Ruddy ground dove

The ruddy ground dove is a small, tropical bird native to the New World. These doves are found from Mexico down to Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, northern Argentina, and on the islands of Trinidad and Tobago. Occasionally, some may wander into the southwestern United States during the winter.

These doves prefer habitats such as scrublands, open areas, farmlands, and urban environments, often mingling with feral pigeons as they search for grains to eat. They build simple, cup-shaped stick nests in trees and typically lay two white eggs. The parents take turns incubating the eggs for about 12-13 days, and the chicks usually fledge 12-14 days after hatching. Unfortunately, many chicks do not survive due to predators and falls from the nest.

Ruddy ground doves are agile fliers with a direct flight pattern, similar to other pigeons. They are quite small, measuring around 17 cm in length and weighing about 47 grams. Male doves have grey heads, rufous upperparts, and black-spotted wing coverts. Females are grey-brown with less contrast between their head and body. There is a subspecies, C. t. rufipennis, which has more cinnamon coloring on the underwing compared to the nominate subspecies, C. t. talpacoti.

These doves primarily eat seeds, and their call is a gentle cooing sound. They tend to be quite approachable, and with careful observation, you might see males asserting their territory by hopping around and raising a wing.