SPOTTED SANDPIPER (Actitis macularia) 



Along the shores of ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams in both Yellowstone 

 and Grand Teton one may encounter a small, noisy, spotted-breasted 

 shorebird. This bird teeters nervously and when alarmed flies with stiffly 

 held wings and short, rapid wingbeats alternated with periods of gliding. 

 While in flight the bird utters a repetitious, staccato "peet." The well- 

 camouflaged eggs of this species are usually placed on or near the ground 

 along the gravelly shores of a stream or pond or within a few feet of the 

 shore. The precocial, downy young must avoid contact with coyotes, 

 weasels, and other forest predators if they are to grow to maturity. 



California Cull 



Harry Engels 



MOURNING DOVE (Zenaida macroura) 



Although it is one of the most ecologically tolerant, and therefore widely 

 distributed of all birds, the mourning dove is a breeding bird of limited 

 distribution in Yellowstone and Grand Teton. Because it feeds primarily 

 on waste grains and weed seeds, the mourning dove prefers open, semi- 

 arid environments. In Yellowstone and Grand Teton it breeds primarily 

 in the sagebrush-grassland habitat complexes. Mourning doves construct 

 flimsy nests of grasses or twigs. These nests are placed on any available 

 horizontal branch. The two white eggs deposited in the nest hatch in 

 fourteen to sixteen days. The young doves, which are fed a partly pre- 

 digested fluid by the parents, develop rapidly, leaving the nest in twelve 

 to fourteen days. 



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