Some facts about the Mourning Dove
		by BUDDY AMATO
		The Mourning Dove is one of the area's most commonly observed birds. Its call, which can hardly be considered song, is considered by many a hopeless sound of sorrow or, to others, a song of love and devotion. Regardless of how you interpret the vocal sounds that come from this gentle creature, it is unmistakable to the bird enthusiasts' ear. The Mourning Dove is often mistaken for the extinct Passenger Pigeon. In the last 20 years, all claimed Passenger Pigeon sightings have been directly linked to the Mourning Dove. The size of the Mourning Dove is approximately 12 to 12 and a half inches in length. Top coloring is a grayish blue, while bottom coloring switches to a reddish fawn coloring. The adult male can be detected by its paler fawn coloring and dull, slate gray that passes on to the back of the head area. The tail is longer than the wing and is strongly graduated, consisting of 14 relatively narrow and tapering feathers. The Mourning Dove likes to make its nest in the low branches of trees or in dense brier thickets. However, they are not the best nest builders and the nests are sometimes built of simple frail twigs. The main reason for their poor nest building skills is mainly because their beaks are ill-suited for this type of handiwork. As a matter of fact, compared to other birdies, their beaks are quite small in size relative to their bodies. Mourning Doves usually lay one to two white eggs. The offspring are very slow to develop and take longer than most birds to gain flying ability. That is why you will often see the mother sitting sideways in the nest with the young sticking out on both sides. Most birds at the same age would have long since flown the nest, but not young Mourning Doves. The Dove is distributed all through North America and also through British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and southern Nova Scotia. It prefers to winter in southern Oregon, southern Colorado, northern Ohio and North Carolina all the way to Panama. The Mourning Dove is one of the most useful birds; it feeds on troublesome weed seeds and frequently dines on insects, especially grasshoppers. However, the dove is mostly a vegetarian and prefers seeds of weed-type plants. Did you know: That the Mourning Dove is also called the Turtle Dove? That the Mourning Dove is often mistaken for the extinct Passenger Pigeon? That the Mourning Dove makes a sharp whistling of its wings while in flight? Grandmaster Buddy Amato operates Amato's Karate and Weapons Academy, 589 Palmer Avenue, West Keansburg and is the author of Buddys Animal Kingdom. For more information, call (732) 671-9555. Return to top More Columns Copyright Buddy Amato Amato's Goju-ryu Karate, Nunchaku, Bo-staff, Aikido, Sword, Kendo, Sais, Kick-boxing, Tai-Chi and more 589 Palmer Ave, Keansburg and is the author of Buddys Animal Kingdom, NJ 07734 (732) 671-9555