Wednesday Wings: Eurasian-collared Doves
Eurasian-collared Doves taken in Florida 2010.
Eurasian collared-doves historically occurred only in and around India. A massive expansion in the 1600′s brought them to Turkey and the Balkans, and from there they spread across Europe.
First released in the Bahamas in the mid-1970′s, they made their way to Florida and spread quickly across the North American continent. Reports of Eurasian-collared doves are increasing as the bird watching public is made aware of their presence in North America.
Year round availability of food allows these doves to thrive in colder regions; some have overwintered in Canada and several northern US States. Eurasian collared-doves have been seen in southern Alberta consistently for the past few years, and are being reported in the city of Calgary this week.
These doves are very similar in size, behaviour and appearance to Mourning Doves, which are found across North America in very healthy numbers. If you see a dove, do a quick check to see if they have the black collar.
The range maps in all my field guides show these doves only in the south eastern USA. The map on eBird Canada however, shows a large number of Eurasian collared-dove sightings throughout North America. These records are submitted by bird watchers, and cover the years 2006-2010. There are multiple sightings noted in the four western provinces, so I would suggest these birds are here to stay!
The Eurasian doves also bear a close resemblance to Ringed-turtle doves, which are kept as caged pets. Escaped turtle doves are much lighter coloured than the Eurasian-collared doves, and lack the darker grey back, wing coverts and primaries. See these photos for an excellent comparison of the two collared dove species.
Tags: canadian doves, dove expansion into canada, eurasian collared-doves, eurasian-collared doves in canada
March 10th, 2010 at 2:30 pm
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by LRockwellatty: RT @patbumstead New Blog Post: Wednesday Wings: Eurasian-collared Doves http://bit.ly/comyPz //Interesting post about this invasive species….
May 14th, 2010 at 12:00 am
I live in Okotoks, AB and last year there were two doves ( I thought they were Turtle doves) nesting in a evergreen tree across the street from my house. By the end of summer my husband and I noticed several doves. We still have several doves close to our home. We see them in our back yard daily. I now know that they are not Turtle doves , but rather Eurasian collared-doves. We thoroughly enjoy watching them and hearing their soft coos. Should we put feed out for them in the winter and what kind?
May 14th, 2010 at 11:10 am
Hi Mary
Your doves shouldn’t be here in the winter, but having said that, I did have three Mourning Doves overwinter in my Calgary yard this year. They ate black-oil sunflower seeds and, oddly enough, niger seed. They’re ground feeders, so if you want to feed the doves, just spread the seeds on the ground, either in low grass or on a bare patch. If you feed them, they will come…!
July 31st, 2010 at 7:58 pm
I live just a few miles south of Acme, AB on an acrege and have three Eurasian nesting in my evergreen trees south of my house. They have been here since May of this year. My trees are about 25 to 30 feet tall, but they are nesting about 12 to 15 feet high all in seperate trees. They spend most of the day either on our power lines or the dead branches atop the tallest trees. We have grain fields all around us and I think they feed off the oats that my horses spill on the ground. My Husband and I love waking up every morning to them singing are hoping that if they should choose to stay the winter that they will survive the cold.
August 3rd, 2010 at 11:18 am
I did have three Mourning Doves overwinter in my yard in Calgary last winter. Perhaps the scant snow cover we received enabled them to find food on the ground, but I’ll be keeping a close watch out there this winter. If they hang around again, I may have to build them a dovecote!
October 26th, 2010 at 10:57 am
I had a nesting pair in my back yard all summer and now as the weather gets colder their are five doves at my feeder every day. I live in Saskatoon Sask.
October 26th, 2010 at 7:22 pm
I still have four mourning doves in the yard, who I don’t think are going south. Sounds like your doves might be overwintering up there too. Keep me posted!
January 11th, 2011 at 7:28 pm
Jan. 11, 2011 – We live in Taber Alberta, and have been feeding two Eurasian-collared doves in our back yard since early spring 2010. They join ranks with sparrows and bluejays and one lone woodpecker at the feeder. The temperature is very cold today, lots of snow and the doves are perched on the edge of the feeder sunning themselves.
January 12th, 2011 at 12:54 pm
I have four mourning doves overwintering in my Calgary yard. Poor birds are all fluffed up this week, and spend time perched in my poplar tree sitting in what little sun we’ve got! Haven’t had Eurasians in the yard yet, but wouldn’t be surprised to see them soon.
January 30th, 2011 at 6:56 pm
One Eurasian collared dove showed up in my yard in the summer of 2008 and stayed the winter. Three doves overwintered here in 2009 and this year I have lost count of their numbers but there are at least 8 or 10. They shelter in the large evergreens in my backyard. They get their water from one of my ponds, which is heated all winter and thus open water is always available. They share the feeders with finches, sparrows, juncos, nuthatches and the occasional downy woodpecker or bluejay. Whenever I put suet out starlings appear and the doves disappear.
June 16th, 2011 at 8:39 pm
i live in rocky mountain house and have 3 eurasian-collared doves since mother’s day,
they enjoy eating a mixture of the red and white millet with wheat, it is available at most stores and is for mourning doves and cow birds. they eat right along with the cow birds and the red-winged black birds. this is the first time for us to ever see these birds.
June 17th, 2011 at 9:50 am
I think these doves are here to stay, and have apparently been reported as far north as The Yukon. I’ve had Mourning Doves in my yard for years, but my first Eurasian Collared showed up a few days ago. Now to watch and see if their numbers increase!
July 3rd, 2011 at 11:45 am
We have 5 or 6 doves. I use an owl call that I use for turkey hunting and can mimic their cooing. They respond to the call and fly to the top of the telephone pole within seconds. They have been here in my neighborhood in Yakima, Wa. since April 2011. I am going to build a feeder today and start feeding them. They are kinda like pets now.
July 3rd, 2011 at 12:53 pm
There’s something about doves all right – the mourning doves in my yard have reached spoiled pet status. You don’t need to build a feeder for them though, as doves are ground feeders, eating a wide variety of seeds, grains, and insects. Just select a fairly open area where they have room to fly in, and the grass isn’t too high, and put bird food on the ground. If you do want to build a feeder, it would have to be a large tray feeder, which should also attract a variety of birds that will scatter when the doves fly in.
November 7th, 2011 at 8:51 pm
These birds have been around Okotoks for a few years and are multiplying fast.
I have counted as many as 22 at my bird feeder at once. They are wintering here.
November 8th, 2011 at 8:32 am
I’ve seen an equal number overwinter near feeders in the town of Shepard. Have still only had 1 Eurasian collared dove in my Calgary yard though, in spite of all the mourning doves here year round.
December 8th, 2011 at 2:11 pm
I have heard the cooing of the Eurasian collared doves near my home in Medicine Hat, AB. since 2002 (soon to be 10 years). At first I thought the sounds were owls because I could never see the bird producing the sounds. After several YEARS I finally saw that the sound was coming from the Eurasian collared doves. Seems they started out being very shy about coming around closer to my back yard and house. During nesting season one of the birds continually made a circle around the area, perching from street lamp post to street lamp post. At each stop it would sing: wooooh, woooooh__wooh-wooh several times before moving to the next lamp post. I suspect this behaviour functioned to reassure the mate on the nest and to protect their territorial area. In mid-November I had 6 of these doves on my 1′ X 2′ flat deck feeder at once! Since then I have seen only pairs and not every day. Until this year I have only seen the slightly smaller, faster flying Mourning Dove from a distance. But late this fall I had a mourning dove keeping company with a pair of Eurasians in my back yard for over a week. Lately, the mourning dove has been coming to the feeder on a solo basis, while the Eurasians always come in pairs. The Eurasian doves seem to have an even more gentle disposition than the mourning dove. They totally tolerate feeding with all birds of their own kind was well as with any and all smaller birds. Small birds like sparrows, that are so flighty, fly right up in front of a Eurasian and begin to feed with not the least sign of fear! I have no doubt after studying Eurasians from a distance of 6 feet that they have the most beautiful disposition of any bird. All other types of birds seem to recognize this instantly.
English sparrows are especially good at tolerating their own kind at the feeder while their cousins, the house finches constantly battle for territory at the feeders. Dark-eyed Juncos are mostly very selfish, needing the whole two-story flat deck feeder for 1 bird!
I am so pleased that the Eurasian Collared Dove has recently arrived in Canada and continues to spread northward and to stay for the winter.
January 15th, 2012 at 3:10 pm
I live in Ladner (Delta, B. C.) and have noticed ever increasing numbers of Eurasian Collared Doves around us, year-round, over the past six years. We now seem to be stuck with a resident pair right in our back yard. Ever since these things arrived here, I no longer see or hear our beautiful native Mourning Doves. Are Eurasian Collared Doves displacing Mourning Doves in other parts of our country? If so, these exotics are obnoxious pests and I wonder what can be done to get our Mourning Doves back.
January 15th, 2012 at 4:54 pm
I have heard that sadly yes, the Eurasian doves are replacing our beautiful mourning doves in some areas. I’ve also heard that the Eurasian species tends to prefer the more rural areas, but judging by some of the comments received, they seem to be everywhere. I’ve had mourning doves in my yard here for years, summer and winter, and only one Eurasian has ever shown up. The invasive Eurasian doves are clearly spreading though, and have been reported as far north as The Yukon while mourning doves never go that far north. You might find this blog post on the spread of Eurasian Collared Doves interesting.
January 16th, 2012 at 6:22 pm
I was so excited to see that I had a couple of eurasian doves here in Fort St John,BC. I had no idea that they were in this area. Beautiful beautiful bird
January 16th, 2012 at 7:37 pm
Yep, they’re clearly moving into the northwest in ever increasing numbers, but at least they’re not displacing mourning doves up there!
February 12th, 2012 at 9:05 am
Had nesting pair last year in Kamloops and had never seen them before, had one offspring. They did not stay the winter, today three in and around yard, am assuming same birds from last year.