Turnout up in the air for dove hunting opener

Published online on Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009

It’s still the biggest and busiest hunting day of the year — by far.

But because of where it falls on the calendar, Tuesday’s dove opener might not be quite as big or busy as usual.

For the past three years, Sept. 1 fell on a weekend or a holiday, ensuring a large hunter turnout.

This year, the dove opener comes on a day when most hunters are (should be?) at work.

“Is it going to be as big as last year when [the opener] was on Labor Day? Probably not,” said Nathaniel Arnold, a patrol captain for the Department of Fish and Game in Fresno. “But we expect things will pick up in the evening when folks get off work.”

While a no-shoot zone extends around the Fresno-Clovis border, dove hunting is a way of life in rural areas, where people need only be 150 yards away from occupied dwellings before pulling the trigger.

Legal hunting begins 30 minutes before sunrise and ends at sunset. Hunters cannot enter property that is fenced, being cultivated or posted with “no trespassing” signs. “Hunters need to be aware of where they are, and home owners should know they’re going to hear shooting Tuesday morning,” Arnold said.

Statewide, about 90,000 hunters participate in the dove opener, according to DFG estimates. While more hunters (and birds) flock to the Imperial Valley than any other region in the state, the San Joaquin Valley isn’t far behind.

Accounting for 8.5% of the statewide bag of 1.93 million doves in 2007, Fresno County ranked third in the state behind Imperial and Kern counties, according to the latest DFG hunter surveys. Merced (6.9%) and Tulare (5.4%) counties were fourth and sixth, respectively.

“I’d say for 75% of the people we see on the dove opener — it’s a one-day hunt,” said Karen Fothergill, a DFG wildlife biologist who specializes in doves. “They go through the expense of getting a license and ammo and never hunt again the whole year.”

Mourning doves remain the most common dove species in the Valley, but more Eurasian collared doves are arriving every year on their northward migration.

Hunters need to differentiate between the two species because mourning doves count toward the daily bag (10 birds) and possession (20) limits while Eurasian collared doves do not.

There is no bag or possession limit for Eurasian collared doves, which were introduced into the Bahamas in the 1970s and have expanding their range ever since.

“Eurasian doves are considerably larger than mourning doves and fly more like a pigeon,” Fothergill said. “They’re also lighter in color and have a squared-off tail. “They’re pretty easy to spot once you see them.”

Most dove hunting takes place on private land. However, there are some public areas where reservations for Tuesday’s opener aren’t needed.

At Mendota Wildlife Area, access to three fields (parking areas 2, 21 and 22) will be limited to a first-come, first-served basis beginning Tuesday morning. Some fields have been planted with safflower.

Other areas are considered “free roam” and open to hunters who self register at the gate.

At Los Banos/North Grasslands Wildlife Complex, a lottery will be held Monday night for hunters without reservations seeking access to the Los Banos and Salt Slough units. The China Island and O’Neil Forebay units are first come, first served.

“We’re expecting a full house,” said Loni Hext, an employee at the Los Banos Wildlife Area. “Last year we had 149 hunters in the morning of the opener out of the 150 spots we allow.”

Dove season continues two weeks until Sept. 15, then picks up again Nov. 14 for 45 additional days. Hunters must possess a valid license with an Upland Game Bird stamp.

Go to www.dfg.ca.gov/about/hunting for a complete list of regulations.