Columbidae is the bird family that includes doves and pigeons, the only family in the order Columbiformes. These stout-bodied birds have short necks and slender bills, with a diet primarily consisting of plants. They can be classified as granivores, which feed on seeds, or frugivores, which consume fruits.
This family contains 344 species across 50 genera, with 59 species threatened and 13 extinct, including the dodo and the passenger pigeon. In general, smaller species are called “doves” and larger ones “pigeons,” though this distinction is informal.
Doves and pigeons build flimsy nests using sticks and debris, located in trees, on ledges, or on the ground. They lay one or two white eggs, and both parents care for the young. Uniquely, both sexes produce “crop milk” to feed their chicks.
Young doves and pigeons, known as squabs, are able to fly by five weeks old and are called squeakers once weaned. They typically leave the nest after 25 to 32 days.
