<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class="">Hans, we do see a few Band-taileds coming to our feeders all winter, but for the most part I don’t think I’m seeing as many as I used to (36 in the yard was a maximum). However, 16 of them showed up in the yard at once on one day in December, and there are at least a few on most days now.<div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">There is no doubt that collared-doves have declined dramatically. I don’t see them at all at places in Skagit County where they were fairly common some years ago. I’m still seeing them in small numbers on visits to Dungeness and Ocean Shores, and I think they are still spread thinly over the landscape. But it has been noted before that they have declined, and this isn’t a rare thing after population booms.</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">During what might be called an invasion, populations build up substantially, and then at some point they may start using up resources (hard to imagine in this case) and/or predators home in on them (more likely, as Cooper’s Hawks and Peregrine Falcons can’t get enough of them). But those are speculations, without any hard evidence, and there may be other factors in play (disease?). In any case, this dove is a striking example of that phenomenon in our region. Christmas Bird Counts would show this pattern well, and presumably eBird would with a lot more digging. Maybe Cornell has some data sets showing this clearly.</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Dennis Paulson</div><div class="">Seattle<br class=""><div><br class=""><blockquote type="cite" class=""><div class="">On Feb 23, 2025, at 11:59 PM, Hans-Joachim Feddern via Tweeters <<a href="mailto:tweeters@u.washington.edu" class="">tweeters@u.washington.edu</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div class=""><div dir="ltr" class=""><div class="">Today I had a pair of Band-tailed Pigeons visit my feeders. Previously, on February 16th, I had a single Band-tailed Pigeon in my yard. This was a First-Of-Year sighting. I used to have these pigeons year round, even though years ago I would have 20 or more. Nowadays I only get 6 to 10.</div><div class="">I have seen a lot of reports of Band-taileds spring appearances, while I had them all winter, not this winter!</div><div class="">Another question I have is the lack of Eurasian-collared Doves. I have yet to see one this year. After we were being invaded over the last few\years, you used to find them almost anywhere. Now they seem to be gone and I do not think that they started migrating! Has anybody else seen any in Western Washington lately?</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Good Birding!</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><div class="">Hans</div><div class=""><br class=""></div><span class="gmail_signature_prefix">-- </span><br class=""><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><b style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif" class=""><span style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);color:rgb(51,51,51)" class="">Hans Feddern</span></b><br style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:tahoma,sans-serif" class=""><span style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:tahoma,sans-serif" class="">Twin Lakes/Federal Way, WA</span><br style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:tahoma,sans-serif" class=""><span style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);color:rgb(0,0,102);font-family:tahoma,sans-serif" class=""><a href="mailto:thefedderns@gmail.com" target="_blank" class="">thefedderns@gmail.com</a></span><br class=""></div></div>
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