"The goose season opens a half hour before sunrise, and the dove season opens at noon," Steve Wilson said with a chuckle. "I'd suggest that hunters go goose hunting that morning and hunt for doves that afternoon."
Division of Natural Resources officials start the two seasons on the same day for a reason; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sets the seasons for migratory birds, and federal officials have decided that no season should open before Sept. 1.
Wilson, the DNR's migratory bird project leader, said Mountain State officials "want seasons to open as soon as they can. Hunters are eagerly waiting for those opening days, so we set for the first day the federal framework allows."
The goose and dove hunts differ from most West Virginia seasons because Sept. 1 usually falls on a weekday.
"I like the weekday openings, because they spread the hunting pressure around," Wilson said. "If we opened
them on a Saturday, like we do the deer archery season, the popular hunting spots would get pretty crowded. At places like the McClintic Wildlife Management Area and the Green Bottom WMA - both of which are good goose- and dove-hunting locations - the shooting would get pretty intense.
Wilson said he "frankly doubts" that hunters consider same-day openers a problem.
"Dove and goose hunters tend to be at opposite ends of the spectrum," he explained. "I'm not sure how many hunt both. The few folks that have to make a choice of which species to hunt on the first day aren't really missing a lot by waiting a day or two to take on the other species. There's good hunting for both after opening day."
Wilson believes both species should be readily available to hunters this year, even though goose reproduction was "spotty."
"There were some areas where we found very few young birds," he said. "Even so, most folks won't notice a big decrease in the number of geese they see. Where there is a scarcity of young birds, the remaining birds will seem a little smarter because there aren't as many young, dumb ones in the bunch."
The key to bagging some of those older, smarter birds, Wilson added, is to take regular trips afield to discover where flocks are feeding.
"A typical deer hunter scouts before the seasons and spends all his time hunting after the season begins. With geese, you need to keep scouting even after the season begins. You have to keep up with where they're resting and where they're feeding," he said.
Agricultural lands are the best places to look.
"If a cornfield is getting cut, there's a good chance geese will be on it the next day. If a hayfield gets cut, the
hunter should wait two or three days, until the first spurt of good green growth comes along, and then go hunting," Wilson said.
The best day to scout, he added, is the day before a planned hunt."Just because geese were in a field a week ago doesn't mean they'll be there when you go hunting. If you find out where they are right now, you improve your chances of getting some the next day."
Finding doves on opening day shouldn't be nearly as difficult. Not only are doves far more abundant than geese, they tend to inhabit a more easily defined home range.
"They can be fluid in their movements, but they aren't nearly as mobile as geese," Wilson said. "Look for
them where agricultural crops have recently been harvested, or in places where seed-bearing weeds have recently been brush-hogged."
He described this year's dove population as "pretty good."
"We do call-count surveys in the spring, and dove numbers were much the same as they usually are. Also, every year we have biologists in three of our six game-management districts capture a given number of birds and put bands on them. This year our people had no trouble catching their quotas, so dove numbers are pretty good."
The banding efforts took place in Districts 1, 3 and 5 - the northern, central and southwestern counties.
Wilson said goose and dove hunters need a special license or two to hunt migratory birds. For example, hunters for both species must obtain a federal HIP permit.
"HIP stands for Harvest Information Program," Wilson explained. "The permit is free, and it can be picked up at any DNR office or from any hunting-license agent. If you buy your hunting license online, you can do it electronically."
Fish and Wildlife Service officials use the HIP registrations as the basis for their periodic surveys of hunter success and preferences.
"The questionnaire asks you how much you hunted the year before, and which species you prefer to hunt," Wilson explained. "It just tells the feds which hat to put your name into for a possible survey. They don't want dove hunters getting into waterfowl surveys, and vice-versa."
The HIP permit is free, but it is mandatory. Hunters who fail to obtain one can be cited for hunting without a proper license.
Goose hunters must also purchase a $15 federal migratory bird hunting stamp, commonly known as a "duck stamp." They can be purchased at most hunting-license outlets, and they are available online at http://www.duckstamp.com/.
Shotguns are goose and dove hunters' preferred firearms, and federal regulations differ slightly from state regulations in their use.
Pump or auto-loading shotguns, for example, must have their magazines plugged to hold no more than three shells. That restriction applies to all migratory species - geese, doves, ducks, woodcock, rails, snipe, gallinules and mergansers.
Waterfowl hunters must also use non-toxic shot. Lead shot is OK for dove hunting, but forbidden for goose or duck hunting.
This year's early goose season will run through Sept. 17. The early segment of the three-part dove season is brief. It lasts only until Sept. 8.
Wilson, the DNR's migratory bird project leader, said Mountain State officials "want seasons to open as soon as they can. Hunters are eagerly waiting for those opening days, so we set for the first day the federal framework allows."
The goose and dove hunts differ from most West Virginia seasons because Sept. 1 usually falls on a weekday.
"I like the weekday openings, because they spread the hunting pressure around," Wilson said. "If we opened
"Dove and goose hunters tend to be at opposite ends of the spectrum," he explained. "I'm not sure how many hunt both. The few folks that have to make a choice of which species to hunt on the first day aren't really missing a lot by waiting a day or two to take on the other species. There's good hunting for both after opening day."
Wilson believes both species should be readily available to hunters this year, even though goose reproduction was "spotty."
"There were some areas where we found very few young birds," he said. "Even so, most folks won't notice a big decrease in the number of geese they see. Where there is a scarcity of young birds, the remaining birds will seem a little smarter because there aren't as many young, dumb ones in the bunch."
"A typical deer hunter scouts before the seasons and spends all his time hunting after the season begins. With geese, you need to keep scouting even after the season begins. You have to keep up with where they're resting and where they're feeding," he said.
Agricultural lands are the best places to look.
"If a cornfield is getting cut, there's a good chance geese will be on it the next day. If a hayfield gets cut, the
The best day to scout, he added, is the day before a planned hunt."Just because geese were in a field a week ago doesn't mean they'll be there when you go hunting. If you find out where they are right now, you improve your chances of getting some the next day."
Finding doves on opening day shouldn't be nearly as difficult. Not only are doves far more abundant than geese, they tend to inhabit a more easily defined home range.
"They can be fluid in their movements, but they aren't nearly as mobile as geese," Wilson said. "Look for
He described this year's dove population as "pretty good."
The banding efforts took place in Districts 1, 3 and 5 - the northern, central and southwestern counties.
Wilson said goose and dove hunters need a special license or two to hunt migratory birds. For example, hunters for both species must obtain a federal HIP permit.
"HIP stands for Harvest Information Program," Wilson explained. "The permit is free, and it can be picked up at any DNR office or from any hunting-license agent. If you buy your hunting license online, you can do it electronically."
Fish and Wildlife Service officials use the HIP registrations as the basis for their periodic surveys of hunter success and preferences.
"The questionnaire asks you how much you hunted the year before, and which species you prefer to hunt," Wilson explained. "It just tells the feds which hat to put your name into for a possible survey. They don't want dove hunters getting into waterfowl surveys, and vice-versa."
Goose hunters must also purchase a $15 federal migratory bird hunting stamp, commonly known as a "duck stamp." They can be purchased at most hunting-license outlets, and they are available online at http://www.duckstamp.com/.
Shotguns are goose and dove hunters' preferred firearms, and federal regulations differ slightly from state regulations in their use.
Pump or auto-loading shotguns, for example, must have their magazines plugged to hold no more than three shells. That restriction applies to all migratory species - geese, doves, ducks, woodcock, rails, snipe, gallinules and mergansers.
Waterfowl hunters must also use non-toxic shot. Lead shot is OK for dove hunting, but forbidden for goose or duck hunting.
This year's early goose season will run through Sept. 17. The early segment of the three-part dove season is brief. It lasts only until Sept. 8.
The biggest bucks begin to lose their antlers shortly after the rut. Deer Scents
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