(Zenaidura macroura)
The mourning dove is a cosmopolitan species found in greater or less
numbers in all sections. They have a slight migratory movement from
the higher to the lower altitudes, but they cannot be called a
migratory bird. A large number of these birds begin their nesting
season in the mountains at altitudes of from 2000 to 4000 feet,
raising one brood at that height, then moving down and nesting again,
and moving again until they reach the lower valleys, where they remain
all winter, congregating in certain places in flocks of hundreds.
Many, however, remain in the valleys all the year and nest around the
fields and along the streams.
The mourning dove is so well known in every country that a description
of it is unnecessary.
=Nest and Eggs=--The nest is generally built in the small trees and
lined with any soft article that they can find. The eggs number two
and a pair of the young birds are hatched about every six weeks from
May to September.