Anybody doing any good on the dove this year? They won't fly for me! Anybody else experiencing this or have any insight as to why it might be so slow? Too hot?
There is one thing for sure. It is HOT.
There is one thing for sure. It is HOT.
No doubt about that! :wall: :eew:
Did well on them Monday with limits for us. Lots of folks thinking the late harvest of corn has slowed hunting. We were hunting sunflowers and corn but both were cut with doves in mind not moisture content. Some of the smallest birds I have got in a long time. I'm sure it will pick up as it cools off and more corn is harvested.
Will they typically cut the corn in the public fields during the season? I have noticed most of the fields still have the corn standing
We hunted sunflowers Monday and it was almost non-stop shooting. I also noticed the birds running small. A friend told me that as of three weeks ago he saw some birds that were so young that couldn't fly very good yet. Go figure.
Hmmm ... might just be the fields Im hunting, i guess!
Hmmm ... might just be the fields Im hunting, i guess!
Probably so. The other trick to sunflowers is they need to be black oil seeds and they need to mature at just the right time. We have hit and miss years with them. If they mature late (usually the case) or burn up in the field (too early) then no birds. The most tried and true dove field I have seen is a large cornfield that has had a fair amount of rows bush hogged 1-2 weeks before the season. The best hunt ever was in Harnett county years ago when a fellow plowed in a field of wheat about a week before the season. There were 20-30 birds in that field All Day! You couldn't hardly touch any metal on the gun due to the heat and you couldn't load it fast enough.
I worked in agricultural extension for 30 years and got called in several times to look at potential baited fields. Saw quite a few I would walk into with a gun. Have advised hundreds of hunters on how to manage legal fields. Wheat plowed under a week before season probably not legal. The BEST field I ever hunted was on dairy farm near Fuquay Varina. Farmer planted wheat in fall and then planted no-till corn in April. Did not spray entire field with burn down chemicals. Only sprayed 10" band. Corn and wheat both grew and matured. When corn was cut for silage in August the wheat shattered and brought doves in for wheat and corn buffet. Farmer did not reseed wheat for next five years. Enough came back each year and they continued to plant corn. Hunted that field one day with State and Federal wildlife folks. We all agreed it was the Ultimate Dove Field.
Last year we hunted a disked melon lot and DESTROYED them. I guess those watermelon seeds were like crack or somethin. The bad part was the foul smell of the rotting melons, but well worth the hunt.