Backyard Birders Beware - Soft Cooing!

By David R Price

One of our favorite backyard birds is the dove. We enjoy the soft cooing sounds in the early mornings. They are classy, elegant, and seemingly mild mannered. The landings can be an adventure, as doves are not the most graceful flyers, We especially enjoy seeing them nest and raise their young in our backyard and relish their company with our morning coffee. So naturally, we fell headlong into their takeover plans. We never saw it coming.

Cardinals and jays were regulars at our platform bird feeders. The occasional migrating birds would join in and all seemed well. Everyone got along and the mild mannered doves sat patiently on our fence softly cooing while the food was shared by all. Room was made at the feeders or on the ground. How nice and friendly it seemed. We were so pleased with ourselves.

The doves began to nest. They began to nest in every nook and cranny of our yard - front and back. Several could be seen in the magnolia trees. The oaks and pines were full. They nested everywhere it semmed, even over the cars! It was fun seeing these young babies learn to fly. They were so cute. We considered a dove birdhouse nesting facility to hold ten or more families. They were just drawing us in, these crafty little devils.

The next year, we began noticing fewer cardinals. The jays seemed to be staying away. The chickadees, wrens, and finches were still with us, using their tube feeders. Life was grand and we continued our errant ways. I began to wonder, do doves migrate? This is the deep south, do they raise their broods and stay year round? Our backyard birding area was now over run by these classy, elegant, and not so mild mannered birds. We watched as they chased our other birds from the platform feeders and the ground. Maybe not intentionally malicious, they drove them away by shear numbers. The doves, a hundred or more, would line our wood fence at feeding time and swoop in like a ravenous herd. These were mild mannered creatures no more. Their soft morning coos became demanding if we were late with their breakfast!

We discovered the tube feeders were no longer safe. Doves were landing on those tiny perches and platforms. Leaning around the tube, they would curve their bodies and feed from the next port. They are not supposed to be able to do that. They learn very quickly where the food is. Our poor friendly chickadees, wrens, and finches were now being run from their feeders! Something had to be done.

We slowly began taking back our backyard birding area. Strategically placing platform feeders designed for specific birds, we soon had a pair of cardinals back. The jays were visiting again. A cowbird and red wing blackbirds became regulars for a while. We did the same with the tube feeders. We hung models whose perches will only support the weight of smaller birds. A couple have surrounding cages creating a safe haven only the smaller birds can get through. The doves adjusted and now use their own area. They caught on in no time, unlike their human caretakers.

We still enjoy our doves, but now we have our favorite songbirds back and our backyard birding area is again as it should be, an enjoyable solace. Do a little research and planning and you can avoid the invasion of these seemingly mild mannered birds. It is a clever disguise they use. You will never see them coming.

Birding information and products at: www.fancyflyers.com

Join us for birding information and product updates: Join Our Family

David Price is an avid amateur bird watcher and outdoor photographer. Related birding information, festival schedules, pictures, products, and stories can be found at http:/www.fancyflyers.com under Bird Tales