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Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Mourning Doves....


Every morning over the past few weeks, I've been hearing the beautiful coo of birds outside my bedroom window, sounds reminiscent of a mysterious, beckoning owl. But upon further thought, I realized that owls are nocturnal creatures and would probably not be awake, nor that vocal, around 7am. So I did some research and discovered that these birds are Mourning Doves! They are medium sized, slender birds, typically with light gray-brown plumage, and a lighter, pinkish color below. The wings have black spotting, and the outer tail feathers are white, contrasting with the black-inners. They are native to North America, including Canada and all 50 states in the USA.

This species' call is a distinctive, plaintive cooOOoo-woo-woo-woooo, uttered by males to attract a mate. Because of their beckoning, "mourning" type calls, they are often mistaken for owls. Other sounds include a nest call (cooOOoo) by paired males to attract their mates to the nest sites, a greeting call (a soft ork) by males upon rejoining their mates, and an alarm call (a short roo-oo) by either male or female when threatened.

I was intrigued to learn more about these beautiful doves that live outside my bedroom window, and I've actually developed a curiosity about the plethora of other bird species that live in my Alameda Beach neighborhood. Maybe I'll even become a recreational birdwatcher, just like my dad. : )

3 comments:

The Pason Family said...

Oh Sarah... don't pretend that you were so smart with your "observations"... your tattoo artist, Amy, is the one who told you about the birds! silly sister sarah! =) XOXO.... yes I had to call you out on this one!

SFSairy said...

HA HA yes you're right, but I did think it was strange that an owl would be out during the day, AND I did take the next steps to research the doves online.. :) I'm still smart...lol :)

Anonymous said...

Oh my gosh, I am so glad I read this. For over a month now, I kept hearing this lovely hoo hoo sound, that sounded like an owl. But it was always in the morning and never at night. Finally I got to see the male and female Dove together in the tree. What a beautiful sight. I am new at bird watching but I was thrilled that they picked my tree. I hope they stay around.