Mourning Dove, Zenaida Macroura

Day 207: You could almost mistake their coo for the hoot of an owl, these Mourning Doves. Although as a general rule, I don't have much use for anything even remotely resembling a pigeon, Zenaida macroura is not obnoxious. They don't overwhelm the feeders. In fact, they clean up the ground after the smaller birds are through sorting for the choicest seeds. They perch politely on the fence rails and overhead wires, engaging in soft conversation and waiting their turn. Not so the blasted Band-tailed Pigeons which arrive shortly on the heels of the Evening Grosbeaks, their minute pigeon brains keying in on the grosbeaks' mapping system. I spend a lot of time rushing at the windows to chase the Band-taileds away, but the Mourning Doves are welcome. That said, an occasional undesirable look-alike shows up: the Eurasian Collared-dove. The Collared-dove is lighter in colour, and has a small patch of black on the back of the neck. The black "collar" is not always evident unless the bird has its neck extended.