Not Entirely Peaceful Dove: SMaP Entry

The zebra dove also used to go by the name of peaceful dove which would fit this little story nicely but as the two have recently been separated into different species I'll stick to the geographically-correct zebra dove.

At the moment we have a pair sitting on eggs in our sala (an open sitting area with a roof on stilts). The nest is tucked away under the roof, easy to miss with either the male or female nestled down so quietly on their eggs. It suits their typical calm and trusting demeanour perfectly. Often as I walk around the garden I am surprised by getting to within a metre of them before I even realise they are there. Usually it's only my little jump of surprise that makes them take off. They seem very trusting but it might just be confidence in their own reactions.

They always nest somewhere around our house, including on top of open windows when I have to discourage them as we need to be able to close the windows if it rains or we go away for a day or two. But sometimes I am not quick enough to notice they are there and eggs get laid so they get to stay until their young have fledged and we have to take our chances with rain and intruders (none yet!).

They also once tried nesting on our car windscreen which I definitely had to put a stop to before they got too far!

Overall they are adorable and a very welcome presence around our home. Perhaps their one unpleasant character is how they incorporate their own poo into their nest.

There is also currently a pair of pigeons hanging around looking for a place to nest. A month ago during a lull in their incessant breeding I blocked off their usual nest site because the mess they left around the sala was getting too much. A few years ago I had also put up some plastic spikes to stop them hanging around for the same reason but that has disintegrated in places so they are currently determined to find a place to nest somewhere around the sala. They have already started the process by mating and spend most of the day poking around the different possibilities.

One of the pigeons' favourite perching places is just a wing-span from the zebra dove's nest and the pigeons are clearly eyeing it as a place for themselves. Several times I have seen one of the pigeons moving close or even trying to land on the dove's nest. The dove is about half the size and I was pleasantly surprised at its feisty reaction. I had half-expected it to meekly give in to the pigeon's bulk. The dove would first arch its tail upwards and perhaps open its wings like a threat then launch a very quick flapping attack which always at least knocked the pigeon off-balance enough to deter it. I could hear the attack-flaps from inside the house. I almost felt sorry for the pigeon getting slapped around by such a little darling.

Getting too close

Time to attack

Back on the nest successful but a little ruffled

I saw this happen several times and as far as I could tell the pigeons were never aggressive in return. They did start flapping themselves but I think that was to maintain their balance rather than retaliation. The pigeons seem to have finally given up and found somewhere in our gutter to nest. Having a blocked gutter is not ideal for me but for the sake of the zebra doves' peace I will leave the pigeons alone for now.

From an earlier nest