I have participated in several years of "wing surveys" for the USFWS. Most surveys I have done were for waterfowl but I've also done it for doves here in SC and woodcock. I have friends who say, "Dang, I wish they'd pick me to participate in the harvest surveys!". As we come to dove and early goose / teal season, just a heads up, DON'T ALLOW A LICENSE VENDOR OF WHATEVER STATE THAT YOU HUNT TO JUST HAPHAZARDLY FILL OUT THE Harvest Information Program (HIP) on your behalf. I have witnessed license vendors, some who are hunters, just blow through the HIP data and put "did not hunt" on every question on the HIP survey vs. taking a couple minutes to ask you the questions. Some folks just put "0" for harvest info thinking the "government" doesn't need to know what I kill, well, actually the biologists do! Please do everyone a favor and answer honestly and one day you might have the opportunity to participate in important harvest data collection.
https://www.fws.gov/birds/surveys-an...st-surveys.php
"In addition, when you sign up for HIP, you will be asked to voluntarily answer several questions about your hunting experience during last year's season. Your answers to these questions are not used to compile harvest estimates, but are simply used to identify what types of birds you usually hunt. This allows the USFWS to mail its surveys to the appropriate hunters. For example, most surveys about dove harvest are sent to hunters who hunted doves the previous year, while most waterfowl harvest surveys are sent to hunters who usually hunt ducks and/or geese."
"Most of the HIP sign-up methods rely on the state hunting license vendors to ask hunters the appropriate HIP questions. If you plan to hunt migratory game birds, please make sure that the license vendor asks you the HIP questions and gets you signed up for HIP."
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