Hi Tweets

Stuart MacKay writes:

>with 28 (yes, twenty eight) mourning
>doves in the trees. Given the time of year etc. this is a huge number of
>birds which immediately begs the question as to whether there is
>mourning doves are kept by anyone or whether there is a feral population

Stuart, it's typical for wintering Mourning Doves, not a released species,
to gang up into winter flocks to forage and roost communally.

In Vancouver BC, the main breeding and wintering populations (not the same
birds, it turns out) are in the agricultural areas of Delta and Surrey, with
very small numbers in Richmond and Vancouver BC itself, usually migrant
birds. According to Campbell et al's Birds of BC, part of our summer
breeding birds migrate S to winter in the southern desert states, while it's
the birds from the northwestern part of the range, Alaska, northern BC, NWT,
which winter here. Hm, hadn't known that.

In summer, you'd encounter MODO singles and pairs as an uncommon breeding
resident; in winter, roosting flocks of up to 50 birds, but more usually
20-40 birds.

Michael Price We aren't flying...we're falling with style!
Vancouver BC Canada -Buzz Lightyear, Toy Story
mprice at mindlink.net