2016 Christmas Eve Dove Shoot

Notice dove hunter sitting behind livestock

Comes from keeping shells in my bird pouch

Unusually warm weather and full sunshine caused temperatures to soar into the 70's for our afternoon holiday dove hunt, and that caused the grey game birds to seemingly soar into the stratosphere. Late season dove hunts are notorious for doves that fly high as a result of a season of shooting pressure on them. But warm weather means that they can stay away from the feed and fly high and lazy, which underscores that any dove hunt is simply a chance to gauge what the birds are doing on any given day. My first two shots resulted in two downed birds, but as the birds flew higher and higher, I wasn't able to connect anymore. Lots of shooting all around the field at only a single dove or a pair of birds is a signal that not many doves were being harvested. The corn in this dove field at Polk Hunt Club was blown down by Hurricane Matthew, but the brown top millet crop was fully mature and offered a good amount of seed. A grand holiday tradition was observed during our Christmas Eve dove hunt, and holiday hunting remains a special time in the outdoors.

To view past blog entries about Christmas Eve Hunting click on 2012 Waterfowl - 2011 Deer - 2010 Oyster Roast - 2009 Dove

Millet seed

Christmas Eve Hunt Host