FREE DOVE HUNT PERMITS NOW EASIER TO GET
CONTACT: Gary Morse (863) 648-3206

Dove hunters will find it easier than ever to get free quota hunt permits for three public dove fields in Southwest Florida managed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). The difference this year is that free permits for planted fields in Punta Gorda, Lake Placid and Polk City can be applied for at any license agent, county tax collector’s office or by visiting MyFWC.com/hunting.

Standing in line or sleeping overnight in your pickup at the check station gate to get a free dove permit is a thing of the past. In spite of the convenience the new system provides, hunters better not dawdle. Permits will likely go fast.

To participate, sportsmen must possess a valid Florida hunting license, a wildlife management area permit when applicable and a free federal migratory bird permit. All hunters must have the free permit – there are no exemptions from this requirement. The three locations requiring free permits are not Special-Opportunity Dove Fields, so dove club memberships are not valid.

Free dove field permits will be issued beginning at 10 a.m. EDT on Sept. 15, and end at 11:59 p.m. EDT on Sept. 24. All permits will be issued on a first come first-served basis. Permits not issued during this period will be available at the respective area check station beginning at 11 a.m. on the day of each hunt.

Individual hunters may reserve only one permit per hunt, but they may reserve a permit for two different hunt dates. Regulations allow one minor child less than 16 years of age who does not have a permit, to hunt under the supervision and in the presence of an adult permit holder. The minor and adult may both take their legal limit of dove.

The Punta Gorda Water Treatment Facility SGA, south of County Road 74, in Charlotte County will host dove hunts on Oct. 7, Oct. 21, Nov. 11 and Nov. 25. Forty-five free permits are available for each hunt.

The Osprey Unit Dove Field of the Hilochee WMA is near Auburndale in Polk County on County Road 557, six-tenths of a mile south of the Interstate 4 interchange. This unit will host up to 20 hunters on Oct 7, Oct. 14, Oct. 28, Nov. 11, Nov 25, Dec. 9, Dec. 23 and Jan. 6.

The Royce Unit of Lake Wales Ridge WEA in Lake Placid has 25 permits available for hunts on Oct 7, Oct. 14, Oct. 28, Nov. 11, Nov 25, Dec. 9 and Dec. 23.

Royce Unit is on Royce Ranch Avenue, 5 miles north of County Road 621 East.

Hunting hours are from noon to sunset on all three fields. Hunters can enter the field at 11 a.m. and must exit by one hour after sunset. There are no reserved spots on the fields.

The free migratory bird permit is available at any tax collector’s office or from any hunting license outlet. The FWC’s free permit program is part of an effort implemented by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service called the Migratory Bird Harvest Information Program (HIP). The HIP program polls hunters in a post-season effort to gather data on the harvest of America’s migratory game birds.

For more information on dove hunting opportunities, visit MyFWC.com/hunting or, during regular working hours, call the Lakeland regional office at (863) 648-3200.