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 year, 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. 
North of the Saginaw Valley the Mourning 
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 3 
to record the exact date. Mr. Ed. Van = : 
Winkle says it is not common in Delta Fig. 65. Mourning Dove. 
county, but breeds there occasionally. A Prem photograph of mounted specimen. 
flock of “wild pigeons” reported from sOusinel) 
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 placed 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 
prairie 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 or small squads. 
Th’s is one of our most useful birds, feeding ex- 
tensively on weed seeds and never, so far as we are See 
aware, inflicting damage upon any farm crop. It has _= : 
been accused of injuring peas when ripening on the ‘a 
vines, but I do not know of a single well attested 
instance. On the other hand it frequently eats insects, 
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. 
Vig. 64. 
Bill of Mourning Dove. 
