Texas study examining lead issue in dove hunting | Houston Chronicle

By SHANNON TOMPKINS Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle

Shannon Tompkins Houston Chronicle

A Texas study comparing lead shot and non-toxic shot in real-world dove hunting conditions hopes to answer questions about the effectiveness of non-toxic loads some see as the fugure for wingshooters.

Texas has taken the lead in trying to answer vexing questions with which wildlife managers have wrestled for more than three decades: how prevalent is ingestion of spent lead shot by doves, what health-related problems are associated with the hugely popular birds swallowing the toxic pellets and are there viable non-toxic alternatives to lead shot in dove-hunting situations?

More than two decades after biologists and wildlife managers began a phase-out of lead shot for waterfowl hunting after intense research showed ingestion of spent lead shot was annually killing millions of ducks and geese, wildlife professionals still have relatively little information on lead shot’sits effects on the nation’s dove population.

A package of multiyear research projects being conducted by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department hope to produce some of the first large-scale data quantifying the issue ofhow lead impacts on doves. It’s also to providinge hard science on the effectiveness of options should evidence suggest lead shot be banned for dove hunting.

TPWD currently is involved in research to gauge hunter awareness of the issues surrounding lead shot and doves, and their attitudes toward the possibility of banning lead shot for dove hunting. For Full Story Click Link Below

via Texas study examining lead issue in dove hunting | Shannon Tompkins | Chron.com – Houston Chronicle.