California Wants You to Hunt … and Help Increase Wildlife Conservation

It may sound counterintuitive, but there’s more to the picture.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced in February a new initiative to recruit hunters and fishers to the Golden State. The effort hopes to reduce some of the barriers preventing or discouraging hunting at home, including public perception, access, licensing and cost.

But why would conservation-friendly California want to encourage more hunting in the state? In addition to help maintaining ecological and biological diversity, according to SFGATE, it really comes down to money.

“Money generated from license fees and taxes on guns and ammunition provide approximately 60 percent of the funding to state wildlife agencies. Since 1937, the year the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act passed, hunters have contributed more than $14 billion to the conservation, management and restoration of wildlife in the United States. These payments have facilitated in the recovery of deer, turkeys and other non-game species.

“The symbiotic relationship is being threatened, however, by a steep decline in the numbers of people hunting and fishing throughout the country since the ’70s and ’80s—a reality that spurred California Fish and Wildlife’s latest recruitment effort.”

Read more about hunting and conservation in California here.