Mourning Dove

The Mourning Dove is one of the most abundant and widely distributed birds in North America, equally at home in farmland, deserts, woodland edges, and suburban backyards. It is a slender, elegant bird with soft grayish-brown plumage, a small head, a black spot on the lower cheek, and a long, tapering, pointed tail edged in white that is conspicuous in flight. Its gentle, mournful cooing call, often mistaken for an owl by newcomers, gives the species its common name.

Key field marks

• Slim body with soft grayish-brown plumage and a pinkish wash on the breast
• Small, rounded head with a single black spot below the eye
• Long, pointed, tapering tail with white-edged outer feathers, visible as a fan when landing or flushing
• Whistling wingbeats audible on takeoff

Similar species

Eurasian Collared-Dove is larger, paler, and shows a black half-collar on the nape and a squared-off (not pointed) tail. Rock Pigeon is bulkier with a shorter tail and a much more variable, often iridescent plumage pattern.

Habitat and Range

Mourning Doves occupy an extremely wide range of open and semi-open habitats, including farmland, grasslands, desert scrub, woodland edges, and urban and suburban yards with bird feeders and scattered trees.

Range

The species is found virtually throughout the continental United States, southern Canada, and Mexico year-round in much of its range, making it one of the most widespread native birds on the continent.

Migration

Northern populations are migratory, moving south for the winter, while populations in the southern and western United States are largely resident year-round.

Behavior

Mourning Doves are strong, fast fliers, capable of rapid, direct flight with distinctive whistling wingbeats produced by air passing through the wingtips on takeoff.

Voice

The song is a soft, low, mournful "coo-OO-oo-oo-oo," often mistaken for an owl, given primarily by males to attract mates and defend territory.

Feeding

Mourning Doves feed almost entirely on seeds and waste grain, foraging on bare ground and swallowing seeds whole to be processed later in the crop.

Nesting and breeding

They build a flimsy, loosely constructed stick platform nest in a tree or shrub (occasionally on the ground or in gutters), typically laying just two white eggs, and may raise several broods in a single season.