When I think about doves, my mind wanders back both in time and place. I’m in southwest Texas after the Civil War, listening in on a conversation between “Augustus McCrae” and “Captain Woodrow F. Call” played by Robert Duvall and Tommy Lee Jones. Gus has been persuaded to head west with a herd of cattle to establish a ranch in Montana. I see the buckboard wagon, with the image of a dove etched on wood, beginning the journey west to flourish.
Out west it seems that hunters may have the opportunity to harvest Mourning Doves in the fall of 2028 in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. With American autumn dove populations estimated to be 337,000,000, hunting doves is legal, with an annual average of 17,000,000 being harvested. Mourning Doves use southern Canada as home with Alberta’s breeding population estimated to number 430,000. Doves exiting Alberta in autumn could be as high as 1,400,000, viewed as a population large enough to sustain hunting. Using Ontario’s hunting success rate over a ten year period, about 10,000 doves would be shot in Alberta. The proposal includes daily bag limits of 15, with a legal possession limit of 45.
In the provincial proposals, hunting a sustainable bird for many years may be possible. More people may take up hunting, considering the high population count and low amount of gear and cost needed to hunt this species. Mourning Doves are already hunted in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec and with their expanding numbers more opportunities become available.
A second dove, the Eurasian-collared Dove, makes its home in central Alberta and its numbers are increasing. This dove is notably larger than the Mourning Dove, and sports a distinctive collar ring on the back of its neck. This larger dove overwinters in Alberta and is becoming well established.
I don’t recall Augustus or Captain Call ever eating doves on their long journey to Montana. Curious, I searched for dove recipes. Apparently doves are compared to filet mignon, best served with bacon, cream sauces or intense spices. Dove breasts are used in “Bacon-Wrapped Poppers”, “Dove Nuggets” or they can be simply pan-fried. For gourmet delights, one might consider “Grilled Doves la Mancha”, “Butter-seared Dove with Garlic and Herbs”, “Peppered Dove with Cream Sauce or “Smoked Doves with a Maple Glaze”. Rather than risking their lives heading to Montana, a dove recipe cookbook, might have fed the boys at the “Hat Creek Cattle Company” in Texas and Gus would certainly have survived to the end of the series.
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