Georgia's first dove season runs from Saturday, Sept. 6 through Sept. 21, and the second season from Oct. 11 through Oct. 19. The final season will be Nov. 27 through Jan. 10

Hunting hours are from onehalf hour before sunrise to sunset except for the opening day when hunting will be limited from noon to sunset.

As usual, the start of dove season will be hot and with the latest rains, humid. The gnats and swamp raised mosquitos will be in full strength. This first season dove hunting is hot, sometimes with the heat factor in a dove field exceeding 100 degrees.

Being prepared for such conditions by having plenty of drinking water and seeking shade when needed is important.

Dress appropriately. Light, cool clothing is a must. Heat strokes are nothing to fool with. They can be fatal. Sun screen and insect repellent also should be on the list to carry to the field.

Ticks can be a problem when hunting near woodlands. A good shade tree will be a premium.

Watch where you step. Snakes are on the move in the fields and woodlands too.

The state of Georgia has been regulating how people hunt doves for 80 years or longer.

Like it or not the rules are not like the regular hunters would like.

Seems like plantation owners and big farm owners have the advantage with "growing" dove food. Smaller farmers and regular hunters must watch what's in the fields for dove to eat for fear of hunting over bait.

This has been a soar "rule" for

20

many years. These "rules" are

under state and federal regulations.

30

It looks like it may be a good

season.

According to the U.S. Fish

40 and Wildlife, the agency which

keeps track of migratory fowl, stated that approximately a

half-billion doves across the

50

nation will be heading south

this winter.

The federal agency says states

40 can authorize no more than 70

hunting days per season for

doves, and they must occur between

30 Sept. 1 and Jan. 15.

In Georgia, the state Department of Natural Resources, which regulates hunting and fishing, has created three dovehunting periods —- September, October and the late season, which begins in late November and ends in January.

The agency this year adjusted the calendar slightly, moving back the October hunt by one week. The change gives South Georgia farmers more time to harvest crops, then turn their attention to dove hunting.

One change hunters should like: for the first time, shooters can take up to 15 doves a day, the federal limit. In the past, they had to stop at 12. The agency's Board of Natural Resources, whose duties include setting hunting seasons and bag limits, approved the change Wednesday.

Bowers' enthusiasm for dove hunting is shared by thousands. About 65,000 Georgians are licensed to hunt doves this year, DNR figures show. They should shoot about 1.3 million this season.

To hunt doves, the state Department of Natural Resources says you need to know the following:

Dove hunters 17 and older must have a Georgia hunting license, as well as a migratory bird harvest information program, or HIP, permit. Anyone hunting on a state wildlife management area, or WMA, needs a WMA license. Hunters may buy licenses at more than 1,000 license locations or online at www.gohuntgeorgia. com. HIP permits are free.

Shooting hours are noon to sunset on opening day. All other days commence a halfhour before sunrise and last until sundown. The sunrise and sunset times for each day are on page 43 of the 2008- 09 Georgia Hunting Seasons and Regulations guide. It's online, too.

The daily limit has been raised from 12 birds to 15.

Any auto-loading or other repeating shotgun must be plugged to hold no more than three shot shells.

If you are hunting on private land, get permission from the landowner. For more information