“The opening day of dove hunting season is a highly anticipated event for wing shooters, and it always feels like the big kick-off for the fall hunting season,” says Alan Isler, Chief of the WRD Game Management Section. “During the dove season, whether it is opening day or later in the season, I want to encourage you to make plans to visit a public dove field. Game management staff have been working hard to prepare these fields and attract as many doves as possible.”
The official 2022-2023 dove season hunting dates are Sept. 3-Oct. 9, Nov. 19-27 and Dec. 19 – Jan. 31. Statewide shooting hours for all dove seasons are one-half hour before sunrise to sunset.
More Dove Season Tips and Information:
- Dove Field Forecast (GeorgiaWildlife.com/hunting/dove): The dove field forecast identifies available crops and anticipated hunting conditions for opening day.
- Regulations Quick Review: The daily bag limit is 15 doves per hunter. Collared doves may be taken and do not count toward your daily limit. Shotguns must be plugged to hold no more than three shot shells while hunting doves. Hunters must obtain permission from landowners before hunting on private property.
- Report Banded Doves: In 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in cooperation with several states, including Georgia, initiated an ongoing dove banding project. Hunters can participate in this conservation effort by examining harvested doves for leg bands and reporting band numbers to the USFWS at www.reportband.gov.
- Private Field Plans? Make Sure the Field is Legal: Check out the online brochure, “Dove Hunting and Agricultural Practices in Georgia,” available at GeorgiaWildlife.com/migratory-bird-info.
- Licenses Needed: Hunters 16 years of age and older need to have a hunting license and a Georgia Migratory Bird Stamp. This stamp is how Georgia participates in the federal Harvest Information Program (HIP). Some licenses allow the license holder to get the Georgia Migratory Bird Stamp at no cost. Hunters may purchase licenses online at GoOutdoorsGeorgia.com, by phone at 1-800-366-2661 or at license vendor locations (list of vendors available online).
For more information on dove hunting in Georgia, visit GeorgiaWildlife.com/migratory-bird-info.
Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division
