Mourning dove

The **mourning dove** (***Zenaida macroura***) is a member of the dove family (Columbidae). It has five subspecies. The number of mourning doves in the world is about 475 million. They live in North America. Mourning doves are light grey and brown, and males and females look . Adult mourning doves usually eat only seeds. The parents feed crop milk to the young.

## Overview
The mourning dove has five subspecies. The number of mourning doves is about 475 million. They live in North America. Mourning doves are light grey and brown, and males and females look similar. They usually have one partner at a time. Both parents will sit on the eggs and care for their chicks. Adult mourning doves usually eat only seeds. The parents feed crop milk to the young.

People hunt mourning doves for sport and for meat. Up to 70 million birds are shot in the United States (US) every year. Its name, "mourning," comes from its sad-sounding call. The bird is a strong flier, and can fly at up to 88 km/h (55 mph).

## Distribution
Mourning doves have a large range of nearly 11&nbsp;million square kilometers (6.8&nbsp;million square miles). These birds live throughout the Greater Antilles, most of Mexico, the Continental United States, and southern Canada. In the summer, the birds are mostly in the Canadian prairies, and in southern Central America in the winter.

The species is a vagrant in northern Canada, Alaska, and South America. It has been seen at least seven times in the Palearctic ecozone with records from the British Isles (five), the Azores (one) and Iceland (one). In 1963, the Mourning Dove was introduced to Hawaii, and in 1998 there was still a small population in North Kona, Hawaii.

Mourning doves live in many different habitats, such as farms, woods, prairie and grassland. It does not live in swamps or thick forests.

## Features
 ground in California, USA]]

The mourning dove is a medium-sized, slender dove. It weighs an average of . It has a small head and a long tail. Mourning doves have perching feet, with three toes facing forward and one facing backward. The legs are short and reddish color. The beak is small and dark, usually a mixture of brown and black.

After mating, the male shows the female all the possible nest sites, and lets the female choose one and build the nest. The male will fly about, get material, and bring it to her. The male stands on the female's back to give the material to the female, who builds it into the nest. The nest is made of twigs, conifer needles, or grass. After that, they gradually begin to eat seeds. The feathers and wing muscles begin to develop for flight in about 11–15 days. This happens before the squabs are fully grown, but after they digest the adult food. They stay nearby to be fed by their father for up to two weeks after fledging. Rarely, they will eat snails or insects. Mourning doves usually eat enough to fill their stomach and then fly away to digest while resting. They often swallow gravel or sand to help them digest. At bird feeders, mourning doves are attracted to corn, millet, and sunflower seeds. Mourning doves do not dig or scratch for seeds, but only eat what they can see.

## Behavior
Just as other doves, the mourning dove drinks without lifting or tilting its head. They often gather at drinking spots around dawn and dusk. Mourning doves wash themselves in the sun or rain. These birds can also take baths in shallow pools or bird baths. They may sometimes bathe themselves in the dust as well. These birds are strong fliers and can fly up to 88&nbsp;km/h (55&nbsp;mph).

When they are not breeding, mourning doves  in  deciduous trees or in conifers. During sleep, the head rests between the shoulders, close to the body, and is not tucked under the shoulder feathers as most species do. Sometimes, roosting is delayed on colder days during the winter in Canada.

## Conservation status
 of two pairs of mourning doves sitting in a bush of white flowers, one in a nest|Audubon's Carolina pigeon.]]

The mourning dove is of Least Concern to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The species is not at immediate risk. The population is about 475 million and they live across a wide area. However, around 40–70 million birds are shot as game every year.

## Taxonomy
The mourning dove is closely related to the eared dove (*Zenaida auriculata*) and the Socorro dove (*Zenaida graysoni*). Sometimes these three birds are put in the separate genus *Zenaidura*. The Socorro dove was once thought to be the same species as the mourning dove. However, differences in behavior, call, and appearance separate them as two different species.

There are five subspecies of mourning dove:
* Eastern *Z. m. carolinensis* (Linnaeus, 1766)
* Clarion Island *Z. m. clarionensis* (C.H.Townsend, 1890)
* West Indian *Z. m. macroura* (Linnaeus, 1758)
* Western *Z. m. marginella* (Woodhouse, 1852)
* Panama *Z. m. turturilla* (Wetmore, 1956)

The West Indian subspecies lives throughout the Greater Antilles. French zoologist Charles L. Bonaparte gave this species' its scientific name in 1838. The name comes from his wife, Princess Zénaide. The "mourning" part of its name comes from its call.

### Closest relative 
The mourning dove is thought to be most closely related to the extinct passenger pigeon (*Ectopistes migratorius*).

## As a symbol and in the arts 
The Eastern mourning dove (*Z. m. carolinensis*) is Wisconsin's official symbol of peace. The bird is also Michigan's state bird of peace.

The mourning dove appears as the Carolina turtle-dove on plate 286 of Audubon's *The Birds of America*. Lorine Niedecker, and Charles Wright.

## Notes 
## References 
## Other websites 
* 

* Mourning Doves on the Internet Bird Collection
* USGS page 
* Information from Cornell Lab of Ornithology
* South Dakota Birds page
* Mourning Dove Movies (Tree of Life)
* 28 Mourning Dove Photos 
* Video of a Mourning Dove's Call
* Mourning Dove Bird Sound