BY MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Summer will officially become fall on Sept. 23. That means some of the more popular hunting seasons are just around the corner. Dove season kicks things off on Sept. 1, and Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Manager Jason Wagner said numbers have been looking up.
"It seems like we've had a higher than-normal number of doves in the area," he said. "This last cold front we got down in the 50s. Usually, when it gets down in the 50s it pushes some of the birds out a little bit so we might have actually lost some compared to what we had not too long ago."
Dove hunters will need a hunting license and a HIP stamp, and non-toxic shot is required if hunting at Cheyenne Bottoms. Teal season for the low plains area east of U.S. 283 Highway, including the Bottoms, begins on Sept. 9.
"The habitat conditions are prime out there," Wagner said. "It sounds like bird numbers are prime. It sounds like the blue-winged teal had a phenomenal hatch up north so if we get a little bit more water, it could be lights out at the Bottoms."
Wagner also reminds hunters that trail cameras are banned for hunting purposes on public lands. Baiting while hunting or preparing to hunt on public lands is also illegal.