Two males or male and female doves sharing nest

[Lobzi]

I have a pair of doves that I have been wondering if they are same or different sexes. Today they are sharing the nest. They started sitting in the nest together.
Is this normal behavior for two of different sexes or same sex?

 

[Lobzi]

Here they are. After weeks of taking turns today they decided to sit together. Is this normal for a pair (male and female) of doves?

 

[Szulptist]

They seem to be a male and female pair but males and females will also pair with their own gender if they don't have any other options (more likely with females than males). if you end up with two eggs then you definitely have a female, if you get 4 eggs you've got two females and no eggs usually means both male. Is one of them much more vocal than the other? Does one bow cow at the other which remains predominantly silent? If so that's another good indication you have a male and female. By the way, is there something wrong with the beak on the right one in the picture?

If I had to guess I'd say the one on the right is a male and the one on the left is a female.

Good luck!
Eric

*Edit* Oh and it's not unusual for both partners to hang out on the nest at the same time. Their behavior indicates at the very least that they are a bonded pair (regardless of gender) and is completely normal.

 

[Lobzi]

How observant Eric. Yes, Cyrano, my first dove had what I think was pigeon pox. It was a soft protrusion and hardened over time and the "scab" never fell off. Hence his name. He is definitely the more vocal one and he bow and coos at Roxanne. Roxanne will bow and coo but not as much and not directly in front of Cyrano. Im hoping that Roxanne is just a lot younger than Cyrano. As soon as I got her I introduced her to Cyrano and they got along well. Over the weeks that I have had her she has darkened in color which seems to indicate she was young when I got her and is maturing. Cyrano has been making improvements to their nest. The sitting together only lasted about 30 mins or so and now they are back to switching back and forth, mainly with her on the nest at night and him during the day. No eggs yet though.

 

[Szulptist]

Thank you, I'm glad I wasn't just seeing things lol. That's pretty interesting about his nose, I'm glad he pulled through and that his nose bump hasn't deterred him from getting a mate. Everything you have described as far as behavior and nesting patterns seems to indicate that you do in fact have a male and female. However, as you've mentioned, the female has darkened in coloration and may have just recently reached maturity. It is possible that she is simply a male who needs more time to mature before becoming more vocal. When I first got my "female" ringneck dove Amelia she was completely silent for the first month or two. After that she became much more vocal and it became incredibly apparent that she was 100% a male. Although behavior-wise and appearance-wise Roxanne does appear to be female and the fact that she has only recently seemed to hit maturity may explain the lack of eggs so far. I suspect you'll find out soon whether or not she's a female. The fact that she has recently darkened in color and that they've both been going through nesting procedure seems like a good sign. At the very least I'd imagine Roxanne, regardless of gender, was young when you got her. Otherwise I cannot imagine any good reason why her feathers would darken.

Eric

 

[Lobzi]

My friend who gave me Cyrano told me they noticed the bump on his "nose" from the first time they noticed him. I guess it is all he knows and therefore to him it is quite natural. He never seemed sick though I did give him some antibiotic feed when I first received him just to support his ability to fight off whatever it was the made the growth.
Roxanne was much lighter and so I am now thinking very young. Im hoping for eggs but will happy if Cyrano just have a friend he gets along with. I hated his being alone for the months that I first had him. He was ready for a friend when brought home Roxanne. He used to spend some time with my baby chicks and he loved that. He used to bow and coo at the blonde ones. He particularly liked this one little female pullet, even "beaking" her beak as if to give her kisses.

 

[Szulptist]

That makes sense, there are lots of birds with abnormalities that don't seem affected by them. I'm glad Roxanne and Cyrano are happy together and hopefully you'll get eggs. As you've mentioned, at the very least they'll be able to keep each other company and enjoy each others' presence. That's quite interesting about the chick, do they still see each other / interact or once it grew up they stopped? Cross species relationships are always fascinating to me, I wonder what the pullet was thinking at the time.

Eric

 

[Lobzi]

When my chick got old enough to join the others in the yard she was off and running but Cyrano had long since found another love in yet another blonde chickie. She is gone now but sometimes he will bow and coo to my quail. He will also get a bit aggressive through the wiring on his aviary. The quail on on the other side so he cant actually get to them. Before I got Roxanne, Cyrano would come into the house and fly around, wonder on the kitchen floor with the chicks. That is when he would go up to a favorite chick and "beak" them. It was so cute and the chick would just stand there looking quite dumbfounded. I love watching my animals. They are full of surprises and always educational.

This is Cyrano's first love and Cyrano eyeing her. She doesnt seem to know what to think of him; afraid and uncertain of his intentions.

 

[Szulptist]

That's hilarious / really interesting. Although it isn't too shocking as quite a few animals that are kept as pets have shown affection towards their owners / different species than their own. In any event, great pictures and a great story.

Eric

 

[Lobzi]

Oh Ive got pictures and so many stories from living with my feathered pets. I lived with a dog when I was young girl living with family. He was a family pet, not really mine; he would roll over and sit for treats as well as fetch a ball like crazy. Nothing compares to animal antics like the ones I see from my feathered friends.