Need advice re: nesting mourning dove

[booksenkatz]

A dim mourning dove (is there any other kind? I love 'em anyway!) has made a pathetic nest in an eye-level crotch of a barren tree next to a major feeding station in my backyard. I've never seen a bird make a nest out in the open like that, with no shelter from the wind and rain. The leaves won't be in for at least a month. I don't hold out much hope for these eggs, yet I find myself worrying about this hen. She hasn't eaten or taken water since at least Thursday, from what I've been able to observe. Her mate flies in maybe once a day and offers a fresh twig, but doesn't feed her or relieve her. I guess my main question is, is this normal nesting behavior for a dove? Is there anything I could do to help her, apart from watching for babies falling from the crummy nest in the event she is successful with hatchlings?

Luckily, we're not due for any major rainstorms, but if we get one, I will be worried sick about the rain beating down on her. I can't stand seeing her out in the hot sun in the afternoons, baking away. Poor thing! Any other softies out there who can't abide sitting helpless by, watching nature run its course??:(

[amazona]

1. don't sweat it -- normal modo strategy

The mourning dove strategy involves little investment in nest-building or raising the young. A nest is slopped together, often in the most ridiculous of locations, and two eggs are laid. If the babies hatch, they grow quickly. If the sloppy nest is washed away, or predators get those eggs or babies, the mourning dove pair has little investment in time and energy, so they simply build another nest elsewhere and start again. If every mourning dove nest was successful, we'd be wall-to-wall mourning doves by now. Don't be too stressed. I've enjoyed watching the doves raise babies in their shockingly sloppy nests. Maybe I'm just lucky, but the nests I've watched have been successful. Tree crotches, bushes that look too low, silly hanging baskets from Home Depot...they all seem to work.

The theory goes that parrots and doves/pigeons have a common ancestor. Doves took the path of little brain and little investment in any given young, so they work fast and make a lot of tries. Parrots took the path of much brain, which means lots of socialization of young, which means they tend to breed later, make less tries, and spend more time raising the young they do have.

Doves are the more successful branch of the family, so I guess fast and sloppy beats out brainy and hard-working in the long run. Hey, it seemed to work OK for MicroSoft.

[BlackVelvetElvis]

2. I remember someone I knew that saw doves

make a nest on a ledge, out of a few twigs. You know that wasn't going to work!
I understand your soft heart. Nature can be ugly but they are a hardy species.

[booksenkatz]

3. Thanks for the replies! But I'm wondering if it's normal for

the hen to stay glued to her nest like that, with no food or water? I'm used to watching the beautiful cardinals' partnership, or seeing ducks quietly cover their nests and go take a break, not this Horton-Hatches-the-Egg-style torture! My husband says that there are many species that don't budge, and live off their own fat, apparently. Guess I'm just looking for some reassurance.

Anyway, I do thank you so much for your input!:)

[amazona]

4. yes she's fine the female is like glue, isn't she?

She'll sit like glue. It is possible to come up close and instead of flying she will just lift a wing to shield herself and the nest. Don't actually do that and put stress on her, it is something stupid I did once to a nest when I was taking close-up photos. (Fortunately, mother and the two chicks were fine.) The father dove will take the night shift and give her a chance to get what she needs.

I think some males of some species don't sit much or at all on the nest/eggs and that's why you see them bringing more food to the females.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

[booksenkatz]

5. I appreciate your help very much

I just have to assume that at night she's getting some seed or water. I keep two shallow pans of seed/water for her just under the tree -- so far, no pigeons have found it! (Drawing too many pigeons in one's yard can get you in big trouble around here. If I ever see more than about 6, I reel in everything from the ground.)

Even my 5-year-old son (a birder in training) has become very protective of this dove. I've heard so many dove stories (pathetic nests, etc.), but have never experienced it firsthand. At any rate, I am still not holding out much hope for this batch... the location is horrible and the blue jays or the raccoons would surely love to have a go at those eggs!

My extreme compassion for wildlife has plagued me thus for all of my 44 years, and it doesn't get any better as I get older! Sometimes I wish I didn't care so much. The only thing that helps is knowing that the birds (and other critters) that I've rescued would have died if I had not cared.

Thanks again. Will keep you posted, LOL!

[amazona]

6. ok let me know

I look forward to hearing what happens. You may be pleasantly surprised, as I've seen some pretty crappy nests produce fledglings.

My suspicion is that you don't know that the male is trading off the female at night because they do it very, very cautiously and surreptitiously. She probably isn't in this business alone.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

[OnionPatch]

7. I wouldn't worry too much

I'm guessing the female gets off the nest once a day or so to get food or water. That would be fairly normal. If you haven't had your eye on her every single second since she's been there, you can bet she's been away at least a few times when you weren't looking.

I once had a dove make a nest in one of my hanging plants on my patio. Actually that wasn't such a bad location but I couldn't water the plant and it died.

Good luck to your dove friend.

[mourningdove92]

8. My boss has a mourningdove nest in one of her

hanging plants on her porch. She described it to me, and well, obviously I am well acquainted with the mourningdove, so I looked up a picture on the internet and showed her. SHE WAS SO EXCITED. She has named her dove Ruby.

my boss is a hoot.

[booksenkatz]

9. I wish mine were on a porch!

So far, we haven't had any rain in weeks, but if it rains, I'll feel just awful about that poor dove out in the open, without even any leaves overhead to provide a tiny bit of shelter. As you well know, I will feel much worse about it than the dove will, LOL!

I can't believe she's almost gotten through 2 weeks of this. Our backyard is very active at night, I'm surprised a raccoon hasn't driven her off.

[yorkiemommie1]

10. we lost our dove to a raven scare

... the security light under the garage overhang has attracted doves so my husband attached one of those bamboo picnic plates as some sort of support. some years the doves are successful; some years not. I'v e put water out for them and bird seed, too, but they don't seem to drink or eat... well, i try.

what happens to us is that the ravens around here swoop at the nests and scare the mamas off. that's what happened the other day. mama took off after the ravens went after her nest twice. makes me sad and mad, because i've chased the ravens away ... but can't be out there all the time.

[amazona]

11. she'll find another spot and start again

Don't feel bad. Mourning Doves have very little investment in their nest eggs or young. This is why they may decide to abandon a nest and start again elsewhere if they get hassled too much at one spot. They have a very short incubation and chick-rearing period, and they do only two chicks at a time. So it can be the best use of their time to cut their losses short.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

[booksenkatz]

12. Well, folks, here's how it all turned out:

Yesterday (Thursday) was Day 14. I expected hatchlings, but not one was forthcoming. This morning, I looked out and saw a) heavy digging under the tree, signifying raccoon activity last night, and b) the dove had fled her nest, which was itself undisturbed. I went out to investigate and saw absolutely no evidence of eggs or eggshells anywhere. Coons and jays and other animals would have left a mess, right? Only tree-climbing snakes would have swallowed them whole, and we have none here in southeast Michigan that I'm aware of. My bet is that there never were any eggs to begin with -- what do you think?? Egg eaters always leave shells behind, and shouldn't the nest have been wrecked?

I saw the mama dove a little later, she wept bitterly over her loss for all of about 10 seconds, LOL! Frankly, I'm glad this is over, because we're expecting lots of snow this weekend, and the idea of hatchlings unprotected in 3-4" of snowfall would have made me a crazy woman!! Daddy Cardinal was out scolding her: "You fool! Now get out of my way and let me at that black oil sunflower seed, because SOME of us have GENUINE nests and GENUINE babies to tend to! Hmph!"

Am so glad I found this DU group, and that the dove led me here! Enjoyed hearing everyone's stories. Thanks for the moral support!