Almost Zero Doves

1144 Views 27 Replies 13 Participants Last post by 3crosses, Sep 30, 2009

Calisto

Discussion Starter · Sep 18, 2009

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There were Almost Zero Doves in the Eastern Plains of Colorado this morning.

Very sad, since this is 2-1/2 weeks into the season. Will there even be a migration?

Wassup?

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1 - 20 of 28 Posts

quarrles

· #2 · Sep 18, 2009

Calisto,

Don't know about your area but here in N. central Florida we have never seen such a crop of doves and right from the front porch. Admittedly my front porch overlooks a corn field but this year there are more birds than I can remember seeing in the past four or so years. Between here and Valdosta Ga. we see large flocks, twenty to fifty birds over the corn.
I am too old to shoot enough for a meal so I just enjoy watching them.

Best...John

evbutler

· #3 · Sep 18, 2009

The migration took place here in NC during the last week in August. A cold front came through and most of the doves went with it, probably to Florida. At places where I could easily limit out, there was little activity. I've been hunting that spot over 50 years and until this year, have had plenty of shooting.

Calisto

Discussion Starter · #4 · Sep 18, 2009

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I've been hunting that spot over 50 years and until this year, have had plenty of shooting.---evbutler

So this is an unusual year.

On a couple of occasions, I saw several doves together. Generally, it was only as I drove around the highway and county road that I saw the odd dove.

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stockranger

· #5 · Sep 18, 2009

Where on the eastern plains ? North or south? I'm in CA but I read the article about doves in the small game access program booklet. It said by the third week of sept. all the birds are leaving the northern areas and you need to go to the southern area. By october its pretty much over in colorado. Maybe the birds have already come and gone?

Where you at in colorado ? i'm looking for some people to hunt with next year when i move to denver or some info on where I can find rabbits. I run beagles and hunt rabbits aswell as any upland bird I come across that is in season.

brianmayeux

· #6 · Sep 18, 2009

Calisto:

Last year I shot 2 doves here in Arizona... This year -- 50 doves... I am no expert and don't know why Colorado is so dry... But I will say that dove populations are not as predictable as we might think... And vary a lot by location... As EV said, a cold storm forced them out of NC... Maybe that is what happened in CO ?

Calisto

Discussion Starter · #7 · Sep 18, 2009

I am no expert and don't know why Colorado is so dry... ----BrianMayeux

But Brian, CO is not dry. [That is, if you meant WET.] That was a couple years ago. The drought is long gone. We've been deluged with afternoon showers about 5 days a week all spring, and at least 3 times a week all summer. That has tapered down a little bit, but I saw standing water in several fields just this morning, from recent rains.

I don't know if it is a water issue, but I will make a simple guess, which is just this. Most of the birds just followed a different route this year. Either they traveled East by South, or something happened to the size of the existing population.

Last year, I was shooting my limit along the Arkansas River by about the 10th or so of September. I must have seen several thousand birds flying all around me in a day's time. This year, there are just no birds to see. They are not there.
And they never were there. I have that information from a hunting guide on whose property I paid to shoot. He had to refund my deposit money, and he knows his business.

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Maybe next year will be different.

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Calisto

Discussion Starter · #8 · Sep 18, 2009

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Where you at in colorado ? i'm looking for some people to hunt with next year when i move to denver or some info on where I can find rabbits. I run beagles and hunt rabbits aswell as any upland bird I come across that is in season. -----StockRanger

I'm in the Denver area. The area I hunted today was East Central Plains clear up to where I could see across the Wyoming border and then back West.

If you come to Denver, StockRanger, you will find that the Walk In Access lands are often as not, a flat barren field, missing the essentials for abundant game. Walk In Access sounds great on paper. Believe me, I know. I grew up in Indiana where game was thick as flies. Out here, you learn why the Founding Fathers referred to these lands as "The Great Desert".

(1) There's no water on it or running through it, 99- 44/100ths of the time. (no exaggeration)

(2) There's no trees on it and no brush piles, nor thickets nor hedges

(3) You cannot sit on a fallen log, cause they ain't any.

If you can find a way to hunt somewhere around one of the rivers, or somewhere in the scruboaks of the western slope, it is all to the good; but you will find that all land with water is at a premium.

Beagles back in Indiana were great for Cottontails. But here, there's way more JackRabbits than Cottontails.

I once checked out some Duck Hunting club with leased lands along the Platte River. The membership was $25,000.00 per year.

But when you get Here Stock Ranger, you and I will lease land, raise Cottontails & Pheasants, and get rich.

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brianmayeux

· #9 · Sep 18, 2009

dry = no doves... Sorry... Nothing to do with water sorry for the confusion...

fase3

· #10 · Sep 19, 2009

Going in the morn. There have been birds galore at this location all week. May not sleep tonight!

Chaco1

· #11 · Sep 19, 2009

The birds have migrated already Calisto. Most local birds were gone in late August. We haven't gotten quite as cold here yet but they are bunched up and ready to move out which will proably be monday or tuesday.

stockranger

· #12 · Sep 19, 2009

Calisto said:
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Where you at in colorado ? i'm looking for some people to hunt with next year when i move to denver or some info on where I can find rabbits. I run beagles and hunt rabbits aswell as any upland bird I come across that is in season. -----StockRanger

Click to expand...

I'm in the Denver area. The area I hunted today was East Central Plains clear up to where I could see across the Wyoming border and then back West.

If you come to Denver, StockRanger, you will find that the Walk In Access lands are often as not, a flat barren field, missing the essentials for abundant game. Walk In Access sounds great on paper. Believe me, I know. I grew up in Indiana where game was thick as flies. Out here, you learn why the Founding Fathers referred to these lands as "The Great Desert".

(1) There's no water on it or running through it, 99- 44/100ths of the time. (no exaggeration)

(2) There's no trees on it and no brush piles, nor thickets nor hedges

(3) You cannot sit on a fallen log, cause they ain't any.

If you can find a way to hunt somewhere around one of the rivers, or somewhere in the scruboaks of the western slope, it is all to the good; but you will find that all land with water is at a premium.

Beagles back in Indiana were great for Cottontails. But here, there's way more JackRabbits than Cottontails.

I once checked out some Duck Hunting club with leased lands along the Platte River. The membership was $25,000.00 per year.

But when you get Here Stock Ranger, you and I will lease land, raise Cottontails & Pheasants, and get rich.

/

That is absolutely horrible! I am worried there is no rabbit hunting I will end up with a useless pack of dogs. Jack rabbits are fine as long as the dogs can run. Maybe I can find some private land if i'm lucky, it is a good thing that farmers hate rabbits. Luckily rabbits don't ever need 1 drop of water their entire life. They get it all from the plants they eat but they do need brush piles and food. I am hopeing the foothill areas will hold rabbit. Unless you have beagles you probably are missing all the rabbits. I know they have a ton of rabbit in wyoming and montana but mostly private land areas.

what about the state wildlife areas maybe? alot of those are open to waterfoul and small game around lakes but you have to call ahead to make reservations. I refuse to pay to hunt that is freaking criminal! Even here in los angeles there is a place 70 miles away loaded with rabbits. There has to be mountain cottontail.

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Chukarshooter

· #13 · Sep 19, 2009

The bulk of the doves disappeared in northern Nevada just before Sept. 1 and it's been thin since. After hunting 6 or 7 days during the first half of the month, I've seen a few and shot two. Even the ring-neck turtle doves (where did they come from?) that frequent our yard have disappeared. A few fly overs of the house at dusk (too bad I can't hunt from the back yard) are all that's left.

Better luck next year. There's still chukar and quail to look forward to!

Sponxx

· #14 · Sep 21, 2009

Hey Calisto, count me in into the land leasing, pehasant raising and getting rich part... hehe, I am in the Denver area too, but do not own a dog, or know a whole lot of hunters.
Any plans on going out northeast for this years pheasant season? the dove one was a bust from what I heard... didnt go since my baby was born last week.

brianmayeux

· #15 · Sep 21, 2009

Chukarshooter said:
The bulk of the doves disappeared in northern Nevada just before Sept. 1 and it's been thin since. After hunting 6 or 7 days during the first half of the month, I've seen a few and shot two. Even the ring-neck turtle doves (where did they come from?) that frequent our yard have disappeared. A few fly overs of the house at dusk (too bad I can't hunt from the back yard) are all that's left.

Better luck next year. There's still chukar and quail to look forward to!

What I don't get is why places like northern Nevada have the same exact time of year for dove season as we have in Arizona and Texas... It's no secret that the closer you get to Mexico, the better (in general) the dove hunting is... So why wouldn't northern states like Colorado Nebraska etc... have an August hunt ??

There are even times here in Arizona when the doves will be gone by Sept 1st... And we are as south as it gets in the USA...

stockranger

· #16 · Sep 21, 2009

brianmayeux said:
Chukarshooter said:

The bulk of the doves disappeared in northern Nevada just before Sept. 1 and it's been thin since. After hunting 6 or 7 days during the first half of the month, I've seen a few and shot two. Even the ring-neck turtle doves (where did they come from?) that frequent our yard have disappeared. A few fly overs of the house at dusk (too bad I can't hunt from the back yard) are all that's left.

Better luck next year. There's still chukar and quail to look forward to!

Click to expand...

What I don't get is why places like northern Nevada have the same exact time of year for dove season as we have in Arizona and Texas... It's no secret that the closer you get to Mexico, the better (in general) the dove hunting is... So why wouldn't northern states like Colorado Nebraska etc... have an August hunt ??

There are even times here in Arizona when the doves will be gone by Sept 1st... And we are as south as it gets in the USA...

Because fish and game or DOW are not always sportsmen but rather a bunch of tree huggers. I think many of them don't actualy want you to be killing anything.

Chukarshooter

· #17 · Sep 21, 2009

brianmayeux said:
Chukarshooter said:

The bulk of the doves disappeared in northern Nevada just before Sept. 1 and it's been thin since. After hunting 6 or 7 days during the first half of the month, I've seen a few and shot two. Even the ring-neck turtle doves (where did they come from?) that frequent our yard have disappeared. A few fly overs of the house at dusk (too bad I can't hunt from the back yard) are all that's left.

Better luck next year. There's still chukar and quail to look forward to!

Click to expand...

What I don't get is why places like northern Nevada have the same exact time of year for dove season as we have in Arizona and Texas... It's no secret that the closer you get to Mexico, the better (in general) the dove hunting is... So why wouldn't northern states like Colorado Nebraska etc... have an August hunt ??

There are even times here in Arizona when the doves will be gone by Sept 1st... And we are as south as it gets in the USA...

The last week in August would have made a world of difference this year. I scouted a number of places during this time and there were plenty of birds.

Fortunately, there are still birds which frequent urban areas and since I posted I've stumbled upon the fact that these urban wild birds head towards a gravel pit near my home for their evening water and for the past two evenings have placed myself in their flight path. Almost all of them are high and high speed, but at least I'm not waiting three hours for a chance at one bird (or none).
I'll take the high passing shots over no shots at all any day.

Calisto

Discussion Starter · #18 · Sep 21, 2009

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Hey Calisto, count me in into the land leasing, pheasant raising and getting rich part... hehe, I am in the Denver area too, but do not own a dog, or know a whole lot of hunters.
Any plans on going out northeast for this years pheasant season? the dove one was a bust from what I heard... didnt go since my baby was born last week.---Sponxx

Hey Sponxx. Congratulations on being a new daddy!

Yeah, that's my current day dream. You know, there's more farmers just sitting on the land resource. If you suggest to them that they could invite a few hunters in exchange for a steady flow of cash, they kind of just dismiss it as either impractical or nuts. I've thought of putting an advertisement in some of the Plains newspapers for permission to hunt. Soon as I get a Roundtoit I'll do that.

But I'll PM ya Sponxx, by the end of the day, and maybe we can share a few bits of knowledge.

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ROCKING_NM

· #19 · Sep 21, 2009

Central NM is sparse as well, I see rogues moving all day long, but they're making tracks South as fast as they can, Im not surprised though with 12+ in of snow being reported already in the Northern Mountains, and theres a cold front dropping in from Colorado, weathermans predidcting a 20deg drop this week... Thats gonna get the rest of em moving out of here before our fall seeding, which usually keeps them arround through October... Went out Sat evening, for 3 hours, saw one, cleaned one... I hate getting bloody for 1 lousy bird... Maybe shells will go on sale due to overstock...

brianmayeux

· #20 · Sep 21, 2009

ROCKING_NM said:
Central NM is sparse as well, I see rogues moving all day long, but they're making tracks South as fast as they can, Im not surprised though with 12+ in of snow being reported already in the Northern Mountains, and theres a cold front dropping in from Colorado, weathermans predidcting a 20deg drop this week... Thats gonna get the rest of em moving out of here before our fall seeding, which usually keeps them arround through October... Went out Sat evening, for 3 hours, saw one, cleaned one... I hate getting bloody for 1 lousy bird... Maybe shells will go on sale due to overstock...

Seems like in July and August all the storms find their way around Arizona and hit NM really hard... This past late August/early September I noticed NM was getting quite a bit of rain... Great for cottontail... Not so good for dove... We stayed very dry in late August...

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