Specific habitats used during the fall and spring migrations probably are similar to those used at other times. The habitats are determined primarily by food availability, along with roosting and nesting sites. Winter roost sites appear to consist of small to medium sized woodlots for protection from the elements.

More intensive and cleaner farming tends to be a detriment to dove habitat. Mourning doves frequently nest in trees and shrubs close to human habitation, in various coniferous and deciduous trees. In the rural south, most nests are built on horizontal substrates or conifers and occasionally on the ground. Dense trees or ground cover within 150 feet of nesting sites provide ideal locations for interaction between parents and young. Such sites help the young disperse from nesting and develop feeding skills.

Mourning doves need a good mix of open and forested areas for nesting and feeding.  The ideal habitat is about 70% in open areas that consist of agricultural crops, pastureland, and old fields.  Random conifers and hardwoods should be present for loafing and nesting sites.  Twenty-eight percent of the landscape should remain wooded, with the greatest proportion with trees that are more than 20 years old.  The remaining 2% of the landscape should be in free-standing water.  Click here to learn about habitat practices.

Natural attractants of dove include croton, ragweed, pigweed, pokeweed, sweetgum, canarygrass, and switchgrass to name a few.  Managing for native plants can be used to avoid problems with baiting laws since mourning doves are migratory birds.  Crops left in the field from sustainable farming practices, such as barley, corn, legumes, millets, oats and rice, can also attract doves into a site. However, it is illegal to deliberately scatter grain on a field after a crop has been harvested. The grain grown in the field may not be redistributed onto the field after it has been collected, harvested or gathered. Grain found in piles or in other large concentrations is not a normal agricultural planting, thus hunting over piles of grain is considered baiting.  Because it is a migratory species, regulation of mourning dove hunts fall within the responsibility of the federal government.  Additional information about baiting is available in this module.