The cooing of the mourning dove is a familiar sound around most suburban and rural homesteads.

The robin-sized birds frequently visit agricultural areas, backyard bird feeders and any mining or any earth-moving sites. The mourning dove is our most populous migratory species with an estimated 350 million birds and have an annual harvest of 20 million.

Pennsylvania hunters’ number a modest 16,000 hunters with a harvest of an estimated 100,000 annually. The split season opened Friday and runs through Nov. 21 and then again in December.

A Pennsylvania general hunting license is required as well as a state migratory bird license for all hunters 12 and older. Hunting doves requires camouflaged clothing and concealment.

Doves have excellent eyesight and will flair off at any sign of movement or danger. Hunters use blinds, field edges and tree line cover to hunt doves successfully. The Pennsylvania Game Commission manages dove hunting fields and plantings as part of their game projects and can be found on the PGC website.

The PGC recommends the use of non-toxic bird shot as doves will ingest lead pellets found laying on the bare ground or in field areas.

The primary habitat associated with dove hunting include; food areas with grain-like grasses, corn, and winter wheat. Bare ground areas that provide grit and dusting areas, a water source like ponds and puddles, daytime resting areas like power lines and tree snags, and evening roosting areas, especially conifer thickets and tree lines.

Mourning doves have a typical life span of less than one year, but can live for up to 30 years old as evidenced by a tagged bird. They are prolific breeders with up to six broods annually of 1-2 eggs per nest.

Seldom do you find single birds as they prefer grouping together with a number of their species and during their migration number in the hundreds, if not thousands of birds. We have a resident population of mourning doves in Butler County and they are frequent visitors to backyard bird feeders.

We have had as many as 50 birds land in our gravel lane and search for grit or grains all throughout the winter months. They will take flight easily with a whistling sound as they flush from the ground. They are often the target species for various hawks and predators as evidenced by the piles of gray feathers you might find or witness by a predator in the act.

There really isn’t much edible meat on the dove other than its breast area. Hunters will prepare dove breasts with various recipes and it likely takes 5-6 breasts for a meal. I have eaten dove prepared with many recipes that copy cat chicken dishes and found it to be lean and tender. The field dressing of doves should be done at your home and remember to keep them in a cooler with ice as you are hunting in some fairly warm weather.

In other news. the doe licenses are finally sold out for WMU 1A and WMU 2D. Plenty of licenses are available for Allegheny and Greene Counties, however, hunting access and permission is a big problem. Allegheny County is studying the use of archery hunting in their county parks as one way to control the deer population. There is a significant problem with the deer population, social perceptions and landowner access permission.

No one wants auto collisions, landscape plantings destroyed or disease spreading among the herd. Yet people also have issues with hunters close to their homes and parks. Oh boy … good luck with all of that.

In the meantime, Pennsylvania archery season is scheduled to open statewide on Sept. 30. The forecast for hunting success in the commonwealth is very promising with many deer seen in all locales. Bucks are sporting nice racks and the doe population appears to be booming in our region.

We have witnessed both twins and triplets accompanying their mother as they learn the business of being a deer. Unfortunately, there also has been quite a few fawns hit on the roadways as they are not very wary as they scoot across highways following their mothers.

A good rule is to slow down and expect to see a youngster follow the adult deer. Until we meet again, have a great Labor Day!

Jay Hewitt is an outdoor columnist for the Butler Eagle