Dove hunting is one of the most simplistic yet thoroughly exciting wingshooting sports in the U.S. You don’t need much to get started—just a bucket, perhaps a dove hunting chair, a shotgun, and some patience. That makes it a great sport for hunting enthusiasts who are just dipping their toes in for the first time and maybe need a few good tips for dove hunting.
Key Takeaways
- Dove hunting generally season starts Sept 1st but check with your state
- Hunting season takes place in the fall during is migration season. Find where they stop to eat to increase your chance of success – they eat many foods including corn, wheat, oats, and any agricultural crops.
- Doves like a little grit to season their water so try gravel roads for water sources
- Invest in a dove decoy – the more realistic the better
- Best choke for dove hunting:
- Skeet Choke: Up to 25 yards
- Improved Cylinder Choke: Up to 30 yards
- Modified Choke: Up to 40 yards
- Full Choke: Up to 50 yards
- Improved Modified Choke: For anything between modified and full
It’s honestly a lot like fishing. You’re free to go all out and purchase the latest and greatest that the wingshooting industry has to offer. Or, you can keep it simple. It’s just you, yourself, and your thoughts as you watch the first rays of morning light kiss the horizon, waiting for the doves to cross your field.
Dove Hunting Tips – A Complete Guide
When is dove hunting season
While dove hunting season may differ here and there, depending on what time zone you’re in and what state, it’s generally September the 1st you need to mark on your calendar. If it’s your first time heading out there, prepare accordingly. Simplicity in a sport doesn’t mean unprepared after all.
Now, that’s just a generic date, generally true in most places. However, places like Texas, where dove hunting enjoys a high degree of popularity, break their dove hunting season up into several zones with different dates.
Different states will run their dove seasons differently. It helps to get ahold of your state’s fish and wildlife commission, which may go under a different name, depending on the state.
Where to find Doves
Finding and hunting doves is a matter of learning to identify their habitats. Doves are like most bird species in that they fly south in the fall as a part of their pre-winter migration. Outside of that timeframe, however, doves are all over the place.
Their geographical preferences are unique because they don’t seem to have any. You will find doves in desert areas, out on the plains, deep in the inner cities and metropolitan areas, across thousands of acres of farmlands, deep in densely wooded forests, and throughout the suburbs.
Hunting season takes place in the fall, which is migration season. What you need to find is where they stop to eat. Food sources are numerous, and include corn, wheat, oats, and any agricultural crops.
For water sources, doves like a little grit to season their water (it actually helps them digest). Gravel or dirt roads full of water puddles or ponds with a sparse amount of vegetation are prime spots for doves to take a break and hydrate.
Roosting areas can be almost anything, from lone trees in a pasture to old, weathered, and long ago condemned buildings. Doves love the open ground, and foraging in such places provides them with the grit they need, just like we need fiber.
Dove hunting decoys
Dove decoys are pretty simplistic, at least in terms of what you need. The best decoys that you can use are fake dove decoys, whether it’s motorized, comes with magnetic wings, or simply a dummy lookalike.
The best kind will have some mechanism for moving the wings. Doves are birds, and birds can generally see very well, so the more realistic, the better. One of the more popular options is the MOJO Outdoors Elite Series Dove Motion Decoy. It’s a mouthful, but you can just rename it ‘George” and call it a day.
If you’re looking for something simpler, the Lucky Duck HD Dove Hunting Decoy comes with a magnetic wing system. No matter what you choose, it’s best to go with something as realistic as possible.
Dove shooting tips
Hunting doves is not the same as hunting ducks. Doves move across the horizon of your vision like a fastball pitch. They’re fast, and you need to make sure you have the left and right clearance to track accurately across the sky, with no interruption.
- Lead the visual equivalent of 6” in front of the dove
- If they’re really close, you can cut it to 3” to 4”
- Slow and steady pressure on the trigger
- Try to fire between breaths, if you can
- Continue to follow through after the shot
- Keep a shotgun shell pouch on you that provides rapid access to fresh shells
- Make sure you have a solid cheek weld (don’t lower your head to the gun)
- Make sure you have a field-tested, familiar, quality, and comfortable shotgun
If you are new to dove hunting, the key is practice. When you’re done practicing, practice some more. You’re firing a spread shot, so there is a larger window of forgiveness, but these birds are fast and they aren’t about to wait for you while you’re monkeying around with an unfamiliar shotgun.
Choke for dove hunting
If you’re unfamiliar with a shotgun choke, it’s a constrictive section of the barrel located in the last few inches of the shotgun barrel. The choke’s purpose is to control the spread of your shot, whether it’s lead or steel.
A seasoned hunter will know what choke to use (they’re interchangeable in newer shotgun models) based on environmental/weather conditions, the distance, and the time of the season. If you’re new, it’s not as easy to have that instinct to reach for one choke or another.
- Skeet Choke: Up to 25 yards
- Improved Cylinder Choke: Up to 30 yards
- Modified Choke: Up to 40 yards
- Full Choke: Up to 50 yards
- Improved Modified Choke: For anything between modified and full
Knowing your distance is one thing, understanding the other, more subtle elements of dove flight behavior, environmental challenges, and windage comes from experience. That’s why practice is so important early on.
Bottom Line
When it comes to sitting down on a fold-out chair and a shotgun, waiting for some unlucky doves to cross your field, dove hunting is as simple as it gets. But, as you can see, there’s an underlying level of complexity going on as well.
Fortunately, the learning curve isn’t too steep, and you will end up having a blast. Dove hunting is one of the most popular wingshooting sports for a reason. Remember, don’t prop your shotgun against a tree because these birds are fast, and they’ll be gone before you can blink twice.
Check out the OutdoorWorld Reviews homepage for more expert information and advice including dove hunting in the following states:
