Expert: Julia Booth - 4/24/2009

Question
We live in Southern California (Redondo Beach).  A couple of days ago (approx. April 21), I noticed a pair of birds (that I am almost certain are Mourning Doves) start to gather twigs on my front porch.  One of the birds was sitting up on a narrow (about 3" wide and 1-2 feet long) ledge at the top of a post near the front door.  (The front door is our only entry-exit point to our home and we have gone in and out many times over the past couple of days and that did not seem to bother the birds.)  

This evening, I saw a broken egg on the ground directly beneath where the dove had been sitting.  I did not see either dove nearby so I climbed up on a ladder to see what the nest/ledge looked like.  There were only a couple of twigs on the ledge, nothing resembling what I would have thought a nest would look like.

My children and I are very excited to watch the doves so closely and about the possibility of seeing baby birds sometime soon.  However, the practical side of me has a few concerns:

(1) I have 3 small children and I am somewhat concerned that if this pair of doves does choose this location for their nest, is there a chance that either of them could become aggressive to my family as we pass under the nest after the eggs hatch?  

(2)  Is this a safe location for a nest given that one of the eggs has already fallen off the ledge and broken?  

(3)  How "messy" will it be if the doves do continue to nest on this ledge near my front door?  (e.g., Will I need to constantly clean up broken eggs, scattered twigs, bird droppings, etc.)?  (so far, I have only seen the twigs and the one broken egg, so I don't even know if bird droppings are usually found near a nest or not).

(4) Are there any other downsides to allowing these birds to nest in this location?  Would it be better (or is it even possible to) do something to discourage the doves from using this location for their nest?

Thanks for your insight into this topic.  We are hopeful that we can happily co-exist so closely with this pair of doves, but I just would like to know what to expect!

Answer
1. There are birds where this would be an issue. But doves are not one of them. They are docile and often tolerant of great noise and pedestrian traffic while nesting. However, they are very sensitive to stress and sometimes are unable to mate and nest successfully, if they are too stressed. This happens in captivity as well and breeders have no idea how to work around it. They're even known to molt under stress.

2. Doves are not very bright and sometimes nest in places that are rather inconvenient. Whenever a bird builds a nest, there is always a danger that the eggs will fall, be smashed or stolen or eaten by another animal. It doesn't necessarily mean the others won't survive.

3. There will be a fair amount of droppings in, on and around the nest area. That's unavoidable. But with a high pressure hose, you should be able to get rid of it, once the birds are on their way. The House Finches that nested on my porch left a terrible mess and the hose got rid of it all.

4. There might be a better place where they could be nesting. But once the process is underway, there is little chance of discouraging them. Birds in general are very determined and when they've decided they're going to nest somewhere -even if it's a really bad idea- they're going to do it. Sort of like humans actually.

Make sure your kids know that it's okay to look, but don't touch. It's a myth that the mother will abandon her babies, when touched by humans, as most birds have no sense of smell. But any indelicate handling of eggs or babies can lead to their demise. Also like I said before, doves are very easily stressed out. If you want, organize one time a day, where you all take a look together. That way their curiosity will be satisfied.

Mourning Doves are notorious for nesting on people's porches, patios, and entry ways. Generally it works out.

Take pictures and chronical the event with your kids. Gestation is about 2 weeks. Once the eggs hatch, it's about 11-15 days before the babies fledge.

Good luck,

Julia