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Spotted dove

Spilopelia chinensis · Doves and pigeons · Migratory game birds

Spotted dove (Spilopelia chinensis): Mourning-dove size but bulkier, rounder tail, no black spots on the wings. Black collar with white spots is the best mark, less obvious on young birds (immatures lack the band). This profile does not establish whether taking it is legal anywhere.

Check rules for a place and dateOpen the spotted dove map

Certified rules currently represented in Hunt: coverage in development. This is coverage, not a legal answer.

Spotted dove perched on a rock
Photo by You Le on Unsplash
Scientific name
Spilopelia chinensis
Family
Columbidae
In North America
Introduced
Range
Native to Asia; introduced from Asia to Hawaii in the 1800s and to California. NatureServe records it in California, Utah and Hawaii.
Biology

How to identify it

Mourning-dove size but bulkier, rounder tail, no black spots on the wings. [1][2][3]

Black collar with white spots is the best mark, less obvious on young birds (immatures lack the band). [1][2][3]

Rosy breast, grey-brown plumage; 12-13 in. [1][2][3]

Compared with the mourning dove: Spotted dove is bulkier with a rounder tail, has no black wing spots and shows the white-spotted black neck collar. [1][2][3]

Species it is confused with

Check these before deciding what you are looking at. If you are not certain what it is, do not shoot.

Field notes

  • Identification Confirm a spotted dove before you act. Compared with the mourning dove: Spotted dove is bulkier with a rounder tail, has no black wing spots and shows the white-spotted black neck collar.[1][2][3]
Field knowledge

Where it lives

Residential areas, parks and river woods, mostly altered habitats: well-watered suburbs with trees and lawns, farms, stream groves including eucalyptus. [1][2][3]

Field knowledge

How it behaves

Calls a three-syllable rolling coo-coo-cooooo [1][2][3]

Forages on the ground for seeds, in pairs or small groups; comes to feeders [1][2][3]

Male display: steep climb with noisy wing-claps, then a gliding circle [1][2][3]

Regulatory handoff

Where it is listed for legal take

These authorities list this species for legal take in their own regulations.

Where legal take is listed

Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.

Geospatial intelligence

Where it is found

Native to Asia; introduced from Asia to Hawaii in the 1800s and to California. NatureServe records it in California, Utah and Hawaii.

Biology

Sources

Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.

  1. BIOLOGICALSpotted Dove

    National Audubon Society · reviewed 2026-09-30

    National Audubon Society

  2. BIOLOGICALspotted dove

    State of Hawaii, Hawaii Birding Trails · reviewed 2026-09-30

    State of Hawaii, Hawaii Birding Trails

  3. NatureServe · reviewed 2026-09-30

    NatureServe