Status:

Listed as Least Concern populations have shown a slight decline.

Capture Rates:

Although Mourning Doves can remain resident in the Lower Mainland, it is more likely that these northern birds migrate long distances to the southernmost part of their range as seen by zero capture rates (2010-2012; standardized as birds captured per 100 net hours) during the winter months. Seen in the park through the spring, summer and fall, capture rates of these birds prove that they are not readily captured.

Molt Summary:

PF: HY/SY incomplete-complete (Jun-May); PB: AHY complete (Jun-Nov); PA absent?
Preformative molt occurs on the summer grounds and/or the winter grounds. Replacement of pp begins 12 months after hatching, can take 6 months to complete. Molting of HY/SYs occurs year-round, but most frequently in Jul-Oct. 1-2 ss (usually among s4-s6) occasionally can be retained. HYs hatched in Jan-Mar could have a 2nd complete body molt during their 1st fall.
Adult PB: occurs primarily on the summer grounds. Occasional retained ss.
PA: limited may occur in Feb-Apr.

Adult females like the two birds immediately below have a brownish cap, the blue-black spot is small, iridescence is generally lacking, and the overall appearance is more drab. 

Juvenal birds like this HY in July are uniformly brown and have whitish edging on all of the wing feathers creating a scaly appearance. Notice also the uniformly juvenal secondaries in the photo below.

This AHY female in April is showing adult primaries and secondaries which are uniform in shape, colour and wear. Notice also the primary coverts without the whitish edging compared to the HY bird above.

This AHY female in May is showing the same adult primaries and secondaries which are uniform in shape, colour and wear. Notice again the primary coverts without the whitish edging.

This AHY female also in May is again showing the same adult primaries and secondaries which are uniform in shape, colour and wear. Notice again the primary coverts without the whitish edging.

This AHY female in June is again showing the same adult primaries and secondaries which are uniform in shape, colour and wear and again primary coverts without whitish edging.