Whitewing

Not everyone in the United States has the opportunity to go whitewing dove hunting, but then again not everyone lives in Texas! And that makes the folks in the Lone Star State very lucky for several reasons. Whitewing doves are abundant in Texas, but that was not always the case. They have really increased in number over the past two decades. The whitewing is a dove whose native range extends from the south-western United States and down through Texas and into Mexico. The dove gets its descriptive name is from the white-marked feathers on the upper wing coverts. The tail is shorter and more blunt or rounded when compared to the mourning doves’ long and pointed tail.

In the past, most populations of whitewings were migratory, wintering in Mexico and Central America. However, now more and more doves seem to be over-wintering in Texas’ North and Central Dove Hunting Zone. Whitewing dove habitat includes brushlands, woodlands and farmlands. Females build a simple stick nest in a tree and lay two white to slightly off-white and unmarked eggs. In flight, a whitewing dove can be fast and direct or more slow and floaty. This probably won’t surprise anyone, but I prefer dove hunting on the days when the birds are flying slow!

Whitewing doves are bigger, more gregarious than mourning doves. Whitewing are also more aggressive around concentrated feeding areas, which is great during the dove hunting season. They are brownish-gray above and gray below and have a bold white wing patch that appears as a brilliant white crescent in flight. This white on their wing is also visible when the bird is at rest. Adult doves, both male and female, have a patch of brilliant blue skin around each eye and a long, dark mark on the lower face. Their eyes, legs, and feet are red. Adult birds are good looking animals. Juveniles birds are more gray and do not posses the distinctive blue eye ring. In addition, their legs and feet are brownish in color.

Like mourning doves, whitewing doves feed on a variety of seeds, grains, and fruits and can move into productive feeding areas in large flocks. Whitewing tend to roost in large colonies, with most doves roosting in neighborhoods in and around towns and cities. Some groups will use orchards or blocks of woods found outside of human populated areas. Whitewing doves will move out of suburban areas each day to feed, making for great dove hunting for hunters positions along their flyways and feeding fields.