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Often birds are in town, not the 'field' #7934898 08/14/20 04:09 AM
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booskay Offline OP
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It's fairly common for doves to be all over town ( Temple) and very few out where the hunters are.. I suspect it is genetic ----------the birds in town, live and breed and pass their genes on about living in town. ------ The ones in the 'field' get shot and dont breed nearly as often as the ones in town, hence don't pass on their genes.
Just my theory,,,, any other ideas on why this happens ?

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935033 08/14/20 12:44 PM
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cleboje Offline
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I live in a sub-division and here is what I see on the east side of San Antonio...

Dove nest and raise their broods in the many, many trees that are in my subdivision in the spring and early summer...

From late summer on, especially in the mornings...I see many waves of dove leaving my subdivision to fly out to the surrounding fields...

In the evenings, I see the opposite...many waves of dove returning to their roosts in the subdivision...

I expect this same ritual is being repeated all over Texas...

It may be true that some dove shot are born and raised in the countryside, but it's also true that some dove shot are these "daily commuters" who were born and raised in the sub-divisions surrounding the cities...




Last edited by cleboje; 08/14/20 12:49 PM.
Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935129 08/14/20 01:56 PM
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I can't speak for Temple, but I've found that some of the best public hunting for doves is just outside of little towns. Birds love to roost in towns, but they come out in the mornings to the fields like clockwork to feed. Then at dusk it's back to town like clockwork. Towns are relatively safe areas to roost, but I can't agree that they have enough food resources to support resident and migratory birds. The backyard bird feeders just aren't enough. Are you hunting/scouting somewhere that has a significant food source? Grain and sunflower (native or planted) is a magnet.

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935159 08/14/20 02:19 PM
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Don't know why this is, but I have loads of white wings around my house, unfortunately in a subdivision in an area where opens fields are really becoming non existant. There is really no major food source for a 2 mile radius that I'm aware of. Where they are going to feed I have no idea. I know I stopped feeding my dogs out back, I saw many dove around the food bowls eating the dogs food, drinking their water, and crapping all over the back porch.
They need to pack up and move to the country.

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935267 08/14/20 03:22 PM
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I agree with this, when i went to Baylor i was lucky enough to get permission the corn fields about a mile and a half from campus. There wasn't many food sources around downtown obviously, so they would still come to feed and roost in the town. Alot of the city birds still come out of town they are just one track and back, will bounce fields until they find one not hunted.

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935291 08/14/20 03:44 PM
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I have white wings that live in my back yard. I only see them from April to December then I don't see them again until April. I have no idea where they go.


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Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935554 08/14/20 06:25 PM
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During the season whitewings roost in town but will load up in droves on a hot field not far from town. They prefer hanging out together in large colonies and will follow each other out of town to feed.

Mourning dove are much wilder in nature and prefer rural settings. You'll see a few in town but nothing like you'll encounter in the country. Most of them roost out of town in wooded areas.

Eurasian dove I find to be a mix of the two. Most of the colonies I've encountered roost and hang out in rural areas, but they prefer to be near structures. We have a place out of town and the Eurasians will fill up one of our back trees each evening, then fly a short way for food. They will fly over the houses in the area off and on throughout the day.

The easiest way to drive dove away, no matter the breed, is to shoot them coming or going off their roost. Do not set up near their roosting sites as they will learn to avoid those areas very quick - I learned from experience a long time ago.

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935601 08/14/20 06:56 PM
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Time for some drive by hunting!
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Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935728 08/14/20 07:58 PM
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Dove have become like the rest of this country.........moved to town for convenience!

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7935747 08/14/20 08:15 PM
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Sanger is loaded with White Wings. I sure can't find where they go in the mornings and afternoons but in 2 hours they are back. I could limit out every morning in my driveway. Not sure the neighbors would appreciate it though.


Bobby Barnett

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7937953 08/16/20 03:35 PM
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It's been my experience that town birds will feed in surrounding grain fields during the day and roost in town.
I've been on many white wing and mourning dove hunts where you could set your watch by this pattern.


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Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: 3kcattle] #7938440 08/16/20 10:04 PM
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Originally Posted by 3kcattle
Dove have become like the rest of this country.........moved to town for convenience!

Always plenty of food and water.


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Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7943074 08/20/20 02:17 AM
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Sealy TX has a big white wing population --out to fields in AM, in to roost PM...great hunts usually...

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7944944 08/21/20 04:15 PM
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Where I live south of Houston there,s always areas where the ground is being worked for residential and commercial development. These areas will explode in the spring and summer with native plants that provide lots of seed for all kinds of birds. We don,t have big dove numbers but there,s plenty around. I have a storage unit right next to a gun range and the dove will load up the power lines 100 yards away from the range. Of course no one is shooting at them.

Last edited by snogeese; 08/21/20 04:16 PM.

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Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7945047 08/21/20 05:50 PM
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Could have sworn this was a Dan post when I read the title...hell, even the opening post sounds like it

Re: Often birds are in town, not the 'field' [Re: booskay] #7947619 08/24/20 01:32 AM
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Hundreds of white wings as I walk my dog down the bayous in Katy...

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