Melanie, Thank you bunches for this Folklore Friday! I follow Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary on Facebook and hope to someday get over to that part of the state again for a visit! The Mourning Dove is one of my favorite birds; we have lots of them around here so it's happens to be the bird I photograph most often. I can understand why they are the symbol of peace because they are just so sweet looking. It's a shame they are one of the most hunted species in the U.S. https://www.allaboutbirds.org/...

These are old photos

Brilliant photos, Lin! The doves do have a sort of serene look about them.
Why are they hunted?

I follow Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail on Facebook but have not added Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary yet. Need to do that!

The smaller male Pileated Woodpecker was here today and a Downy landed on the platform at the same time. Luckily I just happened to have camera in hand and caught it! The downy is a bit out of focus. I did clean the inside of the window. Must do the outside next week when it warms up again.



He just posed so I had to take another photo of the big boy!

cliftoncat said: Brilliant photos, Lin! Why are they hunted?

~ Thank you! Re: Hunting ... It's a legal sport .... but contradictory in my opinion because they are supposed to be protected: http://www.fws.gov/le/dove-hun... I know that Doves are abundant in some areas of the U.S. but I read somewhere that more than 20 million Doves are killed every year in this country. Maybe we'd be over-run with doves if they weren't killed?

Claudia, that is a great shot of the big Pileated and the little Downy together at that feeder!

I've been quite busy today and only managed to get two bird pic's.

Great Egret ........................................ House Finch

Neat reflection

Wonderful pictures everyone!

Claudia, that is quite a contrast! I'm trying to figure out if the one bird is that small, or is the other one that big?

Glad you guys enjoyed the Folklore! FYI, my dad is a hunter and he's hunted ducks but I've never heard of anyone hunting doves around here. Seems too easy. The ones at MOSI used to follow me around and freak me out. I probably could have caught one with my butterfly net if I had tried. Not very sporting, if you ask me.

Lin, my favorite is that 2nd photo of the dove. Perfection!

Claudia, how neat to get both the Pileated & the Downy in the same photo.

Melanie, the answer is both. The Pileated is big & the Downy are pretty darn small.

On the subject of hunting doves. I have known people who hunt doves and everyone I knew who did so always ate them. And they are not exactly easy to shoot. It's not like they are hunting in neighborhoods or at MOSI and places like that. You could mol consider those "tame" doves. Dove hunters go out in the uninhabited areas - the woods & fields far from people and hunt them. They walk along & flush them, when the birds fly, that's when they shoot. At least that's what the people I knew did. They did the same for quail. If you ask me, it's a lot of work for a very small amount of meat.

Have known people who hunted them too.

Thanks..... glad I got that photo to share!

Loved the contrasting woodpeckers photo, Claudia!

Neat folklore about doves! Thanks, Melanie!

beckygardener said:Loved the contrasting woodpeckers photo, Claudia!

I set up a suet feeder to intentionally feed the woodpeckers. The most common that come feed are: Downy & Hairy.

That is exactly why I put out the suet feeders after we moved here. Once we saw all the woodpeckers here it was a no brainer! I have had a red-headed woodpecker only once and that was the very first year. I keep hoping one will show up again. It was here at this house that I really began to feed the birds and subsequently started to photograph them. We live in an area with a lot of wildlife around.

OMG!!

Just got these a few minutes ago......2 Pileateds! A male and a female at the same time!

I have had Red Headed a couple of times. Not sure about Pileated.

1st pic looks like the woodpeckers are mirrored. Very neat!

Love those Woodpecker photos!

Great pics - is it easy to tell the male from the female? From what is visible, they look like identical twins!

cliftoncat said: is it easy to tell the male from the female? From what is visible, they look like identical twins!

The male Pileated Woodpecker has a red stripe on his cheek.