Common Ground-Dove

Columbina passerinaOrder: COLUMBIFORMES Family: Pigeons and Doves (Columbidae)

Codes: Common Name: COGD Scientific Name: COLPAS ITIS Taxonomic No.: 177152

Breeding Location:

Forest edge, Grassland with scattered trees, Desert, Grasslands, Desert, semi

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Mates for life

Breeding Population:

Declining

Egg Color:

White

Number of Eggs:

2 - 3

Incubation Days:

12 - 14

Egg Incubator:

Both sexes

Nest Material:

Flimsy platform of twigs and plant fibers or little or no nest materials.

Migration:

Nonmigratory

General

Common Ground-Dove: Small, rounded dove with plain gray-brown back and scaled pink-gray head and breast. Eyes are red and bill is orange-red with black tip. Wings show rufous primaries in flight. Tail is short. Female is duller.

Range and Habitat

Common Ground-Dove: Resident in southern parts of California, Arizona, and Texas, and east to southern North Carolina. Preferred habitats include fields, gardens, farmlands, and roadsides.

Breeding and Nesting

Common Ground Dove: Two or three white eggs are laid in a nest on or close to the ground, often hidden in a tuft of grass or among weeds. Incubation ranges from 12 to 14 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Common Ground-Dove: Feeds on seeds, berries, and occasionally insects; forages on the ground.

Readily Eats

Cracked Corn, Sunflower Seed, Nuts, Milo, Thistle

Vocalization

Common Ground-Dove: Makes soft cooing notes "coo-oo, coo-oo, coo-oo", each with rising inflection.

Similar Species

Common Ground-Dove: Juvenile Mourning Dove is larger, longer-tailed, and lack rufous primaries. Inca Dove is longer-tailed and scaled on upperparts and underparts.

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Common Ground-Dove

Common Ground-Dove: Small, rounded dove with plain gray-brown back and scaled pink-gray head and breast. Eyes are red and bill is orange-red with black tip. The wings show rufous primaries in flight. Tail is short. Legs and feet are pink. Forages on ground. Swift direct flight with rapid wing beats.

● Song: "coo-oo, coo-oo, coo-oo"

● Foraging & Feeding: Common Ground-Dove: Feeds on seeds, berries, and occasionally insects; forages on the ground.

● Breeding & nesting: Common Ground Dove: Two or three white eggs are laid in a nest on or close to the ground, often hidden in a tuft of grass or among weeds. Incubation ranges from 12 to 14 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Common Ground-Dove: Juvenile Mourning Dove is larger, longer-tailed, and lack rufous primaries. Inca Dove is longer-tailed and scaled on upperparts and underparts.

Flight Pattern

Rapid direct flight.

● Range & Habitat: Common Ground-Dove: Resident in southern parts of California, Arizona, and Texas, and east to southern North Carolina. Preferred habitats include fields, gardens, farmlands, and roadsides.

^BreedingMonogamous, Mates for life

^PopulationDeclining

^MigrationNonmigratory

^Weight1.1 Ounces

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

Primaries

The primaries are the flight feathers specialized for flight. They are attached to the "hand" equivalent part of the wing.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America