The Laughing Dove (Spilopelia senegalensis) is a common, small, long-tailed pigeon from Africa, the Middle East, and South-East Asia. It is also called the Palm Dove or the Senegal Dove. In India it is called the Little Brown Dove.
The Laughing Dove has a speckled chest with pink-brown feathers on the underside, a lilac head and neck, and a black beak. There is a blue-grey band along the wing, but its feathers are mainly pink-brown. Its tail has white tips. They have pink-red legs.
The Laughing Dove grows to 25 centimetres (9-10 inches) tall.
Laughing Dove
It likes dry farmlands where there is a lot of seeds and grains. It eats seeds, grasses, and small insects. They are ground feeders.
They are usually seen in pairs. They do not migrate; they are sedentary. They are often found in urban areas, such as parks and gardens.
When the male is ready to mate, it attracts a female by bobbing its head and cooing. Both males and females build the nest of twigs in bushes or on the ledges of houses and buildings. The female lays two eggs, and both parents sit on the eggs. The eggs hatch after about 13-15 days. The young fledglings leave the nest after 14-16 days.
Laughing Dove
Location of photographs: Kenya, Nairobi; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Samarkand, Uzbekistan; and Bukhara, Uzbekistan
Photographer: Martina Nicolls
Martina Nicolls: SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM