Columbiformes (Doves)

If you live in Albuquerque, you're likely to encounter three doves other than pigeons. If you hear a three-note call, that's a Eurasian collared dove. If you hear a four-note call, that's a white-winged dove. If you hear a five-note call ("Hello ... who... are... you"), that's a mourning dove.

 

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Columbidae: Rock Pigeon (Columba livia)

Rock pigeon, New Mexico
Tingley Beach, Albuquerque, January 2022

Okay, okay. I'll include a picture of pigeons. But just one.

 

Columbidae: Eurasian Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)

This non-native species is now common in New Mexico. Besides the three-note call, listen for a call that reminds you of a soft-spoken crow. The "collar" is present on the back of the neck only.

 

Columbidae: White-Winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica)

To distinguish sitting birds of this species, first look for the white edges to the folded wings. Once these doves take flight, the strips of white become large patches. White-winged doves are native to New Mexico but arrived in Albuquerque only recently. Listen for a five-note call.


Columbidae: Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura)

These are Albuquerque's native doves, now partly displaced. The Rio Grande Bosque seems to be their stronghold. Listen for a five-note call.

 

In my February 2021 photo, one of the mourning doves is grooming the other. A moment later the favor was returned.