Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

Dove season got underway yesterday in the north and central zones. Unlike hunting other game where one or two people sit quietly in a stand or blind, dove hunting is social.

12— Yeah. And one of the big traditions that we do see in Texas is family and friends getting together for the opening of dove season. It seems to be a very popular thing to do around Texas. And you can talk and have conversations while you’re dove hunting.

Biologist Shaun Oldenburger says whether you hunt solo or with a crowd, first get your ducks in a row, so to speak.

22—Make sure – obviously – you have your right hunting license. You are going to need a migratory game bird stamp – a Texas stamp. And you’re also going to have to go and get HIP certified before you go dove hunting or you go hunt any other migratory game bird in the state of Texas. A lot of times September first approaches us pretty quick; we just want to make sure folks get the right licenses before they head into the field, and to also go out and actually practice with a shotgun before September first.

The season opens in the south zone September 18.

08— Per Fish and Wildlife Service regulations, the season will be 70 days this year. And the bag limit will be 15, which includes both mourning doves and white-winged doves.

Find complete dove season information on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series. Through your purchases of hunting and fishing equipment, and motorboat fuels, over 40 million dollars in conservation efforts are funded in Texas each year.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

This is Passport to Texas

Thanks to ample spring rains across the state, dove hunters can expect excellent opportunities in the field.

05— We got a lot more precipitation around the state, so we’re looking really good on the landscape.

Biologist Shaun Oldenburger says the season, which begins today in the north and central zones, includes mourning and white-winged dove—but don’t expect to hunt them in the same place.

08—With white-winged dove, over 90% of our white-winged doves now in the state of Texas do breed in suburban or urban locations compared to most of our mourning doves which tend to be more rural.

For white-winged dove, consider setting up in grain fields and pastures nearby urban and suburban areas…

15— …that may have good croton, or sunflower crops and then vetch, pigweed – stuff like that. For mourning dove, we look for perching habitat, we look for water and we look for food. And if you have a combination of those things, you usually can have a fairly decent hunt in those types of locations.

Find more information about dove season on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website. And if you go to our YouTube channel, you’ll find a tasty recipe for cooking up the dove you harvest.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series. Through your purchases of hunting and fishing equipment, and motorboat fuels, over 40 million dollars in conservation efforts are funded in Texas each year.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.