Weekly Migratory Bird Hunting Report

Weekly migratory bird hunting reports are posted from early September through early February.

North Zone Dove: Drier conditions have helped dove hunters the past few days. Grain fields of milo and corn continue to produce in the Panhandle north of Amarillo. Mourning doves have been best in the afternoon on the edges of fields. Abilene hunters have had good shoots in sunflowers. Red River hunters near Paris have scored in milo, corn and soybeans between showers. The early week front and another forecasted to push through later in the week should deposit more northern birds to the state. The season runs through Oct. 25. Prospects are good.

Central Zone Dove: San Antonio, Uvalde, Del Rio and fields just south of Abilene have held the most consistent shoots recently. Better flights have occurred lately with the absence of showers over the weekend. Whitewings continue to dominate San Antonio fields of corn and milo. Afternoon hunters have shot near-limits around treelines. High-flyers have trickled from South Zone fields near Uvalde. Katy, Hockley and Brookshire fields have been fair at best, and hunter participation has been scarce. Still some good whitewing shoots around Sealy and Columbus. Dayton and Beaumont fields have given up half-limits. The season runs through Oct. 25. Prospects are fair to good.

South Zone Dove: Hunters along the northern boundaries of the South Zone reported losing most of their birds last week with the cool front. El Campo and Bay City fields have given up half-limits to near-limits of whitewings. Port Lavaca has been steady. Better hunts have come from South Texas where whitewings have been good in milo, corn and wild sunflowers. The Rio Grande Valley has given up best hunts in the afternoon around water. Lytle, Three Rivers, Fashing and George West have seen a mixed bag of mourners and whitewings. Rice fields near Winnie and Wharton have been good for half-limits of mourners. The forecasted front should push new birds to the region. The season runs through Nov. 3. Prospects are fair to good.

Waterfowl Migration: Teal season along the coastal marshes and prairies was arguably the best in years. Many hunters reported seeing more birds than ever throughout the entire 16-day season. A new wave of bluewings arrived last week which made the last weekend of the season just as fast as opening weekend. The largest concentration of birds were seen in Colorado, Wharton and Jackson counties. Higher tides in the marshes allowed for steady shoots, despite hypersaline water levels from the drought. The first trickles of specklebellies were seen on the coast last week. A bright moon coupled with a couple of cool fronts this week should deposit more birds to Texas. Large flights of pintails worked teal hunters over the weekend along the prairies. Some hunters reported flights of wigeons as well. Regular duck season is set to open Oct. 31.

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On the Net:

Hunting Regulations: http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/annual/hunt/

2009-09-30

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