Chasse aux écureuils, aux tourterelles et aux bernaches

[Animal 0]

Chasse en Virginie ce mois-ci -

Non mais, faut-il être assez lâche pour tuer de si petites bêtes ?

N'y-a-t-il pas plus innofensif qu'une tourterelle ?



Squirrel (ÉCUREUILS)



Dates: Sept. 1 - Jan. 31
Hours: 30 minutes prior to sunrise to 30 minutes after sunrise
Limit: Six per day
Licenses required: State or county hunting license; archery or muzzleloader license if applicable.
With many hunters' attention firmly affixed on big game, Virginia's squirrels don't attract nearly the pressure they got two decades ago.
Yet squirrels remain a relatively popular game species for not only a small core of dedicated hunters, but for many hunters who combine squirrel hunting with deer scouting.
Last year's hard mast boom should translate to great squirrel hunting across much of Virginia this season. The abundance of acorns in 2006 helped squirrels come into the breeding season in prime condition and that typically leads to high reproduction rates.
Mast crops are spottier this year, which will impact the hunting. Hunters who can find good stands of bearing oaks and hickories should find plenty of squirrels.




Mourning dove (TOURTERELLES TRISTES)

Dates: Sept. 1-29; Oct. 5-27; Dec. 26-Jan. 12
Hunting hours: Noon to sunset for first segment; 30 minutes before sunrise to sunset for second and third segments
Bag limit: 12 daily; 24 in possession.
Licenses required: Genera hunting license; Harvest Information Program (HIP) registration number.
A productive breeding season for mourning doves should translate to productive hunting, said Gary Costanzo, the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries biologist who oversees Virginia's dove program.
Weather may have been a contributing factor.
"A lot of times, dry years are productive years," Costanzo said.
With dove numbers so solid, the status of dove hunting fields will likely have the biggest impact on hunters' success.
Will there be many corn fields cut by opening day? Or will most fields remain uncut?
"If you come to opening day and there are only a few fields cut, it can really concentrate the doves," Costanzo said.
Under that scenario, hunters who have specifically prepared plots for doves could be sitting pretty in the early season. Costanzo said a number of hunters have been taking that route, with those who have planted sunflowers almost certain to enjoy fast action in the early season.

Canada goose (early) (OIES DU CANADA)


Dates: Sept. 1-25
Hours: 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset Sept. 1-15. 30 minutes before sunrise to sunset Sept. 17-25
Limit: Five daily; 10 in possession
Licenses required: Virginia hunting license, Federal waterfowl stamp, Virginia waterfowl stamp; Harvest Information Program (HIP) registration
Now in its 15th year, Virginia's early Canada goose season has proven and effective tool for managing a species that was well on its way to becoming a serious nuisance.
Virginia resident goose population was estimated to be more than 260,000 birds in 1998 and 1999, but now sits at about 150,000.
As would be expected, hunting success has fallen.
In 2000, the kill hit almost 60,000 birds. That included 13,400 in September and a whopping 44,000 during the late season.
Last year's kill was about 27,000, with 11,000 geese taken in September.
The drop in the population prompted the game department to resist some opportunities to further liberalize hunting regulations this fall.
Federal authorities had authorized states to allow unplugged shotguns, use electronic calls and allow hunting until 30 minutes past sunset. But Virginia only adopted the rule to allow hunting past sunset and will allow that for only part of the season.
"The one thing that hunters really wanted was the 30 minutes after sunset allowance," said biologist Gary Costanzo, who oversees the state's waterfowl program. "They don't want to hit them too hard, because they are seeing fewer geese in some cases."
The reduced population means five-bird limits are no longer a slam-dunk for hunters jump shooting geese on rivers such as the New, or for those who set up decoy spreads in agricultural fields and on big lakes.
Still, hunters who spend some time scouting over the next week should be able to enjoy decent hunting come Sept. 1.

http://www.roanoke.com/outdoors/wb/129232