Louisiana's dove season opens Saturday, and hunters of all ages are hoping for full bags. Public fields on certain wildlife management areas offer shooting that's not half bad. (Photo by Capt. Peace Marvel) (Capt. Peace Marvel)
Posted on 09/03/2014 1:36:51 PM PDT by BBell
Louisiana hunters have scratched and clawed across the flaming sands of the offseason desert, but they're feeling the cool breeze of the oasis, and it ain't no mirage.
Dove season opens Saturday, and for thousands of outdoors enthusiasts, it's the official start of fall. Hunters who couldn't care less about wing-shooting the rest of the season gather over planted and disced fields for the opening-day festivities that are as much a social gathering as a hunt.
Historically, the season has always opened at noon, giving hunters time to get to the fields, set up the grills and tell lies about the summer's fishing before loading the shotguns. But this year, the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission voted unanimously to open the season 30 minutes before sunrise.
The hunter social hour will have to be over breakfast at the local diner.
It's the rare hunter who doesn't enjoy a really good dove shoot, so there are always more hunters eager to sky-bust some doves than there are fields available to them. If you don't have a friend with a field, a tractor and lots of extra hours to kill during planting season under a sweltering June sun, you may think you're out of luck.
But actually, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has a few options for you. Dove hunting is available on most of the state's wildlife management areas, but a few are actually planted by LDWF personnel for the sport.
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
Louisiana's dove season opens Saturday, and hunters of all ages are hoping for full bags. Public fields on certain wildlife management areas offer shooting that's not half bad. (Photo by Capt. Peace Marvel) (Capt. Peace Marvel)
Looks almost like enough for one meal for her. Doves dint have much meat.
I have a similar picture of my daughter,son and nephew holding dead snow shoe hares about the same age.
One person asked if they were alive I said of course not we are hunters not bunny huggers.
We usually make them into a stew.
Got some pretty good sized ones here in Texas.
My mom loves dove meat. Used to take the whole haul from me, my dad and two brothers to make her a plate. Never much cared for them, but at least they are fun to hunt and easy to clean. Lol
There are lots in the Houston area, slowly moving your way.
Gonna hunt Alice, TX, southwest of Corpus Christi for 3 days, opens Sept. 18. (Majority White-Wing)
Had a trifecta last year, Morning, White-Wing & Ring-Neck.
I've hunted dove all my life and I still don't know what a White-Fronted Dove is, except for google pics.
Love that adorable pic!
We just had grilled dove, before dinner, this past weekend. Yummmmy!
I’ve yet to see any but I’m on the extreme east of La. We have a lot of ring neck and mourning doves.
We had a woman running for state rep here in Maine, one of her campaign points was that she wanted to see ‘catch and release hunting’.
Yes she was a democrat and no she did not win.
But Chellie Pingree did even though once while walking with a friend, he said to her, “Look a dead bird” she looked up in the air and said “Where?”.
That’s the stuff of nightmares right there!
Tell me that's not true.
She looks like my 5 yr old... except she’s holding an armful of
DEAD BIRDS!
It’s true, she was running against Jack Libby back in the early 90’s or late 80’s
And she's smiling! I'm sure there are whack jobs out there who think she will need therapy for the rest of her life, lest she become a serial killer.
Wow!
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