dove feet

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Dove hunting season in Tennessee began a few days ago. I'll avoid Forks of the River, at least until the early zeal settles down and the shooting stops or all the doves move down to Ijams, a wildlife sanctuary.

The two mourning doves in the photo seemed quite content to be there.

I have nothing against hunters, my father was one, but I'm not sure how you could kill something with such pretty feet. What color is that? The field guides say they have reddish-pink feet but as an artist I wasn't quite satisfied with that descriptor. If I were to paint a mourning dove, what color would I choose?

I went on-line and did some research. I think the shade of red that is the closest match is alizarin crimson. What do you think?

The ancient Egyptians once fabricated the color by crushing the root of a rose madder plant. They used the resulting powder in paints and textiles dyes. If the pyramid-builders revered the color, I can only assume they would have liked mourning doves as well, or at least, their pretty feet.




Alizarin crimson




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