Media Coverage - Ballot Initiative to Decide Fate of Dove Hunting
Published October 22, 2006. By John Flesher. Associated Press
To Julie Baker, the mourning dove is a gentle songbird prized by backyard bird watchers, a symbol of peace. Sam Washington considers the dove a game bird that hunters should be able to pursue in Michigan, as they can in 40 other states.
Voters will decide which image they prefer in a Nov. 7 referendum on whether to restore a statewide ban on dove hunting, which stood for nearly a century until the Legislature lifted it in 2004.
Proposal 3 has ignited a fierce debate, with both sides accusing each other of misleading statements and ulterior motives.
Citizens for Wildlife Conservation (CWC), an umbrella group representing seven outdoor sporting organizations, contends those who oppose dove hunting want to stop all hunting.
The dove ban would be "low-hanging fruit, the first step" in that direction, said Washington, executive director of the Michigan United Conservation Clubs, a member of CWC. "If they're successful, they'll come back and try something else."
Untrue, said Baker, director of The Committee to Keep Doves Protected, a coalition championing the dove ban. Animal protection groups such as the Humane Society are among its members but there also are avid hunters, she said.
"We respect Michigan's hunting heritage," Baker said. "I've had hunters tell me it's bad for their image to hunt mourning doves, they don't believe in it."
Her group says there's so little meat on doves' bones that it makes no sense to kill them for food. What dove hunters really want is to use them for target practice, Baker said.
Washington denied that. "I don't know of anyone who hunts an animal just for target practice," he said. "If I shoot a dozen doves, I'll eat a dozen doves — and they are excellent table fare."
At least 4 million doves are believed to migrate from Michigan each year. The birds, which resemble slender pigeons, are most prevalent in the southern part of the state.
The Legislature in 2004 changed the dove's status from songbird to game bird, overturning a 1905 ban on hunting them.
Afterward, the Michigan Natural Resources Commission established a three-year trial hunt in six counties: Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph, Branch, Hillsdale and Lenawee. The commission said it would study the trial period's effects on the dove population before deciding whether to continue or expand the hunts.
An estimated 3,000 hunters killed more than 28,000 doves in fall 2004. But the trial period was suspended afterward, as opponents secured enough signatures to put the issue on this year's ballot.
Washington said he'd join the opposition if hunting doves would endanger their population. But the species is thriving, he said, while the number of hunters is in decline. Dove hunts would give the sport — and Michigan's economy — a boost, he said.
Opponents say there's no good reason to shoot doves. Their population isn't excessive, they don't damage property or crops and hunters have more than 40 other game bird species in Michigan to choose from, Baker said. She denied dove hunts would help the economy, saying they could hurt the birdwatching industry.
"It's just senseless killing," she said. "Protecting songbirds like cardinals, blue jays, chickadees and mourning doves is part of Michigan's values and traditions."