8/23/2007

Dove season opens Sept. 1, a free hunting day
            Dove hunters statewide should be counting their shotgun shells and arranging travel plans now for the start of dove season Sept. 1. But one thing Oklahoma residents can leave off their gear list for Sept. 1 and 2 is a hunting license.
            Sept. 1-2 marks Oklahoma’s Free Hunting Days, where Oklahoma residents do not need a license to go afield. After Free Hunting Days, hunters need to have a hunting license, legacy permit and Harvest Information Permit (all available by logging on to wildlifedepartment.com) to hunt doves, unless exempt.
            Dove season runs Sept. 1 - Oct. 30 statewide, and the state’s newly-established southwest zone will reopen to dove hunting Dec. 26 - Jan. 4 as well. Hunters can harvest 15 doves daily, except in the southwest zone, where the limit is 12 doves daily.
            “This could be a great year for dove hunting because recent rains helped provide important food and water sources that doves use,” said Rod Smith, southwest region wildlife supervisor for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. “Pre-season scouting is going to be important this year because some agricultural crops were affected by earlier heavy rains.”
            Smith said doves may be using some water holes that didn’t even exist last year, so hunters who scout areas before hunting will have an increased chance for success.
            Dove hunting provides first class wingshooting, delicious tablefare and an easy way to introduce a friend or family member to the sport of hunting. A shotgun, an ample supply of shells and a place to go is all you really need to have a great day of dove hunting. And with thousands of acres of Wildlife Management Area land available to hunters, finding a place to go should be easy. In fact, some portions of WMA lands are managed specifically by the Wildlife Department for doves. Hunters do not have to travel far to find them. Cattle watering ponds on private lands also can be excellent places to hunt dove, particularly those adjacent to gravel roads.
            To find out more about Wildlife Management Areas available for dove hunting, log onto wildlifedepartment.com and check out the free digital wildlife management area atlas. In addition to detailed maps, sportsmen can find information such as camping locations and contact information for local biologists.
            For complete hunting license information and dove hunting regulations, be sure to pick up a copy of the “2007-08 Oklahoma Hunting Guide” at a sporting goods retailer or on wildlifedepartment.com.
 
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