Painted Bunting

Painted Bunting by Digiscoping by Justabird

The Painted Bunting (Passerina ciris) belongs to the Passerina genus of birds in the Cardinal family Cardinalidae.

The male Painted Bunting is often described as the most beautiful bird in North America. Its beautiful colors, dark blue head, green back, red rump and underparts, make it easy to identify, but is difficult to spot since it hides in foliage even when it sings. The plumage of female and juvenile Painted Buntings is green and yellow-green, serving as camouflage.

Painted Bunting by doncon402

The Painted Bunting is found in thickets, woodland edges and brushy areas, along roadsides, in suburban areas, and gardens. The male was once a popular caged bird, but now its capture is illegal. Populations are declining on the East Coast where habitat is being lost to development. The breeding range includes Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Louisiana.

Painted Bunting by Digiscoping by Justabird

Painted Buntings are mostly monogamous and are solitary or in pairs during breeding season, but sometimes exhibit polygyny. They are shy, secretive and often difficult to see. Males sing from exposed perches and often hop on the ground. The Painted Bunting eats seeds, spiders, insects and caterpillars. It lays 3 or 4 gray-white eggs, spotted with brown which are incubated by the female for about 11-13 days and the young are ready to leave the nest around 2 weeks after hatching.

White-winged Dove

White-winged Dove by ru_24_real

The White-winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica) is a dove whose native range extends from the south-western USA through Mexico and the Caribbean. It has also been introduced to Florida.

Most populations of White-winged Doves are migratory, wintering in Mexico and Central America. The White-winged Dove inhabits scrub, woodlands, desert, and cultivated areas. It builds a flimsy stick nest in a tree and lays two cream-colored to white, unmarked eggs. Its flight is fast and direct, with the regular beats and occasional sharp flick of the wings that are characteristic of pigeons in general.

White-winged Doves are large, chunky pigeons at 29 cm. They are brownish-gray above and gray below, with a bold white wing patch that appears as a brilliant white crescent in flight and is also visible at rest. Adults have a patch of blue, featherless skin around each eye and a long, dark mark on the lower face. Their eyes, legs, and feet are red.

Both sexes are similar, but juveniles are grayer than adults. They have no blue eye ring and their legs and feet are brownish pink.

White-winged Doves feed on a variety of seeds, grains, and fruits. Western White-winged Doves (Zenaida asiatica mearnsii) migrate into the Sonoran Desert to breed during the hottest time of the year because they feed on pollen and nectar, and later on the fruits and seeds of the Saguaro cactus. This gregarious species can be an agricultural pest, descending on grain crops in large flocks. It is also a popular gamebird in areas of high population.

The cooing calls are who-cooks-for-you and hoo hoo hoo.