Baby Doves

One of my added stops on my lake rounds is a little church near the retention pond where I have had good luck with birds this year. On one stop early in the year I noticed a pretty good sized flock of White-winged Doves. I usually have a couple in my year during breeding season but this flock was interesting. So, I keep a look out for them when I can.

I drove into the parking lot today and noticed a lot of doves flying over to the fence along the smaller retention pond. I had limited time so I just took a bunch of shots of the birds before moving on. Here, an adult White-winged basks in the sunlight.



As I was going through the shots I noticed something I didn't out in the field. There was a baby in the mix!



And another, and another...I was too busy squinting against the sunlight to really take it in before. This flock is definitely breeding over here. Sweet!



Better still, I also got shots of more babies. These Mourning Doves were mixed in with the White-wings.



Young doves have feathers that are much more scaly looking and smooth out as they grow older.



More species to add to the confirmed breeding section of the Bird Breeding Atlas!