Field Guide
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Stock Dove
Columba oenas
Not yet photographed by the community
Smaller than Woodpigeon; blue-grey with no white markings.
Species Profile
Green List (stable population; not of conservation concern in the UK)
- Lifespan
- 5–8 years in the wild
- Size & Weight
- 28–32 cm; wingspan 50–60 cm; 150–220 g
- Habitat
- Open woodland, parks, farmland, and coastal cliffs with access to grain stores and bare ground for feeding.
- UK Distribution
- Widespread across mainland Britain and Wales; scarce in northern Scotland. Resident year-round, with numbers boosted by continental migrants in autumn and winter.
- Diet
- Seeds and grain, particularly from cereal crops, wild grasses, and cultivated plants; occasionally takes leaves and invertebrates.
- Predators
- Sparrowhawks, peregrines, and other raptors; foxes and corvids may take eggs and nestlings.
- Mating Season
- March to October, with peaks in spring and early summer
- Breeding
- Two broods per year typical; clutch size of 2 eggs; incubation period 16–19 days; fledging at 25–32 days.
- Behaviour
- Stock doves are often seen in small flocks, feeding on open ground or perching on buildings and trees. They are less vocal than woodpigeons but produce a soft, rhythmic cooing call during breeding season. They require cavities for nesting, often using old woodpecker holes or cliff crevices.
- •Stock doves can drink seawater and are often found on coastal cliffs, making them unique among British pigeons in this respect.
- •Their courtship display includes a distinctive bowing motion and wing-clapping flight, performed by males to attract females.
- •Unlike woodpigeons, stock doves are primarily granivores and rarely feed on leafy vegetation in gardens.
- •They are believed to be the wild ancestor of domesticated pigeons, though their relationship is debated among ornithologists.
- •Stock dove populations declined dramatically during the 20th century due to pesticide use and loss of nesting sites, but have recovered well since the 1990s.
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