The Rock Dove or Pigeon is a common sight in cities and towns across the US but not as common within the Great Smoky Mountains as the bird avoids woodland areas. Usually the bird is found in flocks of up to a few dozen individuals. It prefers to feed in cleared areas such as farms, yards, parks and pastures. The Pigeon is an introduced species, domesticated and brought to the western hemisphere by European settlers.

The young bird, or squab, is a culinary delicacy. Variants of this bird are bred for use as message carriers, racing pigeons, and more recently as laboratory animals. Their beauty has made them favorite ornamental birds and pets. The Rock dove breeds throughout the 48 states, generally preferring ledges of buildings, barns, and cliffs, or under bridges. When nesting, these birds produce a cheesy curd from the linings of the crop with which the parents feed the newly hatched young. A pigeon's crop milk has about the same nutritional value as mammals' milk.

Length: 11 in. (28 cm)

Physical characteristics: The Rock dove is a small headed, short legged bird with pointed wings that touch in flight. The birds all have pink legs and a white cere. The ancestral coloration (and still commonly found) is grey with two black wing bars, a black band at the end of the tail, white rump, and iridescent feathers on the neck and breast. The tail may be either tapered or fanned. The color can vary greatly from pure white to shades of grays and browns, but these variants are generally domesticated racing pigeons or recent escapees from captivity.

Voice: The familiar call is a soft co-roo-coo.

Breeding habitat:
The birds nest close to others of their species. Crannies in barns, under bridges, or on cliffs are the usual habitats.

Mating system:
Two broods, perhaps more are raised each year. Mating is dependent on food supplies.

Nest:
The nests are simple platforms of twigs and straw. The male generally brings the material to the chosen site while the female arranges the nest. The nests are often reused.

Eggs:
The eggs are white. Usually two eggs are laid in each clutch and the eggs hatch in about 17 days.

Chick development:
Both sexes incubate the eggs and feed and brood the young. The young are altricial. The parents regurgitate a cheesy curd from their crops to feed the nestlings. Later the nestlings take partially digested grain directly from the parent bird's crop. The young birds leave the nest in about 25 days.

Diet:
The Rock dove consumes a wide variety of vegetable matter including grains and seeds.

Conservation biology:
The Rock dove is a very common and abundant bird. It has adapted well to, and has even benefited by, human habitation.
This bird is a rare host to the cowbird.

Breeding: This species is worldwide in distribution, both as an introduced species and in domestication, but it is native to Eurasia. It is less common in higher latitudes and most common in urban areas outside of its native range.

Winter: This species does not migrate.

This species is seldom encountered in the park, preferring the surrounding urban areas to the park's forests. Most sightings are either racing pigeons on their way to their home coops or wandering groups in search of a new urban area to colonize. Stupka (1963) did not include this species in his book, considering them to 'have not established themselves in a region quite unsuited to their requirements.' The earliest record available for the area is from January 1961 in the Townsend area. More recent records come from Clingmans Dome (a racing pigeon) and Purchase Knob (feral flocks flying over on occasion).

References:

Potter, E. F., Parnell, J. F., Teulings, R. P. Birds of the Carolinas . 1980. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill . pp188.

Nicholson, C. P., Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Tennessee . 1997. The University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville . pp137-139.

Peterson, R. T., A Field Guide to the Birds East of the Rockies . 1980. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston . pp180.

Gough, G. A., Sauer, J. R., Iliff, M. Patuxent Bird Identification Infocenter. 1998. Version 97.1. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD.

Sibley, D. A. 2003. The Sibley Guide to Birds of Eastern North America . Alfred A. Knopf, New York . pp 205.

Stupka, A. 1963. Notes on the Birds of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park . University of Tennessee Press pp. 76