Declining numbers in Illinois could put hunters on endangered species list
Though the days of hunting for necessity are long over, the tradition of hunting goes back to the very roots set in the soil by the first Americans. Undoubtably, this is a nation of hunters. Hunters are an American fixture, both locally and nationally, and they do not intend to go away - not yet anyway. But there is no question hunting is on the decline in America, and even more significantly in the state of Illinois.
A recent survey released by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service shows a national decline in the number of hunters age 16 and older by 10 percent from 1996 to 2006. The same study shows the decline in Illinois hunters age 16 and older has decreased 27 percent over the same 10 year span. On an even bigger decline are the fishing folk, with a 35 percent decline in Illinois over the 10 year span.
The huge decline has a lot of people worried about the future of hunting, especially in areas where hunting is a part of their heritage. The decline in hunting may lead to catastrophic losses in state revenue for conservation, losses in private donations, wildlife overpopulation and a void in American culture.
While the numbers are going down in hunting and fishing, the number of people heading out to the woods is rising. Wildlife-watching activities such as closely observing, photographing, and feeding wildlife are being enjoyed by many more people nationally. Though the numbers of people getting back to nature may be good for the spirit, it does not pay the bills.
Hitting the trails to watch birds may seem better for the birds, but the hunters pay for those birds’ homes in revenues generated from licenses. These state licenses pay for conservation within the state and are a major factor in maintaining the land and wildlife in the state for public use.
Glenn Wegener, superintendent of Forbes State Park, explained, “The federal aid money is the tax on sporting goods equipment for both fishing and hunting. There’s a 10 percent excise tax on that which goes to the federal government, which is then allocated back to the states based on the number of hunting and fishing licenses you sell. So, that’s how it would impact the state if our hunting and fishing licenses have dropped off.”
Although many people contribute to the conservation of wildlife well beyond those licenses, including the wildlife-watcher categories, the majority of private funds for conservation come from private donations or private group donations such as Ducks Unlimited, Quail Unlimited, and the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF).
Gerald Lively, head of the local chapter of the NWTF, said their group recently helped to purchase a six-wheel ATV for Forbes State Park. He explained that half the funding came from hunting stamps, but the remainder was made up by their organization.
Urbanization has been noted as the major reason hunting is declining, along with other factors in the changing society. The lack of land to hunt on has become the number one reason hunters are declining. Urbanization has contributed to massive amounts of huntable land being overtaken by homes and businesses. Hunters are being pushed off the land with nowhere to go.
Wegener noted, “It is getting harder and harder to find places to hunt. Here in Illinois, over 95 percent of it is in private ownership. So it’s tough to find a public place to hunt or a place where you don’t need owner permission. That’s why these parks that are still open to hunting play such an important part. We have very specific regulations they have to follow, but we still provide a place for people to come hunt if they don’t have anywhere else to go.”
Also, the recent practice of land owners leasing their land to a small group of hunters is increasing more and more. Private lands where hunters returned to year after year are being engulfed as land leasing increases across the state. In addition, as land passes hands from inheritances or even the sale of lands, those who relied upon certain lands, are seeing hunting privileges taken away. Thus, tracking down a place to hunt becomes an unwanted frustration for many hunters. As the lands slip away where hunting is allowed, many put down their gear and opt for a new way to spend their time.
“More farms are leasing their land out to a group of individuals and only that group can hunt. It’s a monetary issue - farmers and land owners see this as a way to supplement their income. Land issues are the biggest threat to hunting, at least in Illinois,” said Wegener.
The family dynamic is another cause of the hunting decline. As the definition of family changes in society, so do family traditions. The right of passage of getting one’s very own shotgun has diminished as fathers have diminished. Single parent homes have taken a harsh toll on society, including that of a major hunting decline. Fathers are not as present as they used to be in many homes, and neither are their customs. Traditionally, hunters have been a male dominated group, with fathers handing down those traditions to their sons and now sometimes even daughters, but more recently the tradition is being lost.
Yet, the boys’ clubhouse of hunting has taken down its “no girls allowed” signage and welcomed women into the ranks of hunters. Many women now call themselves hunters, while years ago daughters as would-be-hunters were often left behind by fathers who saw hunting as a male bonding experience, rather than a family bonding experience. As society has changed, so have those perceptions, especially in hunting.
But now a generation of children raised between two homes are opting for video game hunting rather than the real thing. Even those children who grow up with hunting as a way of life, often move from rural areas in search of jobs, and never fully adopt the hunting lifestyle.
While hunting is unquestionably declining throughout Illinois and most of the country, area experts agree that hunting appears to be steady and in some cases even on the rise in Marion County.
Wegener explained, “I don’t see a big decrease in hunting numbers at Forbes. If anything, our bow hunting has increased. Over the last 10 years, we’ve seen a big increase in bow hunting. But that goes right along with the increase in deer. Each year, we sign up over 300 bow hunters for the season … In 1984 when I came here, we had maybe 40 or 50 bow hunters. If two deer were killed for the whole year, that would be about it. Now our harvest is around 45-50 deer per year by bow hunters.”
Wegener also said they get a lot of out-of-state hunters at Forbes Park for bow hunting because the deer around here are so much bigger than other areas. Wegener noted that Forbes does not offer firearm deer hunting in the park, so they only see the bow hunters.
As urban sprawl covers rural lands with shopping malls, discount stores, and franchise eateries, not only land is lost, but also life. Small game such as quail and rabbits are on a steep decline, according to Wegener.
“What has fallen off, as far as hunting, is upland game such as rabbit and quail. Rabbit and quail hunters have dropped dramatically over the years. But that is with the decline of the rabbit and quail also,” said Wegener.
Wegener explained the decline is somewhat cyclical, with small game rising and falling in population over 10 year spans, but also noted they just don’t have as many places to go anymore. While forest lands like Forbes are protected and turkeys and deer flourish under the trees, smaller game live in the brush and high grasses. Areas like fence rows are filled with small game, but as farming has become industrialized, few fence rows or brush exist, even in rural areas.
Wegener further explained the overall decline in hunting is due to, “the change in farming practices. Here at Forbes, we’ve changed over the years, too. Instead of having a lot of open grass and fields, we’re converting more over to forests. We’ve been gradually changing it into more mature timber, which isn’t very supportive of quail and rabbit. But that’s helped out the deer and turkeys, so it’s sort of a trade off.”
Wegener noted the federal government has instituted a program to help the growth of grasslands to increase upland game populations.
While hunting is declining, the purchase of hunting equipment is on the rise. Never in the history of hunting have people spent so much money on equipment for hunting. According to the survey of the Fish and Wildlife, expenditures related to wildlife-related recreation totaled $120 billion nationally - that’s one percent of the nation’s gross domestic product. Sports persons spent $75 billion, while wildlife watchers spent $45 billion.
Paul Jones, owner of the local Rural King store, said this is the fourth year since they have added hunting equipment to their stores, “It has been a good addition to our stores. It’s a pretty big part of our business. Hunting equipment sales are definitely up.”
Jones explained they have even added a number of shows throughout the year to find new types of equipment to add to the inventory.
Wegener agreed, saying, “It depends on the sport you’re going into, but some sports are very expensive, especially water fowl hunting can be very expensive. You need a boat and motor and decoys. Decoys can be anywhere from $60 to $150 a dozen. And usually you need about five or six dozen. You can wrap up some money really quick in that.”
He continued, “But some of our other sports are not very expensive. Deer hunting is not extremely expensive.”
Yet all that money might be frivolous when it comes to being a successful hunter. According to Wegener, “There’s a lot of new things that come and try to attract the hunters, just like the fishermen with the new lures. That’s more to catch the fisherman or hunter than to be successful.”
The trend in purchasing high-dollar items for hunting and fishing has put off some people from the sport. The expense of hunting is another major reason why some people have passed over hunting.
The hunting decline is not a surprise to hunters though, as they have been actively recruiting and promoting their sport. Nearly every hunting organization has resources geared towards drawing kids and women into hunting. They institute events such as JAKES Day, which is the National Wild Turkey Federation’s annual kids’ fun day, with wing shoot clinics for older kids and women.
“There’s a lot of sporting organizations like National Wild Turkey Federation, Ducks Unlimited, Quail Unlimited, they all promote young people and provide young people programs to try to keep the interest in hunting. They put on things like shooting clinics and things like that,” said Wegener.
These groups help provide young people with hunting-related activities to create an interest in hunting at a young age. Not only are these groups interested in getting kids interested in hunting, but in helping kids become responsible gun owners. All of the groups stress the need for responsibility in nature, including gun safety.
Wegener explained where he sees hunting headed. “It’s going to become tougher to find places to hunt. Our public areas are going to become more important. We are going to have to maintain those. In fact, there has been legislation passed that we cannot take hunting areas away,” he said.
source: salem-tc.com