Hi everyone,
This has been the year of the White-winged Dove, and something is definitely
going on with this species and dispersals to the Midwest this fall. Ohio's
first record was not until June 10, 2000 (Logan County), and another was
recorded on September 17, 2005 in Ottawa County. I may be forgetting a
record between the 2000 bird and this year, too - didn't yet look into it
thoroughly.
Anyway, so far this year I know of four sightings, with three of those in
the past week. The first was back on April 28 when Troy Shively, John Habig
and Dave Collopy pulled one out in Delaware County while doing a statewide
Big Day.
Then came the recent Holmes County bird, which stuck around for about a week
but was not seen too widely. It was last reported on August 29. I just heard
of another report - sight record only - from the Ottawa County area - from a
few days ago that sounds very credible but it apparently didn't stick. Then
today I got word of one from the Chillicothe area in Ross County over the
weekend. That bird is no longer around, either, but it was photographed and
is indisputable.
So that's three! White-winged Doves reported in the last week. Makes one
wonder how many are really out there.
This can be an easy species to miss, too, even though with any sort of
decent look they are unmistakable. White-winged Dove often fraternizes with
flocks of Mourning Doves, and many of us are probably not too careful about
looking carefully through those groups. It might pay dividends, though, and
I wouldn't be at all surprised if another of these vagrants from the
southwest comes to light soon. Doves are rather nomadic this time of year,
which probably accounts in part for the difficulty in relocating some of
these birds. Farmers are starting to harvest corn, and the doves roam from
field to field stuffing themselves, and are often not readily visible as
they forage in the fields.
The southwestern (Texas, Arizona) populations have been expanding for the
past two decades or so, and have made it at least as far as Oklahoma as
breeders. Records from the East have also increased. There is also a Florida
population that was probably originally introduced in the late 1950's, but
that's probably not the origin of the Midwest vagrants.
Anyway, right now is the time to be very watchful of dove flocks, and here's
hoping one of these White-winged Doves finally sticks where we can all go
and see it.
Jim McCormac
Columbus, Ohio
Jim McCormac
Columbus, Ohio
Like nature? Visit my blog: http://jimmccormac.blogspot.com/
Like birds? Join the Ohio Ornithological Society: http://www.ohiobirds.org
______________________________________________________________________
Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society.
Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list.
Additional discussions can be found in our forums, at www.ohiobirds.org/forum/.
You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at:
http://listserv.muohio.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS
Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]
|
