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Home My WebLink AboutApril 07, 1963 - Mourning DoveMorning Dove Exclusive Sunday Review sketch by Dennis Puleston of Brookhaven Focus Sunday with its high tempera- ture and b e a u t i f u l weather brought the whole fami.y outside to work around the place. Every- one was busy when off to the south we heard a low and mourn- ful coo-coo -000. Peter, our oldest boy and by now a most ardent birder, stopped short and looked at me. From This sparkle I cou.d tell that he too had caught the call and I wondered if his youthfud en- thusiasm wotfid over -ride his com- mon sense in identifying it. I soon got my answer. E l e v e n years is a pretty exuberant age and deliberate thought and reas- oning are not always the 'n e s t characteristics of youth at this time. He burst out, "Hear that! It's an owl! " I answered, "on there. Are you sure? Would an owl be calling in the middle of a bright sunny day ?" This sobering thought cooled some of his fare but I'm afraid raised his cur- iosity even more. To satisy his interest I thought it best to head down the fields to see for our - selves what made the call. It was just a short walk and ended in a field of winter weeds and stulbble that soon reveai:ed the fast- flying pointed - tailed Morning Dove. We could hear the swish of the wings as they flew around the edge of the field and lit on the telephone wires some distance down the road. Sure now Peter knew and revealed that he even remembered that the mournful call they made, gave them their name — Mourning Dove. He had seen there regularly : ca th''s very fie'.id as they fed through the bleak winter months. We have had reports of 30 to 40 coming regullamly to stations that are in the open. Shou:d you w dh to at- tract therm remember the feed must be on the ground and in the open. Their diet is mostly gleaned from surpluse grain or weed seeds and when in season they have an occasional dessert of fruit for variety. The Mourning Dave is a close relative of the famous passen- ger pigeon of not too long ago. He looks very much lake t h is famous bird that at one time flew in such large flocks the sun was actually blotted out of s'ght. Per- haps it is just as w&I then that the Mourning Dave does not take up in such flocks. The exception to this is in the fall when they are migrating in small flocks to the South. To the southerner they are considered fair and legal game there butIam glad to report in our northern states they are strictly protected. Whenever one is observed on the ground, in a tree or swiftly filiying from the field, you cannot but admire the beauty of this Onima bird. True, there is nothing flashy about its color. As a mat- ter of fact, one could even con- sider it from a distance as quite drab. But when observed close at hand you will see the iridescent bllues, purples and even pinks that in there own quiet way make dhis bird something special. The over I buitfy brown color and the erect trim posture give ' his ground feeder a dignified appear- ance. By now the birds have started to pair off and it won't be long before the nest building w i d I start. This is a busy time for they believe in striking while the iron is drat, which usually means two or three broods from coe pair each season. A dove's nest, unlike many others, is no work of art. As a matter of fact to lock at it one wo&d say no work at add went into it. These nests are a mere handful of sOcyks place helter- skelter on a limb or 'branch. How the two white eggs manage to stay on tcp without fa:,57ng off the r:ckety platform is hard to say. Once or twice I found a nest on the ground but usuaU.y the pre- ferred pace is from four to ten feet up in some evergreen. Being a bird of the omen country, the nests are usually placed along the edge of the woods or among scatterer] trees as they never pen- es -ate the deep forest. Sure:y there is no snug nest for the young. Oii the contrary the open grate of the nest is just about as 'bo:d and uninviVing a site as I can imag°me. Yet none of this seems to bother the young for they live oini y to be fed. This process of feeding is quite unique for the young are fed by regurgi- tation ccnti,nuai y through t h e i r yraung I'Ves. This is a short per- iod of from ten to twelve days and good reason too for I'm sure if they, had to stay any longer their fb'm- ,,a•..1 wno d surely give way. By autumn M'.en the two or three broods have been added to the regulars, we see them con - tinuous'.y moving about on their noisy wings rest'.ess y waiting to move south. After the great ma- jority of the doves have gone only a few remla n to stick it out. But I'm sure you like all of us are g'.rad to have the dove through the dreary months of. winter. No m a.) t e r how cold cr I" the weather, theiT trim and stately pose .gives promise of better days ahead. FIELD OBSERVATIONS Laurence Ernest reports: Southampton — March 19 Eastern Phoebe ( 4) March 23 Woodcock Bill Long reporrts: Greenport March 23 Peepers Sagaponack — March 25 Blue- winged Tead ( 7) Green - winged Teal ( 5) Piping Plover ( 10) Southampton — March 26 Osprey ( 2) Joan Jaschob reports: Cutchogue — March 26 Purple Finch ( 8) Dennis Puleston reports: Brookhaven — March 25/ 26 Red- shouklered Hawk March 26/ 28 Commcm Snipe ( 2) March 26 Fish Crow March 27 Field Sparrow March 28 Bluebird March 29 Screech Owl March 31 Osprey Killdeer Yaphank — March 29 Rusty B.ackb.1rd ( 2) Pime Warb'. er Water-Mill — March 30 Horned