Foundation Grants $13,000 to Introduce Women, Youth to Hunting in Florida

[Elderberry]

Spectrum News 10/29/2019

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. —  Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida is working to introduce more women and youth to hunting.

    Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida announces $13,000 grant
    The goal is to expose new audiences to hunting
    Hunting provides an essential funding source for conservation work

The foundation recently announced a $13,000 grant to the National Wild Turkey Federation – Gator Gobblers.

Their recent actions come as a result of a sharp decline in the number of Americans who hunt. The foundation says while the older generation is retiring from hunting, too few younger people are taking their place. The decline in hunters leads to significant ecological and economic issues.

“We’re committed to getting people outdoors and preserving our outdoor heritage,” said Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida President and CEO Andrew Walker in a press release. “This project is an important step in exposing new audiences, including the next generation of conservationists, to hunting.”

More: https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2019/10/29/nonprofit-foundation-grants--13-000-to-introduce-women--youth-to-hunting

[Wingnut]

This is welcome news, however the numbers of hunters has been increasing in the south. But Florida really isn't in the south so its numbers are declining! 

Western and Southeastern States Defy Hunting’s ‘National Decline’
The U.S. hunting population likely fell by about 1 million between 2006 and 2016, according to surveys by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), even as annual hunting participation held firm and grew in some states and regions.

The FWS has conducted a survey of outdoor recreation every five years since 1955. In 1980, the survey estimated 17.5 million Americans 16 and older hunted (7 percent of the population). In 2006, it estimated about 12.5 million Americans 16 and older hunted. The number sank in 2016 to 11.5 million, or roughly 5 percent of the nation’s population.

Even so, it’s inaccurate to say hunting participation is declining coast to coast. A review of FWS annual records from 2012 to 2018 reveals the number of individual paid hunting-license holders actually increased in most Western and Southeastern states, while hunter numbers mostly tumbled across the upper Midwest and Northeast.

https://www.americanhunter.org/articles/2019/5/25/western-and-southeastern-states-defy-hunting-s-national-decline/