by Gary Rollins
It was a hot, dusty Sunday afternoon and the second day of Texas’ Whitewing Dove season. The previous day had been less than productive. The lingering Texas drought combined with triple digit temperatures had convinced the doves to go someplace else.
My hunting buddy and I hunkered down in the tree line adjacent to a maize field and began the waiting game.
Those who have spent many hours in the fields hoping to bag a limit of doves know those high-flying grey ghosts usually vector their way through the neighborhood. It makes sense to squat down and become invisible along a tree line. Occasionally, doves pinpoint a lone tree that serves as a pivot point as they fly to either a field of grub or a pond. This is where you want to be either early in the morning or late in the afternoon.
This day, as my pal and I were settling in, we spotted a couple of dudes preparing for the evening’s hunt. One was wearing a bright yellow t-shirt and that told us he was probably not an experienced dove hunter.
He and his partner had staked out a spot on a nearby fence line as they settled in for the afternoon’s shoot with coolers close at hand. One of the rookies meandered out into the field and planted a pole with a fake dove at the tip-top equipped with a pair of battery-powered wings that rotated furiously. They upped their ante by clipping other dove decoys to nearby bushes.
We hooted to ourselves as we contemplated the novices who had dared to enter our privileged domain. Privileged is the right word. Our spot on the field had cost each of us $100 for the afternoon.
As the afternoon progressed, my buddy and I scanned the skies and prepared ourselves for a successful evening’s hunt.
Soon, two Whitewing doves zipped onto the horizon. Although they might have been expected to fly right toward us and down the tree line, they did a hard right turn as they spotted the rapidly-spinning wings of the dove decoy. They didn’t have a chance. Both doves hit the ground about the same time my jaw hit the ground.
It happened again and again. Along the way, my hunting companion and I managed to nail a few doves, but those two rank rookies cleaned up with their battery-powered decoy.
As we packed up to depart, we both concluded it might be a good idea to invest in one of those decoys.
As this season approaches, I now have two Mojo doves in my stash along with a dozen fake doves to sweeten the pot. At the recent DU Convention in Dallas, the guys at Mojo Outdoors attracted a huge crowd. You can now buy Mojo Doves, Mallards, Gadwall and Teal. They also displayed a Goose decoy that was about the size of a Piper Cub!
Check their website at
www.mojooutdoors.com. Mojo, by the way, translates to mean “magic.” I am now a believer.
