252 MICHIGAN BIRD LIFE. 



The Mourning Dove is an abundant resident of the southern half of the 

 Lower Peninsula during the warmer two-thirds of the 3'ear, and in the 

 southernmost counties a few frequently 

 winter; indeed it is not an uncommon thing 

 to see a few individuals as far north 

 as Lansing at any time of the year when 



the ground is bare or nearly bare of snow. ^^^"^^ '^ A 



North of the Saginaw Valley the Mourning «L ^ 



Dove is much less common, although there 

 are numerous records of its occurrence, 

 even in the Upper Peninsula. Mr. Thos. 

 B. Wyman has noted it three times at 

 Munising, Alger county, and thinks he has 

 seen it once or twice more when he failed \ 



to record the exact date. Mr. Ed. Van 



Winkle says it is not common in Delta fir. 65. Mourning Dove, 



county, but breeds there occasionallv. A ^''o"! photograph of mounted specimen, 

 flock of ''wild pigeons" reported "^ from (Original.) 



Marquette in the summer of 1904, doubtless was a flock of Mourning 

 Doves. 



It is one of the first birds to arrive in spring, coming at about the same 

 time as the Bluebird, Robin, and Meadowlark, usually in advance of the 

 Killdeer. It commonly arrives in pairs, but occasionally in small flocks 

 of three to ten individuals, which soon separate and begin nesting. 



With us the nest is usually i)laced on the horizontal branch of a spreading 

 tree, and not more than eight or ten feet from the ground. Frequently it 

 is placed in a bush or a tangle of vines, at an elevation of but three or four 

 feet, and instances are by no means uncommon in which the eggs are placed 

 directly upon the ground with only the merest apology for a nest. In 

 l)rairie regions farther south and west this is the common mode of nesting, 

 while in New England the nest is almost invariably placed in trees. It 

 is difficult to determine the number of broods, but in southern Michigan 

 eggs may be found during every month from April to September inclusive, 

 and there are reports of sets in October and November. (?) Doubtless two 

 broods are always reared, and in case of disaster the bird may repeat the 

 attempt several times. By the first of July small companies of doves may 

 be found feeding in stubble fields and brushy pastures, and the size of 

 these flocks increases until in September sometimes a hundred individuals 

 or more will be found feeding in the same field, although when alarmed 

 they seldom unite into one large flock, more often dividing into six to ten 

 small companies. Later in the fall the flocks are smaller yet and when 

 the birds finally move south they generally go in couples oi' small squads. 



Th's is one of our most useful birds, feeding ex- 

 tensively on weed seeds and never, so far as we are 

 aware, inflicting damage u])on any farm crop. It has 

 Ijcen accused of injuring i)eas when ripening on the 

 vines, but I do not know of a single well attested ^'^- ^"*- 



instance. On the other hand it frequently eats insects, ^'" °^ ^'^""""g i'"^^^- 

 particularly grasshoppers, although it is always mainly vegetarian. 



Until recently this was considered a game bird and its destruction was 

 allowed during the fall, but by act of the legislature of 1905 it was trans- 

 ferred to the list of non-game birds, and its killing is now wisely prohibited 

 at all seasons. 



