02/05/2007
Minnesota Youth have Spring Hunting Opportunities
MINNESOTA — Thanks to the reduction of age barriers, hundreds of young hunters in Minnesota will get the opportunity to hunt wild turkeys this spring.
For the 2007 spring wild turkey season, nearly 1,200 hunters under the age of 12 applied for a turkey hunting permit, with nearly 600 being selected. Under the old minimum age law, they would have been ineligible to hunt for wild turkeys until after they were 12 years old. A licensed adult hunter at least 18 years old must accompany the young hunter.
Reducing and eliminating age barriers that prevent people from hunting is a key component of the Families Afield program. A partnership of the National Wild Turkey Federation, the National Shooting Sports Foundation and the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance, Families Afield uses data from the Youth Hunting Report to help remove youth hunting barriers across the nation.
"Allowing young people to safely experience hunting with a mentor is the best way to make them appreciative of the hunting tradition," said Rob Keck, NWTF CEO. "Getting them interested in hunting at an early age will not only prepare them for hunter education courses, but lays the foundation for being good conservationists."
To hunt wild turkeys in Minnesota, hunters must enter a lottery, after which if their name is drawn, they may purchase a turkey hunting license.
The Youth Hunting Report, written by Silvertip Productions, USSA and Southwick Associates Inc., found that some states experience better recruitment and retention of new hunters than others. They do so by permitting parents to decide when their sons and daughters are ready to hunt, and allow potential hunters to try hunting under the watchful eye of a mentor before completing a hunter education course.
The Youth Hunting Report also shows youth hunters are the safest hunters in the woods when accompanied by an adult. The findings were peer reviewed for statistical validity by the Triad Research Group. For more information on hunting safety data and the Youth Hunting Report, log on to www.familiesafield.org.
To date, Families Afield legislation and regulations have been approved in 12 states. Two of those states, Michigan and Ohio, established apprentice hunting programs. First-year results appear extremely promising. During 2006, more than 18,000 apprentice hunting licenses were sold in Michigan, and nearly 10,000 in Ohio. These 28,000 new hunters suggest a 26 percent jump in the two states' combined population of hunters age 15 and under.
The 12 states that have changed laws and regulations to create additional hunting opportunities for youth and novice hunters are:
Florida
Illinois
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Tennessee
Utah
