© 2001 Christophe Drochon ...Science Art-Birds

Title: Forever
Species: Eurasian Collared-Dove (Streptopelia decaocto)
Artist: Christophe Drochon (for further information, click on the artist's name)
Image size: 8" x 21"
Media: acrylic on masonite
Date: 2001

The Eurasian Collared-Dove is of particular interest to researchers in North America where it has rapidly spread after being introduced in the Bahamas in the mid-1970s. The birds benefit from backyard feeders and the American penchant for planting treees in residental and urban areas. This expansion into North America is a continuation of its expansion from India and nearby areas into Turkey and the Balkans across Europe in the 1900s.

As the artist notes: "Collared-Dove pairs traditionally represent fidelity, and here, I have represented my wife and me when she told me she was pregnant, after seven years of waiting!" Indeed, these birds are usually monogamous, with their bond lasting throughout the breeding season, throughout the winter, and may even persist from year to year. Interestingly, one Hungarian researcher reported that if males do mate with other females they drive those females away from nesting area.