As hunters take time to prepare for upcoming seasons, Game Commission Executive Director Carl G. Roe is encouraging adults to promote the state's hunting and trapping heritage by introducing youngsters to the great outdoors during the variety of youth hunting seasons.

A list of youth seasons and requirements for the various opportunities are outlined on page 15 of the 2007-08 Pennsylvania Digest of Hunting and Trapping Regulations, which is provided to each license buyer.

"Part of the Game Commission's overall vision is to promote our state's rich hunting and trapping heritage," Roe said. "The future of hunting and trapping is directly related to the continuing participation of young Pennsylvanians in our hunting and furtaking seasons. The challenge is to successfully compete with all the other activities and recreational opportunities that vie for a young person's time. It won't be easy for the Game Commission or Pennsylvania's more than a million hunters. But the future of wildlife conservation - and the $4.8 billion economic impact hunters provide to the state annually - is directly related to hunter recruitment. We will continue to do our best to improve the situation."

Those youth under the age of 12 were permitted to begin hunting groundhogs July 1, as part of the Mentored Youth Hunting Program, which is in its second year. Under the program, a mentor is defined as a properly licensed individual at least 21 years of age, who serves as a guide to a youth while engaged in hunting or related activities, such as scouting, learning firearm or hunter safety and wildlife identification. A mentored youth is an unlicensed individual less than 12 years of age who is accompanied by a mentor while engaged in hunting or related activities.

The regulations require that the mentor-to-mentored youth ratio be one-to-one, and that the pair possesses only one sporting arm when hunting. While moving, the sporting arm must be carried by the mentor. When the pair reaches a stationary hunting location, the mentor may turn over possession of the sporting arm to the youth and must keep the youth within arm's length at all times.

The Mentored Youth Hunting Program does not require the youth purchase any license or pass a Hunter-Trapper Education course. Mentored youth can participate in any legal season for woodchucks (groundhogs), and antlered deer, as well as squirrels and spring gobbler, including the youth-only seasons.

Mentored youth can abide by the same antler restrictions as junior license holders, which is an antler at least three inches in length or one antler with at least two points. Mentored youth can participate in season in which antlered deer are legal, which are: the archery deer season (September 29-November 10), the firearms deer season (November 26-December 8) and the late flintlock muzzleloader season (December 26-January 12). However, as mentored youth are not permitted to harvest antlerless deer, they may not participate in the three-day firearms deer season, October 18-20, as that season is for antlerless deer only.

The Mentored Youth Hunting Program also requires that both the mentor and the youth must abide by any fluorescent orange regulations, and that the mentored youth must tag and report any antlered deer or spring gobbler taken by making and attaching a tag that contains his or her name, address, date, WMU, township, and county where it was taken. A sample of the field tag to be used by mentored youth is available on page 33 of the Digest. The youth must submit a harvest report card, which also is available on page 33 of the Digest, within five days for any antlered deer or gobbler he or she takes.

Starting on September 22, young hunters - age 12-15 years old - are able to take part in a special day of waterfowl hunting. Later this year is the "youth only days" at the Middle Creek and Pymatuning controlled waterfowl hunting areas. The Middle Creek day is November 17. The Pymatuning day is November 24.

For more information on the waterfowl seasons and bag limits, visit the Game Commission's website and download the "Waterfowl Brochure."

Youth between the ages of 12-16 may participate in youth squirrel and pheasant hunts October 6-12. Under the youth squirrel and pheasant hunts, participants are not required to purchase a junior hunting license, but they must pass a Hunter-Trapper Education course. As with all junior hunting, those participants 12 and 13 years old must be accompanied by a parent, guardian or other family member 18 years or older, and those 14 and 15 years old must be accompanied by a person 18 years or older. Also, all bag limits apply, including areas for harvesting male and female pheasants.

On October 6, a number of sportsmen's clubs from across Pennsylvania will host mentored pheasant hunts for youth. As part of these hunts, club members will provide specific instructions on pheasant hunting, and many of the clubs have either purchased pheasants from private breeders to release for their hunts or will share in nearly 1,700 birds provided by the Game Commission for mentored hunts. Also, prior to the youth pheasant hunt, the Game Commission will release 15,000 pheasants on public lands throughout the state. Details on where these birds will be stocked are included on pages 26-28 of the Digest.

Information about the youth pheasant season is posted on the Game Commission’s Ring-Necked Pheasant webpage.

"These youth seasons take into account that students are off school on October 6, and most are off on October 8, the Columbus Day holiday, as well," Roe said. "The remainder of the youth squirrel season takes place before the change of daylight savings time. This gives students an opportunity to go home after school and have two hours or so to hunt, which is a long-standing tradition in many rural parts of the state."

In addition to the youth waterfowl, squirrel and pheasant hunts, other youth events created by the Game Commission include: a youth spring gobbler season, initiated in 2004; special antlerless deer harvesting opportunities, created in 1998 and expanded in 2001; and youth field days, established in the early 1990s.

Facts about the Pennsylvania Game Commission: Did you know that the junior resident hunter's license for those 12 through 16 years of age was created in 1963, and cost $3.20 at that time?

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