Hunter Recruitment and Retention Effort


Remember the excitement of your first pheasant season opener - the camaraderie of family and friends? Or perhaps you can still smell the marsh as you followed your father into the predawn twilight on duck season opening day 20 years ago.

If you were fortunate enough to have been introduced to hunting at an early age, you know the magic. It rests in your memories forever, and it drives a basic desire to experience the outdoors each fall. Hunting is a valued natural heritage - one that must be passed on from one generation to the next. But hunter numbers are decreasing, and younger generations are in danger of missing these treasured experiences. And fewer hunters reduces the financial, social and political support needed for effective wildlife management.

"Pass It On" is a program designed to reverse the declining trend in hunter numbers. While the program is made up of many different subprograms, such as Outdoor Mentors, Shooting Opportunities, Hunting Access, Special Hunts, and Education and Awareness, its most valuable component is you. It takes a hunter to make a hunter, and it is critical that youth learn important life lessons in the outdoors from experienced hunters.

You can become involved by simply taking a youngster hunting this fall. Youth seasons provide ideal opportunities to get youngsters involved through uncrowded, noncompetitive conditions. Youth seasons often open a week or so before the regular season, and include deer, pheasant and quail, waterfowl and spring turkey opportunities. Find youth season dates here .