Exploring the Mourning Doves Nesting and Mating Behaviors

Description: Size, Field Marks

The Mourning Dove is slimmer than the pigeon and is about 12 inches in length and a wingspan of 17-19 inches.

A soft gray-brown upper body and a lighter brown lower body provides a nice camaflouge from predators.

Their tails are slender and long with white tips. In flight, the tail acts as a rudder helping to steer these quick fliers.

Male and Female Dove Nesting in Planter Box

The black dots on their wings and a single black spot behind and below the eyes are field marks to look for. Their legs and feet are pinkish and their bill is black.

The whistling sound you hear when they take flight or land is produced by air going through their wings.

Can You Tell Male from Female

There are slight differences between male and female Mourning Doves. However, they are subtle and side by side comparison is the best way to identify each.

Male doves are slightly larger than females. Males have a pale pinkish or very light rosey breast.

The top of the male doves head and the back of the neck has a bluish tint.

Females differ in size by being slightly smaller than males. The female has a more tan breast, with the crown and back of neck being a brownish color.

Call and Purpose

The mourning dove's call is a distinctive cooing sound that is often described as a soft, mournful "coo-OO-oo, oo, oo."

The sound is relatively low-pitched and soothing, and it is often heard in the early morning or late afternoon

The purpose of the birds call is primarily to attract a mate and let other males know this is an establish territory.

During the mating and nesting season, the call serves as a way to advertise the male's presence and attract females.

While females may make a softer cooing sound, the call is mainly done by the males.

Feeding Behavior and Preferred Seed Types

Doves are common at bird feeders and will eat a variety of seeds. Try placing bird seed on a tray feeder as it's important to keep the seed off the ground to prevent spoilage.

Some of their favorite seed types include White millet, safflower, and cracked corn.

Try offering Safflower seed for doves to eat when nesting to supplement their diet. Just don't put it close to the nest as food can attract predators.

A side benefit to offering safflower seed is that you'll also attract more Northern Cardinals to your backyard.

For more information on seeds and photos of each, please see our Bird Seed Page.

Habitat: Where They Live and Breed

Prefering a habitat with open land with a scattering of trees and shrubs. You'll find them nesting in most types of habitats, excluding forested or wetland areas.

During winter, mourning doves sleep in dense evergreens that protect them from weather and predators.

Due to their habitat adaptability they've become one of the most widespread and common birds in North America.

Range Map

To attract these birds year-round, consider providing seed along with a source of water close to the ground. In winter, you can use options like heated bird baths to ensure the water remains accessible.

Male Mourning Dove Carries Nesting Material

Nesting Habits

Doves prefer nesting in woodland or grassland edges and will even nest on the ground in the absence of suitable trees or shrubs.

Mourning Doves nest on and in a lot of unusual places.

Man-made objects are also used by doves for nesting. Things like flower planters, rain gutters, and even an old Robin nests.

The mating - breeding season of the Mourning Dove can begin as early as March. Once mated these birds quickly begin their nesting habits.

Their nest is built with a loose collection of twigs, grass, weeds, and pine needles. Taking only 2 - 4 days to complete.

I stress loose because dove nest can be so lightly put together that often you can see the eggs from the bottom.

Many folks wonder if they should help the birds out. Mostly, I suggest leaving it alone, but I'm not there looking at it like you are.

If startled, they may fly off the nest too quickly and the eggs could fall from the nest.

Nest abandonment is very common with Doves. If they feel any threat from predators, whether human or animal, they may go elsewhere to nest, abandoning both eggs and nestlings.

Egg Laying, Incubation, Brooding and Fledging

Dove Nest with Eggs

The Mourning Dove nest can be found 5-25 feet above the ground, often in the crotch of a shrub or tree.

The female will lay 2 white eggs and will incubate the eggs for 14 to 15 days. For those two weeks both male and female dove will sit on the eggs.

The male sits on the eggs from mid-morning to late afternoon. The female arrives late afternoon and sits on the eggs until mid-morning.

When Do Baby Doves Leave The Nest?

When the dove babies hatch after two weeks of incubation, the adults will brood them continually for 4 to 5 days.

You may not know that the eggs have hatched during this time since the adults keep the squabs covered with their bodies.

Using Robin Nest for Raising Young

By day 6 or 7, if the weather cooperates, the adults will begin to leave them alone. Sometimes for long periods.

Night brooding (female dove sleeping with young) of the squabs stops by day 9 or 10 and the young will leave the nest by day 12-14.

This species has been known to reuse the same nest for five sets of eggs in a single season. Usually, 2 - 3 broods are raised each season.

The peak Mourning dove nesting season is April - July, although they may nest as early as March and as late as October in some areas.

Pairs stay together (monogamous) through the season and some may pair up in the following seasons.

Baby (Squabs): Feeding, Learning

Two Squabs (baby doves) Ready to Leave Nest

Mourning Doves, along with Pigeons, produce a food called pigeon milk (not really milk) by glands in the crop of the adult bird.

The parent opens its mouth wide, permitting the nestling to stick its head inside to feed on the nutritious food.

In a few days, the "crop milk" feeding subsides and the adults will begin feeding the young squabs regurgitated seeds. Adults will keep feeding the young for about a month after hatching.

The adults will teach and help the young learn for a short time after the young leave the nest.

In the wild, the adult birds feed primarily on field waste grain. These include corn, wheat, grass, and weed seeds.

You can attract these birds to your feeder by supplying white and red proso millet, hulled sunflower seeds, and cracked corn.

Shared Incubation: Both Sit On The Eggs

Often emails from bird watchers arrive asking, "Our dove has not left the nest in days. Will she starve or die of thirst? What should we do?"

The Mourning Doves nesting behavior is unlike most birds, they sit on their eggs (incubate) continually. Since the male and female look similar, it appears the same bird is sitting on the eggs the whole time.

The male does the daytime shift, and the female does the night shift. If you are around mid-morning or mid-afternoon, you might get to see them change places.

Not to worry though, the switch was made while you were not looking.

Attraction Tips: Inviting Them to Your Backyard

You can try attracting them to nest near you by placing a Nesting Shelf attached to a tree or your house.

Another trick I've had success with was to use a hanging plant container.

I fill the container with soil and top it off with some White Pine needles. White Pines have very soft needles unlike many other types of pine trees.

I place the hanging container under a porch or below the roof of my garden gate.

If placed on your deck or porch, make sure you hang it close to the outside of the deck or porch.

Do They Mate for Life?

People ask "Do they mate for life"? Often worrying about what happens when one of the doves dies.

As a species, Mourning doves are not considered to be strictly monogamous and do not necessarily mate for life.

While some do form long-term pair bonds and may stay together for multiple breeding seasons, many others do not.

Adult with Young in Nest

Still, they do exhibit a range of mating behaviors that can include both monogamous and non-monogamous behaviors, depending on various factors such as location, population dynamics, and individual variation.

Here is where you can find our definition of the term Birds Mating for Life.

What Happens If One Mate Dies?

I guess people would like to know what a surviving dove will do if its mate dies.

Sometimes the surviving dove will attempt to incubate the eggs or continue feeding the nestlings.

This is a hard task for a single bird and is often unsuccessful.

In due course, the surviving dove will find a new mate.

Since they nest several times a season, (2 - 3 is normal) they may raise a successful brood in the same season with a new mate.

While it's sad to lose these dove birds in your yard, be comforted knowing they will mate again.

How Do Doves Mate - Reproduce?

This is the physical process of how these doves mate and breed. Mourning Doves, like most birds, reproduce through sexual reproduction.

The male dove mounts the female to transfer sperm, which fertilizes the eggs inside the female.

The female then lays the fertilized eggs, which develop and hatch into chicks (squabs).

Lifespan

If a dove survives their first year, it can on average live 4 - 5 years in the wild.

According to the Cornell website, (All About Birds) average lifespan for first-year birds is 1 - 1.5 years.

First-year doves have a mortality rate of 60 - 75 percent and adults have a mortality rate of 50 - 60 percent.

For any songbird, the first year of survival is the most difficult.

Predators

Birds that will prey on adult Mourning Doves include Hawks and Falcons.

On the ground and in the nest: cats, raccoons, opossums, Grackles, Crows, and snakes will eat the young and their eggs.

Due to their ground-feeding behavior, they are often caught by predators.

Can I Move A Nest

I get many emails complaining that doves have nested too close to the door or where dogs are contained. They ask "can I move the dove's nest?"

I'm sorry to say that when a nest is moved, most times it is interpreted as a predator attack, which will cause the Doves to abandon the nest.

All I can suggest is to do your best. Use the door if you have to and keep dogs monitored at fledging times.

There are times the nest must be removed. This happens when nests are located on movable objects such as automobiles or tractors that have sat for a while.

It's then that I would recommend trying to move the nest but keeping it as close as possible to where the nest was found.

Don't walk the nest 20 feet away and place it in a tree. Use common sense. It may not work out, but you've done what you can.

I am aware of others who have had success. --- That's my 2 cents on this matter.

Please don't write and tell me about the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. I'm aware of what it says and am confident in its intent. Thank you.

Many of our visitors have shared some unusual nesting sites that doves have used and how they dealt with things.

When Do They Migrate or Go South for Winter?

Northern populations move south while those in the mid-range are partial migrants and Southern residents stay in their area year-round.

In most areas of its range, you'll see doves during the winter months. An open water source and preferred food types can help in their winter survival.

Nesting in Hanging Planter, How or Can I Water?

This is up to you as many of our websites visitors have told us they were successful at watering their plants with dove nests in them.

First and foremost, don't get water anywhere near the eggs, nest, or squabs. Birds always cover these three things when it rains. The adults take the brunt of the weather.

If possible, wait until the adult is off the nest. Then, water around the edges of the plant making sure none of the water runs toward the nest.

If the adults are never off the nest, then I'll leave it up to you.

Some folks have been able to water successfully by gently approaching the nest and having the adult leave. Giving them time to water.

Be aware that this method might cause the adult to be gone for quite some time, waiting to see when it's safe to return.

There is always a chance they'll abandon the nest, but it's less likely if there are squabs in the nest.

If the plant is in a semi-shaded area, you can decide what you want most, the plant or the dove nest.

An idea for the future is to place a hanging basket just for the doves with plastic foliage lining the outside edge for cover.

Be sure to hang this planter in the same or close to where they previously nested.

Be sure to scroll down for all the stories our visitors have submitted about having Doves

Are There Special Meanings About These Birds

Doves are special to people because of their meaning in life and what it means to people when they see a dove.

We opened a comment section for people to share the special things that doves mean to them. Feel free to read and share your comments here, Doves Mean New Life.

Citation for Mourning Doves Not Mating for Life

Blockstein, D. E. and D. Westmoreland. (1993). "., edited by T. S. Baskett, M. W. Sayre, R. E. Tomlinson and R. E. Mirarchi, 105-116. Harrisburg, PA: Stackpole Books.

See also: Attracting Mourning Doves

Related Topics:

Raising Domestic Doves

How Doves Stay Warm in Winter

Read Stories and See Pics About Baby Doves

Stories and Pics of Nesting in Unusual Places

Pics From Our Visitors

Are Turtle Doves and Mourning Doves the Same

Encourage Nesting - Get a Nesting Shelf

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