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High fuel prices mixed with high shotgun shell prices will not dampen opening day enthusiasm when doves become legal game in most of Texas on Monday. The season forecast is good, despite last week's unseasonably cool and wet weather that probably triggered an early dove movement.

Biologists say the dry, hot summer was good for production of mourning doves and their larger cousins, the white-winged doves. Rain and cooler weather in late August nudge doves toward an early migration.

Since the cooler weather came two weeks ahead of opening day, birds should have a chance to settle back into a predictable pattern by Labor Day. Local birds may also be bolstered by early migrants moving into Texas from states to the north.

For North American birds from mid-America east, Texas acts as a migration funnel into Mexico.

Hunting outfitter Rob Hailey at Abilene said the cool, wet weather caused an increase in the already abundant doves he was seeing on the 2,500-acre Hailey Ranch. Hailey fine-tunes the property to maximize his weekends-only hunting program.

Most outfitters lease fields from farmers and ranchers and do not have the management latitude Hailey enjoys. Still, reports from hunting operators west and north of Dallas indicate plenty of birds.

David Davis, a Brownwood outfitter, had good dove reports for Brown and Coleman counties. Davis said 80 percent of the birds that are close to towns are white-winged doves. He recommends hunters pack a few boxes of heavier shot (No. 6 or No. 5) for the larger whitewings. The best mourning dove concentrations in Davis' area are feeding on sunflowers.

Fort Worth's Cory Anderson said the most doves he's seen are near the city. Anderson also hunts north of Fort Worth and has plenty of birds there, as well.

Most Texas dove outfitters charge $50 to $75 per day for access to a leased field. A good outfitter will have scouted to make sure game is abundant.

For budget-minded dove hunters with time to do their own scouting, the best bargain is a $48 Annual Public Hunting Permit from Texas Parks and Wildlife. The permit provides a full season's access to a wide assortment of public hunting, including the public dove lease program.

This year, 141 tracts covering more than 50,000 acres are included in the program. Forty-six of those units are within 100 miles of Dallas, though all aren't good for dove hunting. One of the public dove leases is about five miles from my home. I drove past it 20 times last season and never saw what I considered a huntable number of doves. That's why scouting is important.

You can first do some virtual scouting through the state agency Web site to determine if there are dove leases close to you.

Before buying the APHP, you can physically check out the properties to see if they are holding birds. Hunting with a reputable outfitter is the best way to assure a good dove hunt, but the APHP, available wherever hunting licenses are sold, costs less than most hunting outfitters charge for a day of dove hunting.

If you plan to hunt a public area Monday, scout for the best location this weekend and be in position plenty early to secure an opening day hot spot.