Dove in Smiths Bible Dictionary

The first menton of this bird occurs in Gen. 8. The dove's rapidity of flight is alluded to in Ps 55:6 the beauty of its plumage in Ps 68:13 its dwelling int he rocks and valleys in Jer 48:28 and Ezek 7:16 its mournful voice in Isa 38:14; 59:11; Na 2:7 its harmlessness in Mt 10:16 its simplicity in Ho 7:11 and its amativeness in So 1:15; 2:14 Doves are kept in a domesticated state in many parts of the East. In Persia pigeon-houses are erected at a distance from the dwellings, for the purpose of collecting the dung as manure. There is probably an allusion to such a custom in Isa 60:8