Working Mojo Outdoors dove decoys over cut lucerne fields

Dove shooting remains one of the most accessible pursuits for Australian shotgunners, with healthy populations of feral pigeons, spotted doves, and other declared game species spread across the grain and hay regions of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and southern Queensland. From the irrigation corridors around Griffith and Mildura to the mixed-cropping country north of Adelaide, hunters take advantage of harvesting windows to position themselves over freshly cut country. Few setups deliver a consistent edge like a carefully laid Mojo Outdoors dove decoy spread, and few fields concentrate birds as reliably as a strip of cut lucerne that has just shed its seed.

The connection between cutting gear and decoy strategy is straightforward. When a contractor mows a lucerne stand for hay or for seed harvest, the cutter lays low the canopy and exposes the loose grain that has ripened along the stem. Exposed seed, stirred insects, and the cool, damp ground beneath the windrow create a magnet for any dove within range. Without decoys, birds often swing wide or land beyond comfortable shotgun range. With the right pattern of silhouettes and feeders, the same field can pull flocks in to within thirty metres of a well-concealed gun.

Mojo Outdoors dove decoys are built around low profiles, hand-painted feather detail, and an interchangeable stake system that keeps them upright in soft ground. The brand's feeder and full-body silhouettes cast a believable shape at distance, and their compact folded design slips easily into the carry bags that ship with most kits. For Australian hunters driving between properties or storing gear in a small ute canopy, that portability matters as much as the realism.

Why cut lucerne pulls doves into range

Lucerne is the Australian name for alfalfa, and the country grows a lot of it. From the Wimmera in Victoria to the Riverland in South Australia and the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area in New South Wales, lucerne stands are cut multiple times each season for hay, silage, or direct seed harvest. Each cut is a feeding event for doves, parrots, and a long list of seed-eaters that follow the header.

Timing matters as much as the crop itself. The first cut in early spring tends to coincide with the start of the Victorian and South Australian general game seasons, while late-summer cuts often overlap with the New South Wales declared hunting period and the longer Queensland open season. Hunters who book time on a property after a cut, rather than before, see noticeably more action. The ground is freshly disturbed, the seed is on the surface, and the insects that were sheltering in the canopy are suddenly exposed. Doves come in to feed and to dust-bathe in the soft, loose soil.

A spread of decoys amplifies that natural attraction by telling passing flocks that other birds have already committed to the field. Without a spread, doves tend to circle once and push on to the next property. With a spread, they set their wings and tip in.

Choosing the right Mojo Outdoors decoy kit

Mojo offers several configurations aimed at dove hunters, and picking the right mix depends on the field and the shooting style. The Feather Flex feeder series uses a flexible stake that bends with the wind rather than snapping, which is a useful feature on the gusty afternoons common across inland South Australia and western New South Wales. The HD full-body line uses a rigid shell with a heavier base for open ground where wind can funnel down a long paddock.

For most Australian hunters working a single cut paddock of one to three hectares, a dozen decoys is the practical minimum. Twelve Mojos, split evenly between feeders and full-body silhouettes, give a flock enough visual cues to commit to the landing zone without looking crowded. Hunters with more space and a longer walk from the ute often run eighteen to twenty-four, broken into two clusters that mimic two small groups rather than one large mob.

Pay close attention to carry bags and rigging accessories. Mojo Outdoors packs include stakes and cord, but the crimps and swivels wear out faster than the decoys themselves. Stainless steel or brass crimps last longer in the dry, alkaline soils of the Mallee and the Wimmera than the plated fittings that ship with some kits.

Laying out a spread that mimics a feeding flock

Real doves do not land in tidy grids. They drop onto a single point and spread out as they feed, with most birds facing into the wind and a few stragglers trailing behind. A spread that mimics that pattern pulls better than a uniform row.

Set your landing zone between twenty-five and thirty-five metres from your hide. Closer than twenty metres, and incoming birds flare when they spot the gun. Further than forty, and the shot becomes a guess at distance. Position the bulk of your Mojo decoys in a loose oval roughly ten metres across, with the long axis running into the wind. Place one or two singles a few metres out from the main cluster to suggest that birds are still arriving.

Face every decoy upwind. Doves land into the wind to control their descent, and a spread where half the birds are tail-on looks artificial even to a passing flock. The rigid stakes supplied with Mojo units hold direction well; the Feather Flex series simply need a slightly deeper insertion in harder soils.

If you are working a larger paddock, repeat the pattern. Two clusters separated by a hundred metres will pull birds off the first and into the second, especially if you keep a caller in the gap and let a wing-spinner rotate quietly between them.

Adding motion, sound, and the wind to your setup

Static decoys do most of the heavy lifting, but motion and sound shorten the time a flock spends circling before committing. The most reliable motion tool for Australian doves is a simple wing decoy on a stiff wire above a small motor. Mojo's compact spinners are light enough to mount on a fence post, an irrigation riser, or a length of rebar driven into the ground.

Set the spinner so its sweep passes through the sky behind the spread rather than across the decoys themselves. Birds key on the flash of white wing, and a spinner that flashes directly over the silhouettes tends to distract rather than draw. Run it on a slow cycle during the heat of the morning, then increase the pace as birds start moving.

Calls add a third layer. A simple coo-oo repeated every minute or two keeps the spread sounding alive, and a sharper flutter call at the moment a flock appears off the tree line often triggers a commitment. Keep the volume low; Australian doves are easily put off by loud calling, particularly in the still conditions of an early autumn morning.

Finally, watch the wind. On the long, open paddocks of the Wimmera and the Victorian Mallee, a steady northerly builds through the morning and shifts the birds' preferred approach. Plan your hide on the southern or eastern edge so that incoming flocks are quartering toward you, and be ready to move if the wind swings more than forty degrees from your forecast.

Local rules every Australian dove shooter should follow

Australian game management sits with each state and territory, and the rules around dove hunting vary more than most newcomers expect. In New South Wales, the Department of Primary Industries publishes an annual Game Hunting Guide that lists declared dove species, open seasons, and daily bag limits, and recreational hunters must hold a current firearms licence and any required Game Hunting Permit. Victoria works through the Game Management Authority and issues a separate Game Licence on top of the standard Category A or B firearms licence. South Australia requires a basic hunting permit and recognises the introduced spotted dove and feral pigeon as the main quarry species.

Queensland and Western Australia take a slightly different approach, with declarations issued through the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries and the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions respectively. Always check the current notice before a trip, because species status, bag limits, and shooting hours shift from season to season.

Firearms storage and transport are national concerns. Any shotgun used for dove hunting must be transported in a locked vehicle, separated from ammunition, and stored at home in a compliant safe. Hunting on private land requires the landholder's written permission, and hunting on crown land is generally limited to declared game reserves or written leasehold access. Shooting near built-up areas, stockyards, or active harvest machinery carries both safety and legal risk.

Setup checklist for a productive hunt

Hunters across the southern mainland already know that a freshly cut lucerne field is the place to be, and the difference between a quiet morning and a busy one often comes down to whether the spread looked like a flock a dove wanted to join. Browse the full range of Mojo Outdoors dove decoys and matching rigging accessories at Hunting Equipment USA, where qualifying orders can be packed and shipped through a local Australian freight forwarder for the next trip out.