Western Birds

Western Birds Simply the most detailed bird hunting scouting reports published in the World. Period.

The Western Birds page serves as a news site for upland bird hunters in the southern half of California. We also update readers on the status of Western Birds newsletter print and e-mail editions. We also have information on Jim Matthews' Signature Calls, hand-made quail calls made from native shrubs and hardwoods.

With our "new subscriber special" you can get four back issues of your choice. By selecting four of our "compendium" iss...
09/24/2026

With our "new subscriber special" you can get four back issues of your choice. By selecting four of our "compendium" issues with all the guzzlers in a specific region of Southern California, you can get over 300 guzzler locations when you start your subscription. But the newsletter is about so much more than just water sources.

So Western Birds subscribers and friends, how was your dove opener?
09/04/2026

So Western Birds subscribers and friends, how was your dove opener?

Who are these so-called hunters? Pigs.
09/04/2026

Who are these so-called hunters? Pigs.

There’s no excuse for this. Total of 9 five gallon buckets of spent shells, 23 empty water bottles, 18 energy drinks cans, countless ammo boxes, McDonald’s bags, pop tart wrappers and more. We only did 1/10th of the area. Can’t even imaging how much more is out there.

We come out here because we love wild places. We love the birds, the sunrises, the dogs working, the smell of gunpowder, and the memories made with friends and family.

So why leave our trash behind?

Every one of these empty shells was picked up off the ground after someone else was done hunting. It took me a few hours to grab them. It would’ve taken the person who fired them a few seconds.

Being a hunter means more than pulling a trigger. It means being a steward of the places that give us the opportunity to hunt.

Pick up your shells. Pick up your water bottles. Pick up your food wrappers. Heck, if you see someone else’s trash, grab that too.

Leave the field cleaner than you found it.

Because when a landowner, farmer, wildlife manager, or non-hunter comes through after us, this shouldn’t be what they remember about hunters.

We’re better than this.

Pack it in. Pack it out. Pick up your damn shells.

The future of hunting isn’t only determined by what happens when we pull the trigger. It’s determined by what we leave behind when we drive away.

Shoot time in five…four…three….
09/01/2026

Shoot time in five…four…three….

My first Labrador, Joe. I still miss this one and dove seasons with him. The thing about getting older is that you have ...
08/31/2026

My first Labrador, Joe. I still miss this one and dove seasons with him. The thing about getting older is that you have a lot more memories about past seasons, dogs' antics, and hunting buddies now gone than you will make new ones. I carry them all with me opening morning. It makes the day bittersweet, and I wear a smile all day. May your opener tomorrow be about family and friends, hunting dogs, and the making of memories you will carry with you the rest of your life.

I thought this was the logical photo to use after yesterday's dove opener countdown.
08/30/2026

I thought this was the logical photo to use after yesterday's dove opener countdown.

These are whitewing and mourning doves at the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge on the Colorado River south of Blythe. It ...
08/29/2026

These are whitewing and mourning doves at the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge on the Colorado River south of Blythe. It was taken a few years ago.

Please share this with your dove hunting buddies and make flyers you can stick on windshields and hand out to hunters. T...
08/29/2026

Please share this with your dove hunting buddies and make flyers you can stick on windshields and hand out to hunters. Too many times the last few dove openers, I have seen hunters set up right on desert guzzlers and shooting birds that come in. If you stay at a guzzler for more than a half-hour shooting, it is illegal. More importantly, you are keeping all wildlife off this important water source. This flyer will give you the details. Again, please share.

One of my favorite "action" dove hunting photos. I managed to catch that bird streaking behind  hunting buddies. Four Da...
08/28/2026

One of my favorite "action" dove hunting photos. I managed to catch that bird streaking behind hunting buddies. Four Days!

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San Bernardino, CA

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