Jeff Wendorff's photography portfolio of doves in the family Columbidae.
Dove Wiki Pigeons and
doves constitute the bird family Columbidae, which includes about 42 genera and 310 species.
Pigeons and
doves are stout-bodied birds with short necks, and short slender bills (and in some species, these bills feature fleshy ceres). They primarily feed on seeds, fruits, and plants. This family occurs worldwide, but the greatest variety is in the Indomalaya and Australasia ecozones. In general, the terms "
dove" and "pigeon" are used somewhat interchangeably. Pigeon is a French word that derives from the Latin pipio, for a "peeping" chick, while
dove is a Germanic word that refers to the bird's diving flight. In ornithological practice, "
dove" tends to be used for smaller species and "pigeon" for larger ones, but this is in no way consistently applied, and historically, the common names for these birds involve a great deal of variation between the terms. The species most commonly referred to as "pigeon" is the rock
dove, one subspecies of which, the domestic pigeon, is common in many cities as the feral pigeon. Pigeons and
doves are likely the most common birds in the world.
Doves and Pigeons Photographed African Mourning Dove, Streptopelia decipiens
Common Ground-Dove, Columbina passerina
Common Wood Pigeon, Columba palumbus
Emerald-spotted Wood-dove, Turtur chalcospilos
Eurasian Collared-dove, Streptopelia decaocto
Galapagos Dove, Zenaida galapagoensis
Inca Dove, Columbina inca
Laughing Dove, Spilopelia senegalensis
Namaqua Dove, Oena capensis
Red-eyed Dove, Streptopelia semitorquataRock Dove, Columba livia Ruddy Ground Dove, Columbina talpacoti
Short-billed Pigeon, Patagioenas nigrirostris
White-tipped Dove, Leptotila verreauxi Collective Noun Doves and Pigeons A group of doves has many collective nouns, including a bevy, cote, dole, dule, and flight of doves. A group of pigeons are referred to as a loft, flock, flight or a kit of pigeons.
