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Texas Dove Hunting Season 2010

Texas hunters look forward to the opening day of dove hunting season each year. It is a time for getting outdoors, spending time with friends an family, and having some fun. It also signifies the beginning of the fall hunting season in Texas. And it looks like hunters have a lot to look forward to. Starting this year, Texas will be going to a 70-day dove season and 15-bird daily bag statewide. Possession limit is still twice the daily bag.

The season in the North and Central Dove Zones runs Tuesday, September 1 through Sunday, October 25 and reopens Saturday, December 26 through Saturday, January 9. The South Zone dove season runs Friday, September 18-Tuesday, November 3, reopening Saturday, December 26-Sunday, January 17.

The additional 10 days in the North Zone should provide more late season dove hunting opportunity for die-hard sportsmen, according to Mason. “Most folks hunt early, usually the first couple of weekends, but there are usually birds to be found throughout the season around water holes, food sources and managed food plots so the extra days could mean good hunting during enjoyable weather.”

The Special South Texas White-winged Dove Area hunting season will open to white-winged dove afternoon-only (noon to sunset) hunting the first two full weekends in September running September 5-6 and 12-13 and reopens when the regular South Zone season begins on Friday, September 18 through Tuesday, November 3 and again from Saturday, December 26 through Wednesday, January 13.

The Special White-winged Dove Area season takes four of the allowable 70 days, so when the regular season opens, this area most close four days earlier than the rest of the South Zone.

Hunters in the Special South Texas White-winged Dove Area must abide by a different bag limit set for that area.The daily bag limit is 15 birds, not more than four mourning doves during the first two weekend splits and 2 white-tipped doves. Once the general season opens, the aggregate bag limit will be 15.

Rita Blanca National Grasslands

The Rita Blanca National Grasslands (NG) is located in Dallam County and consists of 77,463 acres in the extreme northwest corner of the Texas Panhandle. The area provides public hunting for pronghorn antelope and as would be expected this country is wide open. Rita Blanca (NG) is part of the National Forest System, but with an agreement between Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), a limited number of buck antelope permits are distributed by TPWD to hunters through the public hunting (Special Permit) drawing program.

The Rita Blanca NG is neat place. The gently rolling prairie, which has both mid- and short grasses, is not just home to pronghorn. It also provides wildlife habitat to literally hundreds of different bird species and bird watchers love this place. The natural basins that collect rainfall and stay wet for months, and sometimes even years, attract both pronghorn antelope and migratory water birds. For visitors or hunters that have never been to this area of Texas, expect to see something totally different than you have ever seen before.

Selected hunters at Rita Blanca NG are not charged a permit fee for hunts and may camp overnight on the area in Thompson Grove Picnic Area if they so desire, and commercial lodging can be found in nearby towns. Keep in mind that there are no water or electrical facilities available in the picnic area. In addition, there are no standby permits are available for pronghorn antelope hunts. For additional information about the Rita Blanca National Grasslands contact the Forest Service office in Clayton, New Mexico at 505-374-9652.

Richland Creek WMA Duck Hunting

The Richland Creek Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in Freestone and Navarro County will be offering postcard hunts for waterfowl. The northern part of the WMA can hold a lot of ducks when conditions are right, so these hunts can be outstanding. Hunt dates will be November 12-14, 17-19, and January 21-23 provided these dates fall within the season established for duck hunting by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for North Zone Duck.

For these postcard hunts, shooting hours end at noon. Four to 10 hunt groups will be selected dependent on wetland habitat conditions at the WMA. There will be a mandatory 3:00 pm orientation the first day of each hunt period at the area check station. All selected duck hunters must have a current Annual Public Hunting (APH) permit and attend the orientation. Each group may submit one postcard per waterfowl hunt period, but a group will only be selected for one hunt period. No substitution of hunt members will be allowed.

Interested hunters may apply by sending a postcard for each hunt period that includes information on the group leader and up to 3 other group members. The deadline for duck hunting application is November 1, 2010. Selected hunt group leaders will be notified by phone. For more information on duck hunting at Richland Creek WMA, contact the field office at 903-389-7080. Mail postcard applications to: Richland Creek Waterfowl Hunts, 1670 FM 488, Streetman, TX 75859.

Guadalupe Delta WMA Whitetail Deer Hunts

The Guadalupe Delta Wildlife Management Area (WMA) will be offering public hunting for white-tailed deer at their Mission Lake Unit in Calhoun County. These deer hunts will be youth-only hunts. Hunters will be selected through a postcard drawing prior to the hunt. Baiting will be allowed and use of ATVs and ORVs is recommended. Centerfire rifles with mounted scopes are the only legal harvest means duirng these public hunts.

The youth deer hunting application may contain a single supervising adult and up to 2 youths, or 2 supervising adults and 2 youth hunters. Submitted postcards must contain the hunt type, hunt date, group leader’s daytime phone number, email address, and the names of each hunter. To maximize your chance of being selected to hunt, each person (youth) may apply for each hunt date. However, make sure that hunters do not send in more than one application per hunt date. A youth can also apply as a standby hunter at any or all hunt periods.

A total of 8 youth positions will be available for each hunt date. Youth deer hunt postcards must be mailed to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, c/o Mission Lake Youth Deer Hunts, 1700 7th Street, Bay City, TX 77414. The 3 whitetail hunting dates will take place on October 9-10, October 16-17, and October 23-24. The bag limit will be two deer of either sex, but no more than 1 buck. Bucks legal for harvest will vary by hunt period. Youth hunters may also harvest unlimited feral hogs and coyotes while deer hunting.

For more information on public hunting, Texas public hunting, or the Guadalupe Delta WMA, please contact the Bay City field office at 979-244-6808. The deadline for these whitetail hunts is September 15, 2010.

Texas Offers Public Dove Hunting Lands

September in Texas marks the beginning of fall and just about every hunter looks forward to dove hunting season that usually kicks off on September 1. Texas has robust fall dove populations in excess of 40 million birds and its 300,000 dove hunters harvest about 6 million birds annually, or roughly 30 percent of all doves taken in the United States! Private and public dove hunting opportunities have a major economic impact to local communities, contributing more than $300 million to the state economy.

Dove hunting provides people an entry into the sport of hunting because it is relatively economical and accessible. Through its Public Hunting Program, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) offers affordable access to quality hunting experiences with the purchase of a $48 Annual Public Hunting Permit. This year, TPWD has leased nearly 50,000 acres of public dove hunting fields in 46 counties.

Many of the public dove hunting lands are located near major urban areas. The 140 hunting units are distributed from South Texas to the Panhandle and from Beaumont to West Texas. Over 70 percent of the dove hunting units and acreage are located in the four major metro areas of Austin/Waco, Houston/Beaumont, San Antonio/Corpus Christi and Dallas/Fort Worth, meaning most of you reading this are relatively close to public dove hunting areas.

From my experience, most dove hunting units get shot out fairly quickly, but they can provide outstanding hunting for the first couple of days. In addition, after the initial surge of hunting pressure most of the units become devoid of anyone, so later in the season doves will often move back onto the properties that have good habitat.

Also new for this year, TPWD has combined its Annual Public Hunting Map Booklet and its Dove Hunting Supplement into a single publication. The new map booklet is organized into 8 urban area based regions that will allow hunters to readily identify places to hunt in areas that they are interested in. Public hunting map booklets will be available beginning August 15 for download and viewing from the department’s web site.

Dove Season Looks Good, Weather Dry

With dove hunting action just months away, it’s never too early to start talking about the upcoming dove hunting season. Dry weather can impact wildlife species in many ways, but officials state that it could be a good season when it opens in September. Despite extended drought conditions across much of Texas, wildlife biologists with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) suggest there has been enough moisture to set the stage for good hunting this dove season.

“Dry conditions don’t necessarily equate to bad dove hunting,” said Corey Mason, TPWD dove program leader. “I’ve been around the state the last month and have seen good production of native sunflower on ranch land and numbers of doves along high lines and around water. I’m expecting a good dove season.”

Dove reports from field biologists fall right in line with Mason’s outlook. “Dove hunting should be awesome; especially if hunting over a water source,” said LaGrange-based district biologist David Forrester. Dry, hot weather means water sources will be hot dove hunting. “Normally water is overabundant in my district, but this year it will be at a premium.

Additionally, if you can find a stand of sunflower, goat weed, natural food plots, etc., whitewing and mourning dove hunting should be good. Food sources and particularly native food sources are going to be an attractant because the agricultural crops and harvest just aren’t going to be as good.”

In regions where rainfall has been plentiful, such as the Panhandle, dove hunting prospects are favorable but could bring unwanted additions as Amarillo district biologist Calvin Richardson warned. “Probably, the only downside that I could imagine is that we probably are going to have a heck of a mosquito crop during dove season.”

TPWD is also conducting ongoing dove banding research and asks hunters to please report leg bands recovered on harvested birds by calling 1-800-327-BAND. TPWD bands about 20,000 dove a year across the state. Most doves banded are recovered by dove hunting, so it important that hunters submit recovered bands to help biologist better manager the resource.

Brazos Bend State Park Hunting

The Brazos Bend State Park is 4,975 acres of habitat found in Fort Bend County. The property is located about 20 miles southeast of Richmond, Texas. Most of the state park is in the Brazos River floodplain and is dominated by bottomland habitat. Because this is a water-dominated area in a humid part of the state, waterproof footwear is recommended for all public hunters.

Brazos Bend State Park provide good opportunity for public hunting, especially for white-tailed deer. The hunter check station is located at the group banquet hall in the interior of the park. Hunters may use the park’s water and electric campsites and shelters overnight, for which the regular use fee is charged. Call the park at 979-553-5101 for additional information on their public hunting opportunities.

Muse Wildlife Management Area (WMA)

The Muse Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is managed by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and was established in 2006. The management are comprises 1,972 acres of native habitat in Brown County, Texas. The Muse WMA is located about 15 miles Northeast of Brownwood and the headquarters is north of F.M. 1467 on CR 478. The operation of Muse WMA includes the development and management of wildlife habitats and populations of indigenous and migratory wildlife species, such as white-tailed deer, wild turkey and mourning dove.

The Muse WMA provides areas to demonstrate habitat development and wildlife management practices to landowners and other interested groups. The WMA can be used to develop new techniques for managing wildlife populations and habitat through on-the-ground research designed for local issues and conditions. In addition, the management area will be used to provide public hunting and appreciative use of wildlife in a manner compatible with the resource.

The Muse is considered to be in the southern Cross Timbers and Prairies ecoregion, although the majority of the area is encompassed by a large ridge of limestone rising above the prairie floor. Diverse topography and soil types are conducive to a variety of plants types and is generally dominated by oak-juniper woodlands, post oak-mesquite flats and small creeks with hardwood bottoms.

No camping or fires area allowed on the management area. Camping facilities are available at nearby Lake Brownwood State Park (325-784-5223). All hunters are required to sign in at the check station when entering or leaving the WMA. Hunting is by assigned blind and hunters will take their vehicles to the hunting blind assigned. For more information on the Muse WMA, contact the TPWD Brownwood office at 325-643-5977 or 325-203-6926.

South Llano River State Park Hunting

The South Llano River State Park (SP) is only 524 acres, but it holds a lot of wildlife thanks to the wooded bottomland habitat that comprises almost all of this area. This makes for great white-tailed deer hunting, turkey hunting, and exotic hunting. The park is located in Kimble County on the South Llano River about 5 miles southwest of Junction, Texas. The South Llano River SP has about 2 miles of river frontage, a large pecan bottom next to the river, and typical Hill Country habitat found in the more upland areas.

Animals found within the South Llano include white-tailed deer, squirrel, jackrabbit, javelina, fox, bobcat, cottontail, and armadillo. Several exotic ungulate species such as axis deer, fallow deer, and even blackbuck antelope are also often seen using the wildlife habitat found in the park. And believe it or not, the bottomland area found within the park represents one of the oldest winter turkey roosts in the Hill Country of Texas. The roosting area is closed to park visitors from October through March.

The South Llano River SP adjoins Walter Buck Wildlife Management Area, which also provides public hunting opportunities. The park was donated to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in 1977 and was opened to the public in 1990. Activities outside of the Special Permit hunt periods include camping, picnicking, canoeing, tubing, swimming, fishing, hiking, mountain bike riding, and bird watching. For more information on public hunting at South Llano River SP call 325-446-3994.

Big Lake Bottom Wildlife Management Area (WMA)

The Big Lake Bottom Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is owned and operated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and provides public access and public hunting opportunity. The 2,870-acre management area lies adjacent to the Trinity River and is located about 15 miles southwest of Palestine, Texas, in Anderson County. It was purchased by TPWD to preserve the rapidly disappearing Post Oak Savannah’s bottomland hardwood habitat.

The Big Lake Bottom WMA is not totally contiguous, but fragmented by private tracts of land. It is accessible from county roads at two locations. The topography, soil types, and vegetation of the area are representative of the Post Oak Savannah river bottoms. Soils are of poorly drained clays and flood regularly. Since the terrain is flat and lies within the river’s flood plain, the area is often covered by shallow slow moving floodwaters.

The area is normally inaccessible several times a year for extended periods due to high water or wet soil conditions. Over 90 percent of the management area is bottomland habitat of mature hardwood timber. Portable deer stands that do not damage trees are encouraged and will increase hunter success. Portable blinds are not available at the area, but one primitive campground is available to hunters and permit holders.

Because Big Lake Bottom WMA has very limited access and long distances to hunting compartments, often 2 to 3 miles, use of ATVs and other off road vehicles is strongly encouraged. ATVs must be operated in accordance with state law regarding the use of ATVs on public land. Caution should be taken during public hunting and rainy weather as this area is prone to flooding. In fact, high water may result in cancellation of scheduled hunts on short notice.

Principal wildlife species found on Big Lake Bottom WMA include white-tailed deer, feral hog, ducks, mourning dove, fox squirrel, gray squirrel, bobcat, raccoon, skunk, armadillo, coyote, gray fox, and many species of reptiles and migratory birds. Call the WMA headquarters at 903-389-7080 for more information on access and their public hunting programs.