By Jim Harris, Managing Editor, Arkansas Wildlife Magazine
LITTLE ROCK — Dove hunters will have twice the opportunity as last year through the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s private land permit hunts this upcoming season, with hunts available throughout the state. The permit application process for the AGFC’s private dove field lease program, as well as applying for the first weekend of public hunts at four wildlife management areas, begins Aug. 1 and runs through Aug. 15. All permit applications will be collected online at www.agfc.com/licenses or through the AGFC’s smartphone app.
The AGFC Private Lands Habitat Division has lined up six fields this year, compared with three available during the 2024-25 dove season, according to Michelle Furr, AGFC Private Land Habitat Division Program coordinator. Five of the fields are planted with sunflowers. The sixth field, in White County, lost its sunflowers because of rain, hail and deer damage. According to Furr — it will be top-sown in wheat.
The fields are privately owned, and landowners are paid through the program to make the acreage available for permit draw hunting; landowners spray herbicide and plant the fields, then maintain them, including disking before the season. All five sunflower fields will be hunted for the first three Saturdays of the season (Sept. 6, 13, 20); the wheat field will be hunted the first two Saturdays.
“We were able to increase the fields from three to six,” Furr said. “We usually sign up more than three, but last year we had some fields fall through late because of weather. Not as many fell through this time, though. We’ve had good growing weather lately for sunflowers. Typically what knocks out sunflowers is a lot of rain early.”
She said that outside of the White County field, the other five fields “did fantastic” in growing sunflowers.
On most of the AGFC’s public land managed for dove hunting with either sunflowers or top-sown wheat, access will be on a first-come, first-served basis throughout the season. However, WMA hunting during the first weekend of the season (Sept. 6-7) on Camp Robinson Special Use Area (Faulkner County), Shirey Bay Rainey Brake’s Powhatan Field (Lawrence County), Black River WMA’s Brookings Field (Clay County) and Frog Bayou’s Powerline Field (Crawford County) is restricted to permit-hunting only. Application for those four permits will be held concurrently with the private land permit applications.
Each permit holder for drawn hunts may bring one guest, but the two must hunt together. Once the draw has been completed, winners will be sent personalized instructions on how to access the field they chose in the application process, including where to park. Furr said the fields in Fulton County and Little River County will have shooting stations marked out; the other four will be first-come, first-served as to where permit hunters may set up. WMAs with permit hunts will not be marked with shooting stations.
The private land permit fields will serve Arkansas dove hunters in all quadrants of the state and in close proximity to population centers in those regions.
“Establishing a field in Northwest Arkansas this year was a high priority for us, given the significant population density in that area,” Furr said. “The field we secured is just west of Fayetteville, 20 acres. There is a 26-acre field in the Arkansas River Valley in Franklin County, near Ozark. Another that is 60 acres is in southwest Arkansas near Texarkana, in Little River County, with another that is 50 acres near Mountain Home in Fulton County. We have a southeast Arkansas field in Drew County that is 47 acres. And then the 28-acre field in White County.”
Furr said, “The Drew County field, that’s one I’m really excited about. It was planted in early April, therefore should have plenty of time to fully mature. If weather holds, there should be plenty of seed on the ground.”
The Saturday-only hunting for the private land permits that was used by the Private Lands Habitat Division last season “seems to work really well,” Furr said. “By opening hunting only on Saturdays, and allowing a week-long rest, the dove have ample time without pressure, leading to a good hunt.”
Dove season is Sept. 6-Oct. 26 and Dec. 8-Jan. 15. Dove hunters are required to have a free updated Harvest Information Program registration with their legal hunting license. They are not required to have any waterfowl stamps. Hunters under 16 are not required to carry a legal license or HIP registration.
Visit www.agfc.com/dove for more information on dove hunting and permit-based dove hunts in Arkansas.
