Dove season will open, Saturday, September 2nd.
“It’s kind of the first kick off of the season that hunters are looking forward to,” said Houston Havens, Water Fowl Program Coordinator with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks. “Hopefully, that will also be timed with some cooler weather, signaling the end of summer and the start of fall.”
Havens said the start of the hunting season is about more than just hunting.
“It’s not only the starting of the hunting season for a lot of people but also a social time for people to get out and enjoy spending time with family and friends in the field,” said Havens. “A lot of cooking, grilling out is usually associated with it, and the beginning of college football. It’s a big weekend for Mississippi sportsmen.”
However, Havens said there are a few things that hunters need to get before they hit the fields.
“Mississippi hunters first of all need to be sure that they have a current Mississippi hunting license and that also needs to be paired with the harvest information program registration,” said Havens. “When a hunter buys a hunting license they should be asked questions about whether or not they hunted migratory birds the previous year and if they intend to hunt migratory birds this year.”
Havens continued.
“If you’re planning on hunting public fields, such as wildlife management area under the MDWFP management, then they would also need to be sure that they have a wildlife management area permit for any other public areas under federal management, they would need to be sure that they have what is required to hunt those areas.”
The MDWFP said the bag limit on doves is 15 birds per day.
However, Havens said the possession limit is three times the daily bag limit for migratory birds.
“That just means that if the person hunts three days in a row, they could have those three daily bag limits in their possession at their home,” said Havens.
MDWFP said shooting hours are 30 minutes before sunrise, until sunset for migratory birds.
Havens added that the Canada Goose season will also open September 1st.
“The Canada goose season also opens September 1st, so hunters might want to, if they have the opportunity to be able to hunt multiple species, if they have an area where Canada geese are using, they can also be on the lookout for those,” said Havens.
The bag limit on September Canada Geese is five per day and Havens said there are a few more rules that hunters need to follow when looking for Canada Geese.
“Canada Geese are water fowl and so a state and federal water fowl stamp are required to hunt those, also hunters are required to use non-toxic shot for Canada Geese,” said Havens.
