Spring
officially arrived today at 1:14 A.M. EDT. It was a wonderful warm day with temperatures
in the 70s and light southerly breezes.
The
forsythia were budding, there were robins in my front yard, and the Mourning Doves
were loudly singing their cooing song in the early morning hours. Little did I
know what that singing might lead to.
Late
in the day while out walking near old For Hancock at Sandy Hook, I spotted a
pair of Mourning Doves very much preening each other's feathers. So much so that they could care less that I
was taking their picture.
It
was a lovely scene. Spring love right in front of my eyes.
Preening is a sign of imminent dove
mating. Soon, the male will lead the female to a potential nest site. The
female will choose one she likes best. The site is usually somewhere on or near
the ground, or perhaps on a building ledge typically lower than 40 feet. Two
white eggs will be laid and another generation of Mourning Doves will be born
in Lower New York Bay.
New life started on the first day of
spring.
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