Archived Outdoors

Dove season opens Saturday

Mourning dove. File photo Mourning dove. File photo

The hunting season for mourning and white-winged doves opens Saturday, Sept. 2, and will be separated into three segments.

Hunting may occur Sept. 2 through Oct. 7, Nov. 11-25 and Dec. 9 through Jan. 31, 2024. The daily bag limit is 15 mourning or white-winged doves, either as single species or combined, and shooting hours are from 30 minutes before sunrise to sunset. Hunting of migratory game birds, including doves, by any method is not allowed on Sundays. It is illegal to dove hunt with a shotgun that can hold more than three shells, unless it is plugged with a one-piece filler incapable of removal without disassembling the gun, so its total capacity does not exceed three shells.

Migratory game bird hunters, including lifetime license holders, are required to register in the federal Harvest Information Program, a survey method developed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to collect more reliable estimates of migratory game bird harvests throughout the country. HIP certification is available July 1-April 1 and expires June 30 each year.

To purchase a license, visit license.gooutdoorsnorthcarolina.com.

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