Animal Welfare Groups Call on Minnesota Lawmakers to Restore Protections for Mourning Doves

May 21, 2007

Rep. Mike Jaros (DFL-Duluth) and Sen. Sandra Pappas (DFL-St. Paul) have introduced bills to restore Minnesota's longstanding tradition of protecting mourning doves from being shot for target practice. The Minnesota Humane Society and The Humane Society of the United States called on state lawmakers to support the legislation – H.F. 2501 and S.F. 2329 – and restore the dove shooting ban.

Mourning doves were a protected species in Minnesota for more than a half century, beginning in 1946, until 2004 when the legislature narrowly passed a bill to allow a dove shooting season. Rep. Jaros was joined in sponsoring the House bill by Reps. Ron Erhardt (R-Edina), Thomas Huntley (DFL-Duluth), Phyllis Kahn (DFL-Minneapolis), Gene Pelowski, Jr. (DFL-Winona) and Ken Tschumper (DFL-La Crescent).  Sen. Pappas was joined in introducing the Senate bill by Minority Leader Dave Senjem (R-Rochester) and Sens. Ellen Anderson (DFL-St. Paul), John P. Doll (DFL-Burnsville), and John Marty (DFL-Roseville).

"I just can't understand why anyone would want to kill such small, innocent birds," said

Rep. Mike Jaros. "There's no meat on them. I just can't see it."

"Sportsmen have dozens of species that have been traditionally hunted in our state, and there was no reason three years ago to add the mourning dove to that list," said Howard Goldman of Minnesota Humane Society. "Doves are not overpopulated, they are not a nuisance, and they are so small that there is very little meat on their bodies. They are shot only for target practice."

Dove hunting has not been popular with Minnesota sportsmen. The Department of Natural Resources told lawmakers during the legislative debate three years ago that 30,000 hunters would participate in a dove season initially, and 50,000 annually over time. But according to the Star Tribune, the new dove hunting season "started with a dose of disinterest," and DNR officers called the season a "non-event" and stated that "dove hunting interest and success seemed low."  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates that 597,000 people hunt in Minnesota, but only about 1 percent of them – 6,000 – hunted doves during the 2005-2006 season.

"After three seasons of dove hunting, the experiment has failed, and it's more important than ever that Minnesota lawmakers know where the people stand on the hunting of mourning doves," said Jill Fritz, Minnesota state director for The HSUS.

Since Minnesota initiated its dove hunting season, voters in another Midwestern state have had the opportunity to decide the issue. Last November, Michigan voters overwhelmingly rejected Proposal 3, which would have opened a new dove hunting season, by a landslide vote of 69 percent to 31 percent.

"Lawmakers have often wondered where the voters would stand on the issue of dove hunting, and now they have their answer," added Fritz. "Sportsmen, farmers, and many other citizens joined together in Michigan to keep the state's decades-long tradition of protecting doves. We hope Minnesota lawmakers heed the call as well, and agree that there's no good reason to shoot doves for target practice."

Proposal 3 was backed by the National Rifle Association, U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance, Safari Club International, and other national hunting groups, and was opposed by The HSUS, Michigan Humane Society, Michigan Audubon Society, Michigan State Grange, and a diverse coalition of organizations and businesses. Michigan is one of the biggest hunting states in the country, but voters rejected dove hunting in each of the 83 counties in the state, from the most urban to the most rural.

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The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization – backed by 10 million Americans, or one of every 30, including more than 150,000 in Minnesota. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty -- On the web at humanesociety.org. 

Minnesota Humane Society, founded in 1869, is a statewide educational and rescue organization dedicated to protecting the lives and interests of Minnesota's animals - both domestic and wild.