LATE-SEASON DOVE SHOOTING MAY BE GOOD

COLUMBIA--"The early bird may get the worm, but early dove hunters just get the hottest, most crowded days of the season without many birds."

That's Wildlife Research Biologist John Schulz's advice about when to hunt mourning doves in Missouri. Schulz, who works at the Missouri Department of Conservation's research office in Columbia, says the tail end of Missouri's 60-day dove season often sees the best hunting conditions, in terms of both weather and the number of doves available. Schulz says the last half of dove season this year is even more likely than usual to be the most rewarding.

"Farmers weren't able to get sunflowers planted until fairly late this year," says Schulz, "so there were lots of green sunflowers when the season opened Sept. 1. Those sunflowers have reached maturity now, and sunflower fields that still have lots of seeds will be dove magnets until the close of dove season Oct. 30."

He says the ongoing harvest of corn, sorghum and other crops also serve to concentrate doves around crop fields this month. He says the notion that the best dove hunting takes place following cold snaps in northern states is very appealing, but not very accurate.

"We used to think that cold weather up north sent a wave of doves down through Missouri, and that's why we had hundreds or even thousands of doves in a milo field. But our research shows that doves migrate on pretty much the same schedule regardless of weather. It looks like the most significant factor leading to large concentrations of doves is local habitat patterns."

Schulz says doves may range 12 miles in search of food, water and roosting sites. If only a few spots in a particular area offer all these requirements, doves will flock there, providing excellent shooting.

According to Schulz, doves are especially fond of small grain, such as wheat or sorghum. Fields where these grains have been harvested are likely to attract doves, because of waste grain dropped on the ground during harvesting. He cautioned hunters to be certain that grain on the ground got there through bonifide agricultural activities.

"A field with lots of grain on the ground may have been baited," says Schulz. "It's illegal to hunt over baited fields, even if you didn't know about the baiting."

Schulz says harvested fields should have some bare ground exposed to be most attractive to doves. Doves are much more comfortable on the wing than on the ground, so they look for feeding areas that offer easy walking. Because of this preference for open ground, hog lots frequently draw large numbers doves.

Schulz says dove decoys can be helpful in encouraging passing doves to fly low over an area for a closer look. A small number of decoys six to twelve is adequate. When hunting in wide, open expanses of fields, it also helps to place yourself near a lone tree or barn that lies between feeding, watering and roosting areas. Doves use such landmarks to navigate, and habitually fly right past them.

"The early part of this year's dove season was pretty lackluster, except in the western part of the state," says Schulz. "The next couple of weeks may be the best dove hunting of the year."