Mourning Dove in the Ice Storm

by J McCombie

Title

Mourning Dove in the Ice Storm

Artist

J McCombie

Medium

Photograph

Description

This piece has been featured in the FAA Groups: "Wild Birds of the World", and "Artist News".
A lone Mourning Dove sits in the Apple tree during the ice storm as the ice thickens around the branches, twigs, remaining leaves and apples. Yet the Mourning Dove does not seem to mind, sitting there long enough to accumulate some ice on it's tail, tips of it's wings, breast and beak.
The Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) is a member of the dove family (Columbidae). The bird is also called the Turtle Dove or the American Mourning Dove or Rain Dove, and formerly was known as the Carolina Pigeon or Carolina Turtledove. It is one of the most abundant and widespread of all North American birds. It is also the leading gamebird, with more than 20 million birds (up to 70 million in some years) shot annually in the U.S., both for sport and for meat. Its ability to sustain its population under such pressure stems from its prolific breeding: in warm areas, one pair may raise up to six broods a year. Their soft, drawn-out calls sound like laments. Its plaintive woo-OO-oo-oo-oo call gives the bird its name. The wings can make an unusual whistling sound upon take-off and landing. Its flight is fast on powerful wingbeats and bullet straight, sometimes making sudden ascents, descents, and dodges, their pointed tails stretching behind them. The bird is a strong flier, capable of speeds up to 88 km/h (55 mph).
Mourning Doves are light grey and brown and generally muted in color. They￿re delicate brown to buffy-tan overall, with black spots on the wings and black-bordered white tips to the tail feathers. Plump-bodied and long-tailed, with short legs, small bill, and a head that looks particularly small in comparison to the body. Males and females are similar in appearance. The species is generally monogamous, with two squabs (young) per brood. Both parents incubate and care for the young. Mourning Doves eat almost exclusively seeds, but the young are fed crop milk by their parents.
You can see Mourning Doves nearly anywhere except the deep woods. Look for them in fields or patches of bare ground where they forage for seeds, or on overhead perches like telephone wires.
An ice storm is a type of winter storm characterized by freezing rain, also known as a glaze event or, in some parts of the United States, as a silver thaw. The U.S. National Weather Service defines an ice storm as a storm which results in the accumulation of at least 0.25-inch (6.4 mm) of ice on exposed surfaces. From 1982 to 1994, ice storms were more common than blizzards and averaged 16 per year. They are not violent storms, but instead commonly perceived as gentle rains occurring at temperatures just below freezing. For this reason people may be unaware of the danger if it happens overnight.
The freezing rain from an ice storm covers everything with heavy, smooth glaze ice. In addition to hazardous driving or walking conditions, branches or even whole trees may break from the weight of ice. Falling branches can block roads, tear down power and telephone lines, and cause other damage. Even without falling trees and tree branches, the weight of the ice itself can easily snap power lines and also break and bring down power/utility poles; even electricity pylons with steel frames. This can leave people without power for anywhere from several days to a month. According to most meteorologists, just one quarter of an inch of ice accumulation can add about 500 pounds (230 kg) of weight per line span. Damage from ice storms is highly capable of shutting down entire metropolitan areas.

Uploaded

January 7th, 2014

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