Mourning Dove

The mourning dove is a slender, medium-sized dove native to most of North America, named for its soft, mournful cooing call. It has a small head, long pointed tail and plain grey-brown plumage with black spots on the wings, and it is among the most widespread and abundant birds on the continent, found in farmland, woodland edges, deserts, suburbs and city parks alike. Mourning doves feed almost entirely on seeds, foraging on the ground, and their fast, direct flight, marked by a distinctive whistling of the wings on takeoff, makes them a popular game bird in many U.S. states. The species reproduces quickly, sometimes raising several broods a year, which helps sustain its very large overall population despite heavy hunting pressure.