Species: Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
Family: Pigeons and Doves (COLUMBIDAE)
Category: Birds
Location: Widespread
A. Birds
More extensive information on birds can be found in a separate blog post.
B. Pigeons and Doves (COLUMBIDAE)
This is a large family that feeds primarily on seeds, fruits, and plants. They are strong flyers, famed for their homing ability, using the sun as a compass and landmarks to navigate.
C. Collared Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
The Collared Dove is a graceful bird with pink-grey plumage. The distinctive black collar that runs round the back of its neck gives the bird its name. It has deep red eyes. It is smaller than the much better-known Wood Pigeon.
This dove originates from Turkey and the Middle East, and the first recorded breeding in Britain was in Norfolk in 1955. It is now a resident breeder.
The Collared Dove feeds on the ground, eating mostly cereal grain and weed seeds. Occasionally it will eat invertebrates.
Their gentle, soothing cooing song is often mistaken for the song of a Cuckoo.
