MT DOVE, CRANE AND COMMON SNIPE

DOVE, CRANE AND COMMON (WILSON’S) SNIPE SEASONS SET             

"The best time to hunt mourning doves is generally the first few days of the season," said Jim Hansen, Migratory Bird Coordinator with FWP. "A cool front in early September with nighttime temperatures into the low 40s will send a lot of doves south, especially the young-of-the-year.  Adult males tend to be the last to leave."

The mourning dove season is Sept. 1 – Oct. 30 and the bag limit is 15 daily and 30 in possession.

Scouting in advance of your hunt will help. Knowing that doves like to roost in a dead tree, need food perhaps from a crop field, and need a drink of water may help you find places where doves are concentrated.

Surveys indicate stable numbers of doves over the past 10 years in Montana.

Sandhill crane seasons shape up this way:

• Sandhill crane--(Pacific Flyway)—Sept. 9-17; permit only, application deadline is past.
• Sandhill crane (Central Flyway:Wheatland County and a portion of Sweetgrass County)—Sept. 9-17: permit only, application deadline is past.
• Sandhill crane (Central Flyway)—Sept. 23-Nov. 19; free permit required. Hunters  can obtain the required free permit from the Bowdoin National Wildlife Refuge, the Medicine Lake National Refuge and from FWP in Helena, Glasgow, Billings, and Miles City. Check regulations for open areas.

The permit only hunting season is Sept. 9-17 for the Rocky Mountain population of cranes that nest in western and central Montana and surrounding states and number about 20,000.  This population is closely regulated, with only a limited number of permits available to those who apply. Hunting is in three areas in the Pacific Flyway in western Montana and one in the Central Flyway part of the state (Wheatland and part of Sweetgrass counties), with a limit of one crane per permit.

             Sandhill crane hunting for other parts of the Central Flyway in Montana, north and east of Interstate Highway 90, is Sept. 23-Nov. 19. The bag limit is three daily and six in possession. Sandhill crane hunters in this area need a free permit that can be obtained from the FWP Helena office; from FWP regional offices in Billings, Miles City, or Glasgow; or from Medicine Lake or Bowdoin National Wildlife Refuges. 

Cranes in this portion of the state are known as lesser sandhill cranes. They migrate through Montana, but do not nest here. With a population of around 400,000 birds, less restricted hunting is allowed.  Recent research using satellite telemetry shows that many of the cranes from this population pass through eastern Montana to nest in Siberia and winter in Texas. 

"It's tough to hunt these migrating cranes," Hansen said, "because they come through a wide area of eastern Montana and often don’t stop long at any one place." 

The Common (Wilson’s) snipe season is Sept. 1-Dec. 16, with a bag limit of eight daily and 16 in possession. 

             Migratory bird hunters must be HIP—Harvest Information Program—certified before they purchase a Montana migratory bird license by taking a few moments to answer harvest questions.

             Regulations for webless species of migratory game birds are available on the FWP web site at fwp.mt.gov under Hunting, and print copies will be available in late August at FWP regional offices and license providers.