Know The Rules for Dove Season

The traditional start date for dove season is the first Saturday in September, which is usually part of Labor Day weekend and 2016 will not alter that blueprint. At noon on September 3 wingshooters will congregate in planted fields to try their luck at harvesting a limit of doves. Having success in a particular field year after year requires a strong commitment to habitat management that favors these fast-flying grey birds.

Sandy Stuhr is ready for dove hunting

The legal limit per hunter for mourning doves has been reduced in 2016 to a 12-bird limit, down from the 15-bird limit utilized the past few years. Longtime dove hunters will recall that a 12-bird limit was in effect for decades until just a few years ago when they experimented with raising the limit on these migratory birds. For now, that change has been undone, and perhaps a measure of sustainability has been restored.

Hunters must possess an SCDNR hunting license and a HIP permit, which pertains to the harvest of any migratory bird. The first three days of the season will abbreviated with legal shooting hours from 12 noon until sunset on Sept. 3 – 5. The remainder of the season runs from Sept. 6 through October 15, and shooting hours run from one-half hour before sunrise until sunset. 

To read this feature article in the newspaper click on Colletonian.

To view past blog entries about dove season opening click 2014 - 2013 - 2012 - 2011 - 2010 - 2009