Bird guide · Zenaida macroura
Mourning Dove
What the mourning dove eats, where it lives, when it comes to feeders and how to recognise it – with sightings from every US state.
- Season
- Partial migrant
- Size
- 11 in (28 cm)
- Eats
- seeds
- Feeds
- ground, tray/platform
- Most common
- Arizona, Pennsylvania, Alabama
Food
What do mourning doves eat?
At feeders, mourning doves take seeds.
Often eats on the ground under feeders, quickly filling its crop and then resting to digest.
Feeder that suits it
A low tray or platform feeder, or seed scattered on the ground below your feeder.
Range
Where do mourning doves live?
Common from southern Canada to central Mexico; many northern birds move south in fall. By share of all bird sightings, mourning doves are most common in Arizona (3.0%).
States where mourning doves are most common
- Arizona3.0%
- Pennsylvania3.0%
- Alabama3.0%
- Kentucky3.0%
- Nebraska2.9%
- Kansas2.8%
- Missouri2.8%
- Michigan2.7%
- Wisconsin2.7%
- West Virginia2.7%
Share of all bird sightings in each state that are mourning doves, 2019–2024.
Season
Does the mourning dove migrate?
Partial migrant. Across the US it is reported in every month; its share of bird sightings is highest in August.
Share of all bird sightings in the US that are mourning doves, by month.
Identification
How to identify the mourning dove
Male: Plain with black wing spots and a long pointed tail.
Female: Duller and plainer brown; the male has a pinkish chest and blue-grey crown.
Young birds: Scaly-looking.
Size: 11 in (28 cm)
On camera
Getting the mourning dove on a feeder camera
Most visits happen on the ground or on low trays. A camera feeder with a wide tray, placed low near cover, catches far more than a hanging tube.
Questions
Mourning Dove: questions
What do mourning doves eat?
At feeders, seeds.
Do mourning doves migrate?
Partial migrant. Across the US it is reported in every month; its share of bird sightings is highest in August.
Where do mourning doves live?
By share of all bird sightings, they are most common in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Kentucky, Nebraska. They are rare or absent in Alaska.
What does a female mourning dove look like?
Duller and plainer brown; the male has a pinkish chest and blue-grey crown.
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