I can't add much to JohnAir's excellent treatise on the impact of doves on South American agriculture. I have never hunted doves in Argentina, but have shot them in Uruguay. Our outfitter asked us to think of each dove as a salt shaker of grain being carried back to the roost to be converted into dove poop. When you look out over the plains of Uruguay and see the sky black with doves from horizon to horizon, and convert those black specks to salt shakers of grain, you gain an appreciation of the agricultural destruction taking place.

As hunters and shooters, however, I believe we do need to be sensitive to the impact that photos of huge piles of doves rotting in the hot sun have on folks not familiar with the issues. Additionally, we need to remember that these are living creatures, and while their control may be necessary, it should not be undertaken callously.

I should add that where we shot in Uruguay, the outfitter conscientiously recovered the shot birds, cleaned and processed them, and donated them to the local school system for their lunch programs. The cost of this program was carried by the fees paid by hunters.

I've tried to set this up myself with both birds and big game but their are some problems. First you have to process the doves at an approved facility, one that has all the appropriate permits and sanitary certificates issued by the govt. This processing has to include proper packaging. Then you have to transport the birds in SENASA (Again govt agency) aproved refrigerated trucks to where the poor people are, or they don't want them. Then you have to have proper distribution system to get the birds spread out to the different schools. In this case I would guess that the city slums are where the school lunch program would need and want them in the quantities we are talking about.
It would surprise me if this were easier in Uruguay than Argentina. Uruguay is a clean and organized country, and has very good sanitation controls along the same lines of what is set up in Argentina. It is a beaurocratic issue. It is not the same to process 10,000 birds as it is to process 20 for your personal use. The officials would get into a heap of trouble if some child got an e-coli infection and died. You would go to jail if caught and prosecuted for illegaly distributing this free food. As it stands the most effective way that I have found is what I described in a previous post, you give away what you can where you can, but setting up a real program to process and distribute is a mountain of red tape. I'll bet that your outfitter is doing the same as here and that you were just in the right spot at the right time to get the birds used by those who need them. But if this is not the case, I would greatly apreciate any more information you have regarding how your outfitter goes about this. If it really can be done in an organized way then it would benefit many if he would share how he does it.

Thanks

John

In the case I refer to, the outfitter was also a very wealthy landowner, a lawyer and his ranch was in a remote area. He may have had access to local bird processing facilities. It was also 10 years ago. Whether these were factor, I cannot say. Also, I did not audit his process, but am only trying to remember what he told me in the van on the way to the shoot. The bottom line was that he seemed to be making a conscientious effort to use the birds for the benefit of local residents in a remote rural area.

I should add that on one other Uruguayan dove shoot that I participated in, I did not get the same impression that the outfitter cared much about the final disposition of the birds. I didn't much care for his attitude and never used him again.

Wolly ESS,
Do you remember their names??
L

PM coming

I fully understand the issues with photos of large piles of birds and the practicality of eating the birds compared to just disposing of them.

The birds are a menace to agricultural lands and need to be dealt with.....I agree that sport hunting is preferable to poisoning and that in the end some "other" means may also be necessary.

Much of the western US was plagued by prairie dogs at one time and poison was used primarily in control.

Sport shooting was done and still is but in the end it was poison that reduced their numbers.

I have friends to trip to rgentina every year and they keep asking me to go but maybe someday as the rock pidgeons of south Africa have my attention as well.

Lorenzo and I have chatted a bit and visiting Uruguay would be an adventure as well..
Right now, I'm in a house building project and must focus here.

I'm not sure why we here in the states don't think about South America but it's not at the top of our thinking caps and I must admit that folks like you guys are doing some things to change that.

I, for one, appreciate hearing from you folks down there.

Thanks
The same works the other way round, the folks from down here are learning a lot from all of you about how is hunting up there
L