Earlier this week I walked by my friend Sally's garden on my lunch hour to see what was sprouting. Sally showed me a Mourning Dove nesting in her Weeping Mulberry tree. If you look very closely, in the lower center of the photo you can see the bird. I took this photo with my iPhone from as close as I dared to go. Nest abandonment is common with these birds. If they feel threatened from predators whether human or animal, they will abandon both eggs and nestlings. When frightened they may accidentally knock an egg out of the nest.
Nests are often found in the crotch of a tree. They usually lay 2 white eggs (single eggs are rare) that are incubated for 14-15 days. The young will leave the nest in 12-14 days. Mourning Doves often use the same nest for up to five sets of eggs in a single season, starting as early as March. They incubate their eggs continually. Since the male and female look alike, it looks like the same bird is on the nest the whole time. The male does a daytime shift and the female does the night shift. If you are not around during the changing of the guard, it appears that the same bird has been on the nest the whole time.
The average lifespan of first year birds is 1 to 1.5 years. First year birds have a mortality rate of 60-75% and adults have a mortality rate of 50-60%. For any songbird the first year of survival is the most difficult. If these birds survive their first year they can live on the average 4-5 years. Predators are hawks, snakes, squirrels, cats, and hunters.
What fascinates me most about doves is the sound their wings make when they take off and land. The whistling sound occurs because of their wing anatomy. The flight feathers at the rear of the mourning dove’s wing are contoured. This shape creates an audible, high-pitched vibration when the wings flutter rapidly, which sounds like the bird is whistling. In flight their wings are inaudible.
Although Mourning Doves mate for live, if one partner dies, eventually, the surviving bird will find a new mate.
Statistics and info from: www.wild-bird-watching.com
Nests are often found in the crotch of a tree. They usually lay 2 white eggs (single eggs are rare) that are incubated for 14-15 days. The young will leave the nest in 12-14 days. Mourning Doves often use the same nest for up to five sets of eggs in a single season, starting as early as March. They incubate their eggs continually. Since the male and female look alike, it looks like the same bird is on the nest the whole time. The male does a daytime shift and the female does the night shift. If you are not around during the changing of the guard, it appears that the same bird has been on the nest the whole time.
The average lifespan of first year birds is 1 to 1.5 years. First year birds have a mortality rate of 60-75% and adults have a mortality rate of 50-60%. For any songbird the first year of survival is the most difficult. If these birds survive their first year they can live on the average 4-5 years. Predators are hawks, snakes, squirrels, cats, and hunters.
What fascinates me most about doves is the sound their wings make when they take off and land. The whistling sound occurs because of their wing anatomy. The flight feathers at the rear of the mourning dove’s wing are contoured. This shape creates an audible, high-pitched vibration when the wings flutter rapidly, which sounds like the bird is whistling. In flight their wings are inaudible.
Although Mourning Doves mate for live, if one partner dies, eventually, the surviving bird will find a new mate.
Statistics and info from: www.wild-bird-watching.com
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