Good pasture had the answer in hand when he examined the nest and saw
the thousands of mites. Both rodents and birds that reuse their nests
have a chronic problem of mite buildup that can be fatal to the young.
Both scavenger and parasitic mites can rapidly increase in the warm nest
in a short time. And as the nest is gradually increased over time,
more mite survive over the unused time. Mites will develop on organic
materials available from both adult and young feces, bits of food,
nesting material that may include adult saliva used as an adhesive and
young chicks. Mites are too small for the adults to see or remove even
if they did. Towards the end of the video it appears that the male was
viewing the remaining chick as it was swarming with mites,trying to
figure out what was occurring. Naked chicks and rodents are fair game
for rapidly developing mite populations. Keep in mind why there are
bird baths and why adult birds dust themselves on the ground: removal of
mites and other ectoparasites.
Those who provide platforms for
nesting birds for pleasure or photography should remove the nesting
material after the fledge and provide a small amount of similar material
on the platform as an incentive for a return.
The world is beautiful
as your photography records, but we know it also has many other
dimensions that are not pleasant but very real. Now that you know I am
hopeful that your (doves) fledge rate greatly increases.
Source: www.youtube.com
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