Killing doves won’t bring back pheasants

I recently came across a struck mourning dove on the road. Its mate was frantically circling the still-warm carcass. If only it were September and I were a caring hunter I could have “managed” the surviving mate's desperate misery with a simple shot.

I'm ambivalent about hunting and hunters. They have reasons to hunt that are fair and legitimate and it's pointless to argue. But disappearing revenue generated by declining quail and pheasant populations, or wanting to spend time outdoors with friends and family, aren't legitimate reasons to hunt doves.

Quail are disappearing because Iowa habitat has been lost to sprawl and vast systems of monospecific-agriculture. Pheasants are non-native and marginally adapted to what little good habitat remains in Iowa. Factor in extreme weather and accelerating climate change, and it's going to be a challenge for any population to survive.

Want to increase the quail and pheasant populations? Want to spend time outdoors? Invest in a bicycle and camping gear and take your kids on a bike or nature trail. Support your city, county and state parks. Rebuild native habitat in your backyard. Killing doves because there aren't any quail or pheasants isn't conserving anything Iowa has lost.

Thomas J. Havran

Amana