Gary and all, The African Collared-Dove (="Ringed Turtle-Dove") can be difficult to distinguish from Eurasian Collared-Dove by eye, but it is fairly easy to distinguish by ear. The Eurasians' song is a three-note coo, often repeated, which I sometimes transliterate as "No FAIR, Mom!" It never has a burry quality. The Africans' song is a single "hip" note followed by a long, burry coo (this pattern often repeated): "Hip - burrrroooooo!"
You can hear typical Eurasian Collared-Dove songs here: http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Streptopelia-decaocto?query=type%3Asong&view=3 You can hear African Collared-Dove songs here: http://www.xeno-canto.org/157540 https://soundcloud.com/ted-floyd/african-collared-dove-2014-10-20-1048-colo-boul-lafa-y (Ted's recording) The common calls are also quite distinctive. Eurasian Collared-Doves give a wheezy, 1-syllabled groan, sometimes give 2-3 times in a row: http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Streptopelia-decaocto?query=type%3Acall&view=3 while African Collared-Doves give a remarkably human-like laugh, or descending whinny: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_ueMAZ1eIA&feature=related Great find by Ted. I hope more people can keep eyes and ears open for this species in Colorado. Nathan Pieplow Boulder On Tue, Oct 21, 2014 at 9:56 AM, The "Nunn Guy" <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Ted > > We've had a "white"/pale-looking "Eurasian-collared Dove-like" bird coming > to our yard for past few years--been calling it a Ringed Turtle Dove. > > All About Birds reference states "The African Collared-Dove is very rarely > seen as a wild bird in North America, and it is very difficult to > distinguish from the Eurasian Collared-Dove. Birds that are seen are often > escaped pets and are often called Ringed Turtle-Doves, a form of African > Collared-Dove that has been domesticated for centuries. These birds > frequently escape from captivity, and feral populations have become > established in some cities in the southern United States. " > > Are the two birds one in the same? If not, possible to distinguish the > bird coming to our feeders? > > Thanks Gary Lefko > http://coloradobirder.ning.com/ > Mobile: http://coloradobirder.ning.com/m > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Colorado Birds" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/0b98a680-e14e-4847-a25b-e0a321b29f9f%40googlegroups.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/0b98a680-e14e-4847-a25b-e0a321b29f9f%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/CAFhaDVL_%3DdpAaDsv5ShUqQ53uU77eqE3UdqNwBNnrNzHmpZA4Q%40mail.gmail.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
