Doves are birds of cultural importance across many different civilizations. Typically representing peace, hope, and purity, doves have always been symbolic of some of the most beautiful and serene things in life. There are many different dove species that inhabit North America, and two of them that can be found in Vermont. Here is everything you need to know about those two species.
Mourning Dove
Identification
Mourning Doves have a pinkish gray underside with a darker gray back and wings. They have black spots on the wings and a black spot on each side of their face. This species often looks pudgy when they sit in a resting position.
Range
Mourning Doves are not particularly migratory as they live throughout most of the continental United States year-round. They do however extend south into Central America and Southern Mexico in winter and farther into southcentral Canada in summer.
Diet and Foraging Habits
Most of the Mourning Doves diet consists of seeds. They can often be seen foraging on the ground and are regular visitors at bird feeders where they will eat at platform feeders or under feeders.
Where to Find this Bird
Mourning Doves can be found in many different places including sparse woodlands, backyards, parks, and even areas heavily inhabited by humans such as cities. They can often be seen on power lines and also frequently feed along the ground in brush.
Rock Pigeon
Identification
Rock Pigeons (also known as feral pigeons) come in many different varieties. Most of them are different shades of gray with darker gray on the head, neck and chest with lighter gray on the wings and underside. Rock Pigeons have two dark wing bars on each wing and blue, green, or even red iridescence on their head and neck. These birds can also be reddish in color and even pure white.
In my personal opinion, Rock Pigeons are actually quite beautiful and if they weren’t so common in the United States people would appreciate them more.
Range
Rock Pigeons can be found in almost every continent on Earth. However, they are only native to certain parts of Europe, Asia, and Northern Africa. In South America and North America Rock Pigeons are actually an introduced species and have spread to pretty much everywhere with the exception of Northern Canada.
Diet and Foraging Habits
Rock Pigeons feed mostly on fruits and seeds. They are also well known for eating scraps of foods in cities such as bread . They will move along the ground and peck at their desired meal while feeding.
Where to Find this Bird
In their wild range, Rock Pigeons live on cliffs and rock faces. In the United States, buildings and city structures imitate these habitats, meaning this species is now readily found in large cities. Additionally, look for Rock Pigeons in farmland where grains and seeds provide an easy meal.
Summary
Doves have learned to coexist with humans and thrive in places many other birds can’t. Knowing which species to expect in your region can be incredibly useful in identifying these plump and gregarious birds. Hopefully, this article has helped to answer some of your questions about the doves of Vermont.
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