The mournful cooing of the mourning dove is a familiar sound across much of North America. These slender, long-tailed doves make a soft, sad call that has earned them their common name. When taking flight, mourning doves produce a sharp whistle with their wings as the air rushes over their feathers. This serves as both a warning to other doves in the area and helps startle potential predators.
The Mourning Dove’s Distinctive Vocalizations
Mourning doves (Zenaida macroura) are highly vocal birds that communicate with various calls and songs. Their most common vocalization is a mournful “cooOOoo-woo-woo-woo” sound, which the male will repeat over and over again to attract a mate or mark territory. This call gave the mourning dove its name and is often the first clue that these birds are present even when they are out of sight.
Males give the familiar mournful cooing frequently when trying to attract a female during the breeding season. If a male spies a potential mate, he will fly to a high perch, inflate his chest, and give out a rhythmic series of coos. The female may join in with a faster, higher-pitched series of coos in response. Mourning doves also coo to defend territories and upon taking flight.
In addition to the typical “coo,” mourning doves can make other sounds as well. Both males and females produce a soft “whit” contact call when flying close together or feeding in a group. They emit a whistling “woo-oo-woo” sound when taking off in alarm. Parents use a series of gentle grunts and moans to communicate with their hatchlings in the nest.
The Whistle of Wings During Takeoff
When a mourning dove takes flight, its wings make a sharp whistling or whinnying sound as air rushes over the bird’s wing feathers. This noise is created by the dove’s outer primary feathers vibrating. As the wings flap up and down, the primaries separate slightly and the air passes through the gap, creating a brief suction sound with each stroke.
The mourning dove’s wings produce this rushing air sound at a frequency within human hearing range, between 1 and 3 kHz. The whistle is loud enough that it can serve as an alarm to alert other mourning doves in the area that danger may be present. The whistling wings may also help startle potential predators.
This wing whistle is characteristic of doves and pigeons in the Columbidae family. However, each species’ wing whistle is slightly different in tone based on body size, wingspan, and feather characteristics. Band-tailed pigeons have a higher-pitched wing whistle than mourning doves, for example. Furthermore, different types of birds can create diverse sounds with their wings based on the shape of their feathers. Long-winged hawks tend to produce a piercing scream as they dive.
When Mourning Doves Take Flight
Mourning doves typically take off suddenly in alarm or when startled. If threatened, a mourning dove on the ground will first freeze, remaining motionless for some time. Then it will abruptly take flight at great speed, with its wings whistling loudly as it flees the area.
Though they fly rapidly at first, mourning doves cannot sustain fast flight for very long distances. Their pointed wings provide them with maneuverability and quickness on short flights rather than endurance.
During takeoff, mourning doves will leap from the ground with a sharp clapping of the wings to become airborne. Once in the air, their wings make the distinct loud whistling or whinnying noise as air rushes over the spread wing feathers.
Mourning doves also take flight frequently when moving between perches. Their wings will whistle each time they fly from a wire or tree to another perch. The wings produce a whistling sound on both takeoff and landing.
Regional Variations
Across the mourning dove’s vast continental range, there are slight regional differences in the tone and frequency of the wing whistle. Mourning doves in the West tend to have a lower-pitched whistle than those in the East.
There are five subspecies of mourning dove:
- Z. m. macroura – Eastern mourning dove – Central southern Canada to northeastern Mexico
- Z. m. marginella – Western mourning dove – Western Canada to Baja Mexico
- Z. m. carolinensis – Southeastern mourning dove – Eastern Texas to Florida
- Z. m. turtur – Southwestern mourning dove – Southern California to western Texas
- Z. m. clarionensis – Clarion Island mourning dove – Clarion Island, Mexico
The Western mourning dove’s call is considered more mellow and lower-pitched than the Eastern mourning dove. The Western mourning dove’s wings may produce a slightly deeper, resonant whistle than populations found farther east when the birds take flight.
Habitat Affects Sound
The habitat where mourning doves live can also impact the exact tone of their vocalizations. Doves living in open, expansive environments with less vegetation tend to have lower-pitched calls than those in dense forests. The sounds may carry further and lower frequencies travel better over long distances.
In addition, mourning doves living near human development may call at a different pitch to be audible over man-made background noise. Doves adjust their vocalizations to optimize communication in their immediate surroundings.
The Mourning Dove’s Range
Mourning doves occur year-round across all of the lower 48 United States, southern Canada, and Mexico. Their breeding range reaches up to southern Canada, while their wintering range extends into central Mexico.
Here is a map showing the mourning dove’s breeding, year-round, migratory, and wintering range across North America:
Region | Range Type |
---|---|
Alaska | Not present |
Canada | Breeding, migrants |
United States (lower 48) | Breeding, year-round, wintering, migrants |
Mexico | Breeding, wintering, migrants |
Central America | Wintering, migrants |
Mourning doves live in a wide variety of open and semi-open habitats, from backyard gardens to grasslands, agricultural fields, desert scrub, and open woods. They thrive in areas with a mix of trees and open ground.
Dove Populations Are Stable
Widespread and abundant across their broad range, mourning dove populations are actually growing throughout most of the United States. The species adapts readily to human presence and habitats.
The mourning dove’s total population is estimated at approximately 475 million birds, making them one of the most common birds in North America. Their populations appear stable and sustainable, though habitat loss is an ongoing threat.
Here is a table summarizing mourning dove population trends in different regions, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey:
Region | Population Trend |
---|---|
British Columbia | Increasing |
Ontario | Increasing |
Eastern BBS Region | Increasing |
Central BBS Region | Increasing |
Western BBS Region | Stable/Increasing |
Hunting Does Not Threaten Populations
Mourning doves are a popular game species across much of the United States and Mexico, with millions shot by hunters each year. Despite heavy annual harvests, mourning dove numbers remain strong.
Carefully regulated hunting seasons and bag limits prevent overharvest. Mourning doves have a high reproductive rate, with females capable of raising up to six broods per year in southern areas. The dove’s prolific breeding helps maintain stable populations even with hunting pressure.
Here are mourning dove hunting seasons and bag limits for some representative states:
State | Season Dates | Daily Bag Limit |
---|---|---|
California | September 1 – January 14 | 15 |
Texas | September 1 – October 30 | 15 |
Michigan | September 1 – November 14 | 15 |
Florida | Phase I: September – October Phase II: December – January |
15 |
Conclusion
When taking flight, mourning doves make a sharp whistling or whinnying sound with their wings as air rushes over the spread feathers. This characteristic wing whistle serves as an alarm signal to other doves while also startling potential predators. Mourning doves are abundant and widespread songbirds, familiar to many across North America for their melodious cooing and the whistling sound of their wings upon takeoff.