# wild ring neck doves



## quickrymer (Mar 16, 2008)

I have a pair of feral ring necked doves roodting somewhere around my garden, a wild place in the Suffolk countryside.
I want to build a dove cote to house these birds if they are willing, otherwise i will House a couple of dove pairs of my own
I need to know what size doorway will keep out the pigeons and allow the doves to enter comfortably
I am working on a 30 x 30 cm (12" x 12")floor area can this be reduced?
Also how to make the dovecote hawk proof
Thanks 
Ken


----------



## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

Hi Ken,

At a rough guess I'd say no more than 2 1/2" wide or high.

Unless this pair is other than the fawn(ish) color with black collar, they will be true wild Eurasian Collared Doves.

I suspect it is pretty unlikely you will entice them into a dovecote - they nest in trees, tall bushes and hedges, or occasionally on other tall structures, rather than inside anything.

Frankly, I wouldn't advise getting 'domestic' ring necks and installing them in a garden cote. They are not particularly hardy, unlike the wild Collared Doves. They would also be prone to (a) getting lost and (b) being picked off by hawks (the experience of a colleague of mine who lived near Brooke).

Making a dovecote hawk-proof could possibly be achieved with 'fencing' around the outside of the landing board (depends on the design) which the residents could fly over, but would not enable a hawk to get close. But then, a hawk will pick off a bird from the roof or perching on a branch, so I'm not sure what would be achieved.

A garden cote in this country is really more suitable for fantails or other forms of white pigeon.


If you haven't already been there, Morley Aviaries off the A11 between Attleborough and Wymondham sell (and, I assume, breed) ringnecks and could probably advise you more specifically on their needs.

John


----------



## Feefo (Feb 8, 2002)

Hi Ken,

If you were thinking of excluding wood pigeons then you won't have a problem, they like to be out in the open (but then so do collared doves), stock doves might be attracted to a cote as they nest in tree trunks. 

Cynthia


----------

