Mourning Doves

A common dove of open country and settled areas.

Field guide

A common dove of open country and settled areas.

Identification

Shared features

Slim body, long pointed tail, small head and dark wing spots.

Male

Representative mourning dove: the male tends to have a pinker breast and more bluish crown and nape, with dark wing spots and a long pointed tail.

Female

Representative mourning dove females are often browner and duller, but their colors overlap with males. Juveniles have pale feather edges and are not reliably sexed by these subtle adult marks.

Habitat

Fields, lawns, woodland edges and scattered trees used for perching.

Where to look during the day

Morning

At dawn, listen from wires and exposed branches and watch ground feeding.

Afternoon

In the afternoon, scan open feeding areas and sheltered perches.

Evening

At dusk, watch birds moving toward tree roosts and water.

Sounds

A soft, mournful coo; wings may whistle as the bird takes off.

Recorded calls

Mourning dove

Field recording of a mourning dove. A narrower call type or the caller's sex is not assigned to this clip.

deefinder200 · Recording source

Natural history source: Read the source

Bag limits

Bag and possession summaries.

Daily: 8Possession: 24

Official bag-limit source