News
Are Turtle Doves on the Park?
There have been a couple of people saying that there have been turtle doves on the park. This would be big news if true! Turtle doves used be very common in the UK, but due to the modern farming practices and land management, have become so rare that some believe they are heading for extinction in the UK. So please help out by looking our for turtle doves when you go to the park.
I have reposted the information from Operation Turtle Dove below on how to identify them:
- smaller than any other pigeon or dove in the UK, slightly larger than a blackbird
- orange eyes
- black and white striped patch on neck
- black tail with thin white edge
- chestnut and black diamond’s on wings
- pale grey-lilac head and breast
Their most similar relative in the UK is the collared dove, differentiated by its larger size and plainer white-grey body. Look at the illustrations of these two species below to see the differences. Turtle doves often like to use bare or deadwood branches of tall trees on the edge of woodland or hedgerows, where they perch and call. The tell-tale feature of a turtle dove is its gentle purr, an evocative sound of summer. Click here to listen.
If you see one, please log a sighting at https://www.bto.org/our-science/projects/birdtrack/about
Turtle Dove
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Collared Dove
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