Managed Dove Fields on Public Land

J

John Singer

Well-known member
I just started dove hunting a few years ago after moving to Minnesota.

One of the best hunts that I ever experienced was on a managed Dove field in Iowa.

Iowa DNR manages several food plots for doves.


I understand that Minnesota used to manage fields several years ago when they first allowed dove hunting.

A number of Minnesota public lands have food crops planted on them.

Is it possible to have some of these food plots managed to encourage dove use/hunting?

What is the mechanism bring this to the attention of MN DNR?
 
Call the local Area Wildlife Office where you would like to hunt and ask about small grain fields or other potential dove hunting opportunities. SW MN is your best bet. Opportunities exist, but they would easily be overcrowded if promoted widely.
 
I am pretty sure all the dove spots we used to go to in ND are gone as the small grain and sunflower fields gave way to straight corn and beans.

The combo was a small grove of trees (if cattle cleared out the undergrowth even better), a stock damn, and a harvested small grain field or sunflower field (heads drooping). We often shot 60 birds in just a few hours ... none of us were that great a shot so lots and lots of shooting.
 
Last year in MN I went to look at public land I pheasant hunt the week before dove season. I saw one spot that had the doves stacked shoulder to shoulder on a powerline. Not sure exact number but it was the most I've seen in one place. I did go back a week or so into the season and shot a few. The public land I sat in had thick grass, so not very ideal. I think I'll try a spot by a water hole on public land on opener. Doves were all over last year, but I think some guys caught on to that spot after they heard me shooting. I found shells in my hide on the second trip.
 
The last two or three years I’ve hunted near pastures that were heavy in snow on the mountain spurge. Doves seemed a lot more predictable than the here today gone tomorrow doves that are hitting grain fields.
 
Moved to MN from Illinois. We had managed dove fields that for the first 3 days they had a lottery to hunt and thereafter an onsite site sign up that limited the the # of hunters. Worked really well and had sunflower drawing the birds in.
 
I put in some windshield time and knocked on some doors. I have access to some private property holding doves and know of some public land that has been good in the past.

I am looking forward to this opening weekend.
 
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BirddogGSP said:
Moved to MN from Illinois. We had managed dove fields that for the first 3 days they had a lottery to hunt and thereafter an onsite site sign up that limited the the # of hunters. Worked really well and had sunflower drawing the birds in.
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If Minnesota were to do some of this, it would help in hunter retention and recruitment.

One the impediments to recruiting and retaining hunters is access. I would bet that accessible managed dove fields on WMAs near our population centers would be an economical means of introducing new hunters and retaining old hunters.
 
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