After last dove season I came away with the realization that I was ill equipped for where I was hunting. I saw doves, not in great numbers, but they were flying. Problem was they were flying too high as they moved from their overnight roosting area out into the desert areas.

At some point – when it was way too late in the game – I came to the conclusion that having decoys might be a good idea, and certainly help with bringing more birds into range.

That’s why when the 2023 SHOT Show came around the booth that topped my list of places to visit on the show floor was that of MOJO Outdoors.

MOJO Outdoors makes decoys for duck hunting, turkey hunting, varmint hunting and, most importantly to me, dove hunting. And since I know nothing about using decoys, and they know probably everything there is to know about using dove decoys, I had to go see them.

Following SHOT Show I heard from Terry Denmon, President and CEO of MOJO, who was kind enough to bring me up to speed on why decoys are so effective when dove hunting.

In his email to me he explained that hunters prepare food plots for dove, or utilize the natural agriculture fields to attract dove, which I had experience with. My first dove hunt took place on the Eastern Shore of Maryland where I sat in a sunflower field adjacent to a field of milo. Dove flew in all morning long like it was a dove super highway or something.

Where I hunt now, here in the Phoenix Valley of Arizona, no such fields exist. So I need a way to attract more birds.

Denmon told me it is best to divide my decoying into two types of attraction. They are long range and short range decoying.

Because most of the birds I had been seeing were going out in the morning and coming in during the evening well above me and at the outer range of a cylinder choke, I was extremely interested in his advice on decoys for long range attraction.

Dove see movement better, which means they can see that movement from a greater distance. What brings in those out-of-range dove are decoys that feature movement, and more specifically a spinning wing decoy.

This works particularly well with dove, because as Denmon noted, “the dove is in a class of birds that are gregarious and give off or produce a visual “strobe” when they beat their wings fast…and this strobe is how these birds find other birds"

If you are using only static decoys, you’re likely to miss out on a number of dove that cannot see your spread due to their distance.

The spinning wing decoys will also work well for short range, but pairing them with static decoys, either on the ground feeding or perched on a wire or limb, makes for a much more effective presentation.

What MOJO’s Terry Denmon gave me was a five minute master class on decoying for dove, and now I know how better to approach this upcoming dove season.

Here is what I am going to be working with when dove season opens.

First up are the spinning wing decoys. MOJO has two great options in their MOJO Voodoo Dove and MOJO Elite Series Dove. Both run on four (4) AA batteries, feature a realistic dove body paint scheme and support poles to position them up off the ground so they appear to the landing.

For long distance attraction, the spinning wing decoys, like the Voodoo Dove (top) and the Elite Series Dove (bottom), are the ticket. The flash of contrasting wing colors helps catch the attention of high level passing dove that would miss static decoys, bringing them into range for a better shot.

The other spinning wing decoy I’ll be using is the 4-pack of MOJO Dove A Flicker. These ground based decoys act as both a long range attractant and finisher. They run on three (3) AA batteries for up to 20+ hours. The four units come pre-programmed with random on/off timer. Simply set them on the ground and let them do their thing.

The Dove A Flicker gives your ground game an important boost. They are easy to deploy and the motion of these units helps bring dove into finishing range.

Second, we have the static presentation. The MOJO Clip On Dove Decoys come in a 4-pack and MSRP for just $16.99. Since I won’t have suitable vegetation to mount these to I’m going to also use the MOJO Dove Tree.

This Dove Tree sets your decoys 8 feet in the air thanks to its three-piece design. Each of the 29-inch sections is connected by an internal elastic band. It assembles quickly, and thanks to the ‘Hard Ground Stirrup’ with its steel spike it’s easy to insert into the ground. Though I suspect I may have some challenges with the rocky terrain where I’ll be hunting so a prelim setup might be called for.

A 4-pack of the Clip On Dove Decoys gives you versatility at an affordable price. You can position them just about anywhere, and when coupled with spinning wing decoys can give you that added advantage.

The Dove Tree will display the static decoys as well as the Voodoo Dove. It also comes in a convenient carrying bag. I already have a backpack I got for use this dove season knowing I’d have a lot more to carry out into the field with me, so I’ll be securing the Dove Tree to the backpack.

One of the big picture questions I had for Terry Denmon was when, in advance of Opening Day, does MOJO see hunters gearing up with their product. Denmon told me that “hunters will start buying dove hunting products in the 6-week range before the opening of season.”

And that’s right now.

For this reason MOJO Outdoors tries to have its dealers stocked no later than the first two weeks of July. If you are currently decoy-less for this dove season, get your decoy prep done now before Opening Day comes around. Waiting until the last minute could put you on the losing side of the dove decoy equation.

And don’t forget to buy batteries…that’s mostly a note to myself but good advice for you as well.

– Paul Erhardt, Managing Editor, the Outdoor Wire Digital Network