Anyone else shooting doves today?

[CoElkHunter]

The four of us last Monday only got four doves. Often times it’s tough hunting early in Colorado. It was 44F yesterday morning and 45F this morning, so some of the northern birds may be headed this way. We’re going to try again next week sometime.

I just wanted to add this not that anyone cares but it’s informational IMO. So, this same property we hunted last Monday is owned by a guy called Skeeter (nickname) I used to work with. About one hour from here. It’s probably 60 acres with trees on the north and a pond on the south. In 2003, another guy (Stan) I used to work with called me and said I should hunt with him and his son in law on opening day at Skeeter’s. So my 10 yoa son at the time and I went out and got there late because I forgot the directions. Anyway, we heard shooting as we pulled up. Stan and his son in law were banging away at doves in a field south of the trees. They each already had 10-12 birds apiece. I think I ended up with 12 birds and my son had a couple with his .410 single shot. Most were Eurasian doves. So this went on for the next ten years where 12-15 bird limits in a few hours was the norm. Then one year, we saw probably 50-100 dove sitting on a corner house’s barbed wire fence in the fog when we pulled off the highway onto the county road headed towards Skeeters. We told Skeeter it would be great if we could hunt that property. He said we could because it was his son in laws parents property. So we hunted that for two seasons and 15 bird mourning dove limits in an hour was the norm. However, not ONE Eurasian was seen or taken over that property. They weren’t feeding on the wild sunflowers. Very strange IMO. Come to find out, this property had several acres of wild sunflower which the doves were feeding on unbeknownst to us all those years before when they came to Skeeter’s property to drink at his pond and roost in his trees. Anyway, the owner of that property sprayed herbicide on the property to get rid of the goathead stickers and the hunting at Skeeter’s has SUCKED ever since. Oh well, it was great while it lasted. Time to find another dove hunting spot.

 

[K-man]

Cold, wet, cloudy with sprinkles every few hours doesn't sound like good dove hunting weather. Our group of 8 got permission to hunt a wheat field that had been pounded with hail and not much harvested. Killed 95 doves today, would have been more but several of these guys don't pick up a shotgun except 3 days a year. Will go back tomorrow to the next field over, same situation.

 

[MontanaGrant]

Did some on opener last weekend here in MT. Have to get em early before they head south, never seen one still here in October even though season runs until the end of it.

Did pretty decent. Loving my new dove gun. Winchester model 12, 16 gauge. Lot nicer than the 12 gauge I been using. Hit percentage went waaaaay up.

 

[chashardy]

Got rained out in Leonard near Bonham, Texas.

 

[Jay Kelley]

Went this evening. I didn't shoot. My job was mentoring a friend's 13 year old son on his first hunt of any kind. Boy got 4 birds. Dad and big brother got 24 between them. No one limited, but everyone had a good time.

 

[steve white]

First day out, west of Waxahatchie, we got up a huge flock of mourning doves in a milo field. We shot a few and the entire flock, without any deviation whatsoever, and never one returning, flew straight to Dallas where they KNEW they would be safe. We watched them fade like tiny dots from sight in that direction! lol

Today, I had the grand daughter all day, and she wouldn't hear of it....she won, too.

 

[Jeff505]

Had almost all morning doves on our 3 day hunt, got the limit all days. About 5 Eurasian collard dove which were much bigger and did not count against the limit. Last year had a hunter turn in killdeers.

 

[Jeff505]

Add cream cheese into the breasts and wrap a slice of bacon and a mild pepper over that with a toothpick and your tastebuds will be in heaven.

Jalapeños were part of the mix.

 

[Jeff505]

Went this evening. I didn't shoot. My job was mentoring a friend's 13 year old son on his first hunt of any kind. Boy got 4 birds. Dad and big brother got 24 between them. No one limited, but everyone had a good time.

Well done jay.

 

[wesheltonj]

Sad to report, Shot a whopping two in Pearsall yesterday, same spot as last year, but with much different results.

Next hunt is In Devine, getting a little concerned. This was supposed to be a banner year.

 

[Hunt anything]

Having a camp clean up this afternoon, Alabama South zone comes in next week!

 

[K-man]

Finished up today and cleaned up camp. Only 2 guys wanted to go out this morning but still got 18 in an hour. Total for 2+ days 213 dove. So not total limits but still plenty of shooting. Mostly young tiny doves. Best part is 2 young men from the next generation are out hunting

 

[Hunt anything]

Having a camp clean up this afternoon, Alabama South zone comes in next week!

Tons of birds coming to the sunflowers, should be a good opening day next week.

 

[Elkeater]

I went back out Saturday morning. Again not the best dove hunting here in the high desert with no ag and nothing besides water to concentrate them. Killed 4 and missed a couple others (still working on my wing shooting skills after a 6 year hiatus). Cool part was I did kill all three species. Started with a mourning dove, then a white wing, then a Eurasian.

 

[Tejas Hunter]

Group of six of us went in South Texas on White wing hunt Saturday, 5 of us limited out and 1 of the guys got 10. Great time.

 

[Jay Kelley]

Went this evening. I didn't shoot. My job was mentoring a friend's 13 year old son on his first hunt of any kind. Boy got 4 birds. Dad and big brother got 24 between them. No one limited, but everyone had a good time.

 

[Jay Kelley]

 

[Tbitty]

Got out for a couple days towards the Texas Panhandle with my lab and a couple friends. It wasnt heavy shooting but enough to stay entertained.

The damn sand burrs were a banner crop this year - if only they attracted dove!

 

[CoElkHunter]

I went back out Saturday morning. Again not the best dove hunting here in the high desert with no ag and nothing besides water to concentrate them. Killed 4 and missed a couple others (still working on my wing shooting skills after a 6 year hiatus). Cool part was I did kill all three species. Started with a mourning dove, then a white wing, then an Eurasian.

I miss hunting white wings since the early ‘70s in Arizona on the Colorado River Indian Reservation near Poston. Wasn’t difficult to shoot THEN a 20 bird limit. In the mid ‘80s, I hunted the Yuma Indian Reservation a couple of times and the hunting was good but no white wings. You could still shoot a limit of mourning doves but I missed seeing the white wings. Degradation of their habitat for new housing developments and urban sprawl has led to their greatly reduced numbers I’ve been told.

 

[Hunt anything]

@CoElkHunter , that interesting about the white wings, I started seeing them in coastal Alabama around 1996, I would kill a few every year but the big concentrations are in town about 5 miles away. Them and the Eurasian collard doves have almost displaced the pigeons in town.
I still kill a few every year and some years are better than others for the white wings.