Published 5:15 am Saturday, August 22, 2026
By Steve Knight
If I had to describe myself as one type of hunter or fisherman it would start with bird hunter, and more specifically dove hunter.
It is what I grew up doing. My dad was not a great fisherman, and we did not have a boat or any ponds to fish. When I was young, we did not have friends with places to deer hunt, and to that point did not even have a rifle of any caliber in the house.
But we did have access to a lot of land to dove hunt each fall, and it was cheap. A shotgun, a couple of boxes of shells and a hunting license and we were good to go. Back in those days we did not even need camouflaged clothing. I guess the birds were not as smart.
I first tagged along with my dad, but when I was able to drive, my hunting friends and I would load up the car right after school and go for an evening hunt. In those days hunting did not start until noon by law. That did not come until later, and I quickly converted because it was nice to beat the Texas heat that lingered into September.
Afternoon shoots were, and still are, reserved for those days when there is a chance of a good tank shoot. Surprisingly, the concept of all-day shooting versus half-day continues to be an issue with some hunters. The thought is that all-day hunting causes birds to leave an area quicker than they would with half-day hunting.
“We’re not anywhere near a point where we are overharvesting doves, so half-day versus full-day hunting really comes down to the question; are we putting too much pressure on birds, and how does that relate to hunter success,” said Owen Fitzsimmons, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s dove program leader.


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“Migratory birds respond very quickly to pressure. When you hunt a field two to three days in a row, you assume you’re seeing the same birds coming into the field day after day. What we are learning through some of the GPS tags we’re putting on birds these days is that the birds you see on day one are likely not the same birds you see on day two. That may be hard to believe, especially in a field with thousands of birds coming to it, but it’s very clear when you watch bird movement in real time with GPS tags.”
Fitzsimmons said what biologists are seeing with most migratory species is that they are one-and-done when shot at, missed and they are headed elsewhere.
“Now that may not be true in an area with low hunting pressure, but I absolutely think it’s true in fields with moderate to high hunting pressure. It’s especially true in a year like this one where the birds have a lot of food and water options to choose from. So, I agree that if you hunt a field morning and afternoon, it won’t take long to blow birds out of that field,” Fitzsimmons said.
He added that while it is true half-day hunting could improve hunter success in a single field because it reduces pressure there, from a biological perspective it does not matter because full-day hunting is not negatively impacting the dove population. Of course, another thought is that outfitters and landowners have the option of limiting hunting in a field to half-day if they desire. As for whether morning or afternoon hunting is a better option, that seems to be up to personal preference based on the situation.
“To my knowledge there aren’t any studies on this, but it makes for a real good debate around a campfire. My opinion is that it depends on conditions and where you’re hunting. When it’s hot and dry, afternoon hunting at a water hole is likely to be a better bet. If you’re hunting a food plot, then early in the morning may be better. You just have to scout the birds and see,” Fitzsimmons said.
Beyond when to hunt, Texas’ 350,000 dove hunters generally are finding themselves in better shape when it comes to bird numbers than other parts of the country.
“Although there is some indication that mourning doves are very slowly declining nationwide, our dove populations in Texas continue to be resilient with no real signs of any long-term decline. We have conducted our current statewide spring dove surveys since 2008. We have certainly seen some annual variability across time, with estimates well below average in some years and well above average in others, but our mourning dove population trend over the past 18 years is increasingly slightly, and our white-winged dove population continues to hover near record highs every year as they continue to expand across the southern U.S.,” Fitzsimmons said.  
While Texas dove hunter numbers are also steady, they are hunting slightly less, with hunters now going on average four hunts per year, down from five.
“I’m not sure what to attribute that to, but it may have to do with hunter access to places to hunt, or maybe just that folks are generally busier than we used to be and don’t get out as much,” Fitzsimmons said.
Where it used to be easy to find a field to hunt, most hunters now book through outfitters, and that has led from dove hunting being a cheap outing to costing $1000 or more for a packaged hunt. Day hunts run $100 and up, making the price per pound of dove meat expensive when everything is factored in.
There is one major change to dove hunting in Texas this year with the entire state opening Sept. 1, with the elimination of the special South Texas whitewing season as part of a three-year change evaluation.
The North zone will close Nov. 8 and then reopen Dec. 18-Jan. 7. The Central zone will close Oct. 25 and reopen Dec. 11-Jan. 14, while the South zone closes Oct. 25, and then open Dec. 18-Jan. 21 for the winter season. The statewide daily bag limit is 15 birds, with no more than two being white-tipped doves.


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