A woman who gave birth brought sacrifices afterwards. Normally, the woman would bring a yearling lamb and a bird.
The options for the bird korban are either a ben yonah (dove) or a tor (turtledove.)
The Baal HaTurim points out that in every instance where birds are mentioned as korbanos, the tor is mentioned first.
This doesn’t mean that it is necessarily preferable, as the Gemara in Kerisus says they are equal. However, there is a reason why in this case the ben yonah, the young dove, is listed first.
Explains the Baal HaTurim, turtledoves are unique in that they mate for life. If one of the pair dies, the other will not take another mate.
Therefore, since in this case only one bird is brought, the Torah gives priority to the young dove, whose mate will presumably find another, instead of breaking up a pair of turtle doves and essentially causing the other one to “mourn” for its mate.
In fact, when a woman cannot afford the lamb, the Torah suggests two torim or two bnai yonah, again places the tor at the forefront.
One understanding of the preferability of the turtledove is that the loyalty it shows for its mate is an admirable quality we should emulate.
However, if this will cause pain to the bird, because only one is being taken, we should not do it, and learn from this how careful we must be with the feelings of other human beings.
