Eurasian Collared-Doves in Arizona

Eurasian Collared-Doves live in Arizona all year. Low deserts stay mild and host many wintering sparrows and hummingbirds; the high country gets snow. That makes the cold months the time your yard matters most to them: their winter diet shifts toward grain and feeder seed.

Hot Sonoran and Mojave deserts in the south and west, with pine-oak sky islands and the Colorado Plateau rising above 7,000 ft.

Across Arizona, Eurasian doves typically nest from February–September. Nest site: flimsy twig platform on buildings or trees. Females lay 2 eggs, incubate for 14–18 days, and young leave the nest after 15–19 days.

Summer highs above 110°F in Phoenix and Tucson make water the single strongest attractant; the July monsoon triggers a second breeding pulse.

• Eurasian Collared-Doves don't use nest boxes. Keep dense native shrubs and trees such as rabbitbrush, palo verde for nest sites.
• Delay heavy pruning of shrubs until after September.

Of the regional native plants we track for Arizona, these 8 provide food or cover Eurasian doves use:

Introduced to the Bahamas in the 1970s, it reached nearly every state by 2010.

• Best foods: Millet, Cracked corn, Sunflower.
• In Arizona's winter: Low deserts stay mild and host many wintering sparrows and hummingbirds; the high country gets snow.

Full diet breakdown for Eurasian doves · Best feeder for Eurasian doves