Hunting Information

Press Release from California Department of Fish & Game

"This year is going to be a great year for upland game bird hunting" says Scott Sewell, California Department of Fish and Game's Wildlife Habitat Supervisor and southern California coordinator for the Game Bird Heritage hunt program. Locations for dove hunts in Tehachapi and Gorman have been planted with dove fields. The Department of Fish and Game has partnered with Quail Unlimited, Santa Clarita Valley Chapter, to offer a wild quail hunt and a planted bob white quail hunt this year at Gorman. "It will be a blast," says Sewell, who has been coordinating these hunts for seven years. "The public continues to show significant interest in these hunt programs over the past several years, and this year we plan to serve the public's hunting needs the best we can."

"This past year's rain and early green up will give southern California a larger than normal quail and chukar population," Sewell says. "With brood count surveys and reports from numerous reliable sources, we are looking forward to a tremendous year for upland hunting."

NEWS RELEASE - CA Dept. of Fish & Game, Los Alamitos - July 8, 2005

APPLICATIONS NOW BEING ACCEPTED FOR SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DOVE, QUAIL, AND SPECIAL PHEASANT HUNTS SPONSORED BY DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME

Contact: Scott Sewell, South Coast Region (562) 342-7147

The California Department of Fish and Game wants the public to know that now is the time to start applying for this year’s hunts in southern California. The Department will be conducting 14 dove hunts, 2 quail hunts, and 2 dove and quail combination hunts. The deadline to apply for dove and quail hunts and participate in the random drawing is August 3, 2005.

Additionally, 65 Special Pheasant Hunts will be held in southern California, including 33 Family, 3 Women’s, and 29 Junior pheasant hunts. The deadline to submit applications for these hunts is September 7, 2005.

Public response to the pheasant hunts continues to be tremendous. Due to the popularity of this program and the large number of participants each year, the Department of Fish and Game is continuing to offer hunting opportunities to the public. This year, Department of Fish and Game employees have worked very hard to ensure quality hunting experiences in southern California..

The Game Bird Heritage Program is funded through the sales of Upland Game Bird Stamps. There are many game bird hunters throughout southern California, so we are trying to accommodate as many as possible with hunts in Imperial, Los Angeles, Mono, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties, and a bonus hunt area added in Tehachapi.

With the help of highly dedicated and motivated hunt partners and volunteers, we are able to conduct safe, inspiring, and educational hunting opportunities.

Geared primarily to new hunters, the Department has implemented a process enabling newly licensed California hunters who receive hunter education certificates this year to also obtain a certificate allowing the new hunter to participate in the pheasant hunt of their choice without having to be part of the random drawing. This is a fabulous way for friends and families to plan for their hunting season. The Department is also encouraging former hunters to return to upland game bird hunting and provide opportunities for friends and families to pass on the tradition of responsible hunting values.

NEWS RELEASE - CA Dept. of Fish & Game, Los Alamitos - Page 2 June 29, 2005

Again, pheasant hunt applications must be received at the Fish and Game office in Los Alamitos no later than September 7, 2005.

Application information for dove, quail, and pheasants hunts can be obtained by contacting the Fish and Game hotline at (562) 342-7145 and will soon be available by visiting our web site at www.dfg.ca.gov.

All applications must be delivered to:

Department of Fish and Game

Attention: Game Bird Heritage Program

4665 Lampson Avenue, Suite C

Los Alamitos, California 90720

You can apply only once a year to the hunt of your choice, whether as an applicant or as a guest, so plan accordingly.

The Game Bird Heritage Program is offering these hunts to the public at no cost. These hunts are a wonderful way to promote safe and ethical hunting to friends and families. We hope to see many new hunters take advantage of these wonderful opportunities

Upland Game Bird Fields Map 2004-2005

Printable Version

HUNTING REPORTS

Dove Opener - Prospects for Dove Hunting this year looks very good.
Local areas: (Palmdale/Lancaster/Tehachapi) 2005 season looks much better than last year. Locals report that Doves have nested at least (3) three times since the beginning of this year. The opener should be good, depending on weather.
Barstow: (Camp Cady) Last year's season was momentous, Camp Cady had the best opener since the management take-over by Quail Unlimited. Many grain fields were planted and water were restored according to Camp Cady caretaker Bruce Kenyon. Bruce Kenyon reported that LIMITS were the rule on opening day. The 2005 season promises to be more of the same, but the word is out, there will be more hunters using Camp Cady this year. If you want to see more improvements to this treasure, join your local So. Cal Quail Unlimited chapter and/or make a donation of Time & Money. Remember, this project was funded by donations & Quail Unlimited chapters. Contact: westernqu@aol.com to see how to get involved.
Imperial Valley (Niland Area - See Map Above) Niland: area near Salton Sea again will be a hot spot for Mourning & White-Winged Doves. Over 20 fields have been planted with Milo, Wheat, & Sunflower by Quail Unlimited & Desert Wildlife Unlimited Volunteers.
Upper Colorado River Area (Blythe) SEE "Land Closure" for more information on 2005 season.

Lower Colorado River Area (Yuma / Winterhaven / Quechan Indian Reservation Areas): The 2005-06 season will be more of the same as last year, which was probably the BEST opener in this area in years! Winterhaven, California (Quechan Indian Reservation) & Yuma, Arizona will have thousand upon thousand of birds in the area if the normal Monsoon weather is calm, if not the birds will start heading South. Members from the Santa Clarita Valley Quail Unlimited Chapter will make future reports after Opening Day!
Doves Hunter's be aware and take precautions for West Nile Virus!

Quail & Chukar Hunting - (As of 10/16/04) Quail Populations look great throughout the state. All local haunts will again have substantial birds in the area as long as we don't have any more wildfires or drought. (As of 12/1/04) Quail & Chukar Hunting is still great! The weather has been the only obstacle, snow, rain, wind, & COLD has been tough on hunters. With plenty of water the Chukar have not been coming down to the lower elevation, so hunters have had to go up to higher elevations to find them. Quail have been everywhere and limits have been common, but to remind hunter, Don't hunt the same covey Over & Over! Give them a chance to regroup & save some for breeding for next year, rotate your hunting spots.
Waterfowl
Pheasant Hunting - The only reports that have come in is from the Niland area near Salton Sea. Various QU members had reported that the sighting of Pheasants in the Niland area was good. Many pheasants were released by in the area by Riverside QU members & Desert Wildlife just before the opener. With hopes of bagging a (2) two bird limit on opening morning, hunting was a little dicey at best. A combination of TOO many hunters, Inexperience Hunters, Hunters without dogs or Hunters with lousy dogs, and general inconsiderate hunters, most hunters did not come back with limits. For the second year in a row, authorities with our DFG decided to FLOOD the fields on opening day. Whether this was done by accident or was deliberately it reduced the amount of huntable fields in the area, thus compressing hunters in remaining dry fields, Very poor field management on the part of DFG & their partners. This created a very DANGEROUS situation for all hunters & dogs. Season Ends Sunday December 26, 2004.
Dove Hunting (Second Half) - Second half (2004) of the season has been remarkably good. A little spotty in areas, but there are some still around. SCVQU member while doing a Youth habitat project @ Camp Cady saw lots of birds, but there marksmanship was a little off. SCVQU members also went down the the Indian Reservation near Winterhaven, Ca / Yuma, Az, some had to work for limits on the opener, but once you figured out their flight patterns, limits were common. Local birds have been rather challenging because of the unusual COLD weather Southern California has had this year. Season Ends Monday December 27, 2004.