In the previous article, I shared the antics of our backyard cardinals, very regal birds, in my opinion. Now I’ll talk about another visitor to our backyard. This is one (well, many) bird that is really king of the bird feeder. All of the other birds make way.
The mourning doves that come to visit our bird feeder are are gray-brown color. They aren’t much to look at as far as appearance, but they still entertain us with their antics. Perched in the trees, they often snuggle up to each other. And now that spring is on its way, we’ve caught a couple of pairs feeding each other and looking quite content. The mourning doves are monogamous, and both the male and the female share in raising their little doves.
Their gentle behavior from the tree branch can change when it comes to feeding. I have seen these birds chase away all other birds, including the aggressive blue jay. If a blue jay squawks and refuses to budge, other mourning doves will come out from hiding to chase the errant blue jay away. Once the mourning doves have fed, they are content to let everyone else have a turn.
The call of the mourning dove is very distinctive. I had heard it before moving here, so I knew how to identify the sound. It sings mostly in the morning and sounds like this: Woo-oo! Oo, oo, oo. You can also hear their wings when they take to flight. The Mourning doves are very strong fliers, and the beat of their wings is very audible.
It is hard to believe that in some areas, morning doves are hunted for their meat. But, these birds are plentiful, so perhaps the easy availability makes them a good bird to hunt.
We see the morning doves all year long at our feeder and in our backyard.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
Related Articles:
Identifying Backyard Birds: Cardinals
The National Great Backyard Bird Count