There are at least seven species of doves in Louisiana, four of which—mourning, white-winged, Eurasian collared, and ringed-turtle doves—may be legally hunted.
LDWF’s wildlife management areas offer lottery hunts for youth hunters, physically challenged hunters, disabled veterans, and the general public to hunt alligator, deer, dove, turkey, and waterfowl. There are also lottery hunts at White Lake Wetlands Conservation Area.
doves of louisiana - identification and status (PDF) Dove Lottery Hunts
If you are required to be licensed to hunt migratory birds (ducks, coots, geese, doves, woodcock, rails, snipe, or gallinules), you must get a Harvest Information Program certification and carry proof of your HIP certification with you whenever you’re hunting migratory birds. If you are 17 and under you do not need a HIP certification unless you are participating in a WMA youth waterfowl lottery. You must get HIP certified in every state you hunt migratory birds.
Mandatory Harvest Information ProgramTo provide ample hunting opportunity for Louisiana residents, LDWF manages dove fields on state-owned wildlife management areas and leases private lands from farmers for dove hunting. Managers plant and manipulate crops and manage commercial agricultural fields to attract large numbers of doves to shooting areas during the hunting season. LDWF also offers free assistance to private landowners interested in managing their property for wildlife, including doves.
Dove Field INFORMATIONprivate land management assistanceData from LDWF's mourning dove banding is an essential part of the formula for estimating dove population size. The size of the dove population determines the hunting package (season) for each management unit. Additionally, banding helps estimate the effects of harvest on mourning dove populations.
Dove Banding Handout (PDF)A Migratory Bird Preservation Facility is any person, taxidermist, cold storage facility, locker plant, or hunting club that receives, possesses, or is in custody of any migratory game birds belonging to another person for purposes of picking, cleaning, freezing, processing, storage, or shipment. To operate as a Migratory Bird Preservation Facility, the facility must: