Pigeon laid egg on patio

[Borb]

Hi, so I have a resident breeding pair of spotted doves. This pair has had two clutches that I know of. The first both died, one as a fledgling to a currawong and the other as a juvenile to a sparrow hawk. The second clutch was abandoned after a week and never hatched.

So anyway I was standing outside on my patio and she just plops an egg out on the patio and flies away. What's up with that?

 

[Pat H]

She loves you...
or--
one for you... and where's my food?

 

[Zara]

she just plops an egg out on the patio and flies away.

If you´re up for letting them nest there, maybe make a little nest for her egg and leave it for her?

 

[Borb]

She loves you...
or--
one for you... and where's my food?

Oh she certainly does hang out there expecting handouts every morning!

 

[Borb]

If you´re up for letting them nest there, maybe make a little nest for her egg and leave it for her?

She's got a nest in a bush that I saw her sitting in earlier.

 

[Pat H]

I once saw a Mourning Dove nest in a low hanging branch... Just an incomplete MESS of a few twigs w/ an egg! Couldn't believe it!
Don't know what a normal pigeon nest looks like?

 

[Zara]

She's got a nest in a bush that I saw her sitting in earlier.

Maybe it was an accident then?

I once saw a Mourning Dove nest in a low hanging branch... Just an incomplete MESS of a few twigs w/ an egg! Couldn't believe it!
Don't know what a normal pigeon nest looks like?

Pigeon and dove nests can be quite simple and messy

 

[Borb]

I once saw a Mourning Dove nest in a low hanging branch... Just an incomplete MESS of a few twigs w/ an egg! Couldn't believe it!
Don't know what a normal pigeon nest looks like?

I think that's normal, and perfectly describes her nest.

 

[Pat H]

I think that's normal, and perfectly describes her nest.

WOW-- For regular pigeons too then? How do ANY survive!

 

[Rædwalda]

If you´re up for letting them nest there, maybe make a little nest for her egg and leave it for her?

I don't think they will return and give the egg the care it needs to hatch. The only hope for it now is to put the egg in an incubator and hand-raise the baby bird.

 

[Coop]

I once saw a Mourning Dove nest in a low hanging branch... Just an incomplete MESS of a few twigs w/ an egg! Couldn't believe it!
Don't know what a normal pigeon nest looks like?

Nest? What nest? We don' need no stinking nest! But seriously, pigeons of most varieties are so poor at making nests that only their fecundity ensures the survival of the species. You get the occasional exception but mostly it's something like, "I have two pieces of straw here, let's set up housekeeping honey". That's why breeders often give them completely formed cardboard bowls when they've chosen their site in the pigeon coop. (been keeping pigeons for more than half a century) While it's physically possible to raise the egg, then you'd have to get a wildlife license etc. to keep the baby. If you know where the nest is and can reach it, best bet is to just slip it into the nest. They generally stop laying when they feel the right number of eggs, usually two.

 

[Elysian]

It kinda sounds like she opted to put it up for adoption after failing so much!