Tue Aug 26, 2014, 10:02 AM
meathead (63 posts)
Anyone getting ready for dove season?
I'm hunting S. Texas in late Sept. Last year's opening weekend was a bust with storms and a cold front moving the doves south. I'm hoping for better luck in 2014!
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10 replies, 4045 views
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Author | Time | Post |
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meathead | Aug 2014 | OP |
Scuba | Aug 2014 | #1 | |
dixiegrrrrl | Aug 2014 | #2 | |
Paladin | Aug 2014 | #3 | |
dixiegrrrrl | Aug 2014 | #4 | |
Paladin | Aug 2014 | #5 | |
meathead | Aug 2014 | #6 | |
Eleanors38 | Aug 2014 | #10 | |
Eleanors38 | Aug 2014 | #7 | |
meathead | Aug 2014 | #8 | |
Eleanors38 | Aug 2014 | #9 |
Response to meathead (Original post)
Tue Aug 26, 2014, 10:03 AM
Scuba (53,475 posts)
1. When is hawk season?
Response to meathead (Original post)
Tue Aug 26, 2014, 10:29 AM
dixiegrrrrl (60,005 posts)
2. I know that dove shooting is a big deal down here
Do you mind if I ask you, in all seriousness, what is the attraction of shooting them, and do you eat them?
They are so rather small, I wince at the idea of dressing them out. |
Response to dixiegrrrrl (Reply #2)
Tue Aug 26, 2014, 10:54 AM
Paladin (27,009 posts)
3. The white wing doves in S. Texas are big, half the size of a pigeon.
White wings used to be found south of the Rio Grande in Mexico, but they're all over the place in Texas, now. Very intrusive species; the native mourning doves have shrunk to the size of sparrows. White wings are tasty, like the dark meat of a chicken, only better. If I still hunted, I could limit out every day with one ground shot under my bird feeder (yes it would be illegal, and yes my neighbors would be upset). As it is, I just keep the greedy bastards nourished. The cardinals and scrub jays manage to get a beak-full of expensive seed when the white wings take flight.
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Response to Paladin (Reply #3)
Tue Aug 26, 2014, 11:19 AM
dixiegrrrrl (60,005 posts)
4. Thank you for being helpful.
We have mourning doves around our place.Not many, just enough to make a nice sound.
I did not know about white wings, and their size. sounds as if they are the same problem as starlings. |
Response to dixiegrrrrl (Reply #4)
Tue Aug 26, 2014, 12:39 PM
Paladin (27,009 posts)
5. You're most welcome. (nt)
Response to dixiegrrrrl (Reply #2)
Tue Aug 26, 2014, 05:09 PM
meathead (63 posts)
6. I grew up enjoying hunting
The dove are tasty, but you need a few to make a main course. I usually the stuff the breast with cream cheese and jalapeņo, wrap in bacon and grill them. Makes a great appetizer!
![]() I also make fine furniture as an avocation. There is much to be said for being capable in many diverse endeavors. |
Response to dixiegrrrrl (Reply #2)
Wed Aug 27, 2014, 10:00 AM
Eleanors38 (18,318 posts)
10. Dressing them out takes only a few minutes; a limit of 15,
Less than an hour. Most hunters just peel back the skin & feathers in one operation, after snipping off the wings. Here's something counter-intuitive: I put them in the fridge for a week first, feathers, guts and all. They age wonderfully, and taste better!
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Response to meathead (Original post)
Wed Aug 27, 2014, 03:13 AM
Eleanors38 (18,318 posts)
7. Most definitely! I will be a hundred miles NW of Austin...
in a field blooming with sunflowers, and fed by a spring out of the mesa. The fellow who owns the little ranch reports both species of native doves -- mourning & whitewing -- are thick in numbers. We usually have 4 - 5 in the field. Should be a great time.
I make my doves just the way pictured, and also by cast iron skillet browning (after dredging in flower), then adding milk, cutting back the heat & covering. I cook them down to a thick gravy/crust, and serve over grits. Hot tea rounds out a wonderful deep-south breakfast! |
Response to Eleanors38 (Reply #7)
Wed Aug 27, 2014, 07:29 AM
meathead (63 posts)