Nicknames: turtle dove

Claim to fame: In Missouri, the mourning dove is popular both as a songbird and a gamebird. The opening of Missouri's dove season in September is recognized by many outdoors enthusiasts as the kickoff of the state's fall hunting seasons. Missouri's dove season runs Sept. 1 through Nov. 9.

Species status: Mourning doves are abundant statewide. On a broader scale, the mourning dove is one of the most abundant bird species in North America.

Discovered: The first scientific description of the mourning dove was written by naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758. The Pueblo Indians thought mourning doves to be givers of rain and indicators of water because they drank from water holes daily.

Family matters: Mourning doves belong to the bird family Columbidae, a group that includes most species of pigeons and doves. Members of this family are known to be plump, fast-flying birds with small heads and low, cooing voices.

Length: up to 12 inches

Diet: Seeds, fruits, waste grains and insects are the main food items of mourning doves. They prefer seeds that are on the ground to those attached to the plant.

Weight: approximately 4 to 6 ounces

Distinguishing characteristics: Mourning doves are medium-sized, grayish-brown birds with rounded heads and white tips on the outer tail feathers. The males are larger than the females and are slightly brighter colored.

Life span: less than five years

Habitat: Mourning doves are abundant in both urban and rural environments. In rural areas, mourning doves prefer farm fields, open woods, scrub brush areas, roadsides and grasslands.

Life cycle: After courtship in April, male mourning doves select nest sites and mated pairs begin construction. Dove nests are flimsy and far from safe for either eggs or the flightless nestlings. Two or three twigs places on horizontal tree branches often constitute a nest. Doves sometimes use old robin or bluebird nests and, in areas dominated by grasslands, they will nest on the ground. The male dove participates during e nesting by chasing away rival mates and, later, helping incubate the eggs and feed the nestlings. Males normally sit on the eggs during the day and females sit on the eggs at night. The average clutch is two eggs, which hatch in 14 days. Young doves grow rapidly and leave the nest in 10-14 days after hatching. Once a pair completes its first nesting, they start on the next. Doves resume egg-laying duties in a few days.

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