European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 9, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Magazine Hunting is on the decline in . By Robert Reinhold new York times he fir covered slopes of the High Sierra of California Are teeming with blackmailed and mule Deer and when fall replaces summer there Hunters will come to shoot them just As surely As the Winter snows will follow. But the lure of the Hunt is not what it used to be for Chuck Mears a construction worker from Sacramento who says he won t be coming up there much this Deer season. The area has just been infiltrated with houses he said. They re moving the Deer Back further and  mears1 sentiments Are widely shared. From the North Woods of Maine to the deserts of Southern California the ancient Pursuit of Hunting is experiencing a Broad decline in the United states. The reasons speak volumes about the changing face of America As its Rural past recedes into Distant memory. Urbanization has turned villages into cities shrinking wildlife habitats. Recreational tastes and habits have changed with some people waging successful campaigns against Hunting. Tighter controls have been placed on dwindling supplies of game. Nowhere is the trend More pronounced than in California the most populous state. Even As the state s population swelled by 35 percent from 1970 to 1986, to 27 million the number of resident Hunting licenses issued plummeted 44 percent. There s less and less Quality land to Hunt on said Gerald h. Upholt executive director of the 80,000 member California wildlife federation. A Guy could go out for a week and not see an animal. Also our population is changing. More people Are turning to other kinds of recreation like watching a Ball game that do not Cost As much or take As much  nationally the figures Are less dramatic but the trend is similar. While the american population increased 20 percent Over the last two decades the . Fish and wildlife service reports the number of licenses issued by the 50 states fluctuated Only slightly peaking in 1982 at 16.7 million by 1987 the figure was 15.8 million. An apparent exception is Michigan where Hunting restrictions have been loosened recently because of an explosion in the Deer population. Licenses there Rose by 56 percent in a decade. In themselves License figures Are not a direct gauge of Hunting trends since the requirements and fees change often and not All Hunters Are obliged to buy a License. But Hunting leaders confirm the Overall trend. Receding natural habitat is a major Factor apparent even deep in the Northern California wilds of the Lassen National Forest near Chester considered the Best area for Deer Hunting in the state. Retirees from the san Francisco Bay area 225 Miles away Are putting up Homes around Lake Almanor forcing people like Mears to drive an extra 20 Miles to find Good Hunting. The human assault is most dramatic in Southern California where developers have put the animals at Bay. Drive Down interstate 5 South of san Juan Capistrano most of those communities did not exist 12 years ago said Bob Fusco a Navy Engineer in san Diego who is president of the California wildlife federation. I be got a Brand new Shotgun and i be Only fired it twice at doves complained Kenneth h. Taylor a 67 year old Retiree in Ridgecrest Calif. There simply Aren t any out  a continent away in Southern Maine rapid development is shutting off land. Traditionally private land was open to the Public but in Southern Maine we re seeing More posting said Fred Hurley of the department of Inland fisheries and wildlife. Moose Hunting is More popular than Ever in Maine but Ron Masure owner of Leisure life Lodge in not Only for Chuck Mears but also for Many other americans the lure of the Hunt in t what it used to be. Not Greenville Maine said that Many new England Deer Hunters have been lured to Canada where the Success rate is higher in the wilderness of provinces like Nova Scotia. Hunting remains As much a hallowed tradition As football in Texas but it has slacked off somewhat there too mainly because of the crippled Oil Economy. Dale bigger a bearded Burly Hunting guide and taxidermist in Humble said the Days of the big corporate sponsored Hunts Are Over for now. I used to have Guys Fly their Lear jets right onto the ranch he said. Another major Factor is that a maturing generation has grown up largely in an Urban environment with Many other distractions. I grew up on a farm and there was t much to do in the fall except Hunt said William p. Anderson chief of the Hunting License division at the Pennsylvania game commission. Now i live in a town and my kids and everyone else s have All these sports to choose  in addition there is evidence that american s attitudes toward wildlife perhaps influenced by the potent environmental movement have changed. According to a Survey taken by the fish and wildlife service the number of americans Over 16 engaging in such nonlethal activities As birdwatching and feeding and photographing wild animals grew from 83 million in 1980 to 135 million in 1985. Some Hunters have been deterred by rising License fees and tightened controls. The California department of fish and game has angered some Hunters by allowing Deer tags in the most popular places by lottery to limit the number of Hunters and relieve pressure on shrinking habitats. This has meant that local people in these areas often cannot Hunt near their Homes. Some of the less serious Hunters have dropped out said Terry Mansfield fish and wildlife manager with the department. Big game is big business. The fish and wildlife service estimates that Hunters spent $10.1 billion in 1985 on guns telescopic sights food lodging magazines and the like. While the Overall slowdown has not been great enough to cause sales drops for most equipment makers neither has there been great growth. Tuesday augusts 1988 Paul s. Thompson spokesman for Browning the maker of guns and Hunting accessories in Morgan Utah said the company had continued to Prosper by diversifying into other outdoor sports Selling items like Archery equipment boots and clothing. It also promotes such growing sports As skeet and target shooting. The Market is not growing like it was 20 or 30 years ago he said. Some smaller companies Are probably being affected and it s certainly not an easy business to get into  increasingly unhappy about conditions in National forests and other Public lands Well heeled Hunters Are often turning to operators of Quality Hunts on private preserves. Our clientele is almost doubling every year said Cliff Sebasto Hunting manager at the work ranch in san Miguel in Central California where Hunters get plenty of game a clean Lodge and Home cooked meals by Sebasto s wife. In Texas the . Ranch near Kerrville offers a swimming Pool and guided Hunt of 36 species including such exotic animals As Axis Deer and Aouad sheep. Many Hunters believe the sport has been Hurt by the growing anti Hunting movement in Liberal states like California where such interests legally blocked this year s Mountain lion Hunt and recently disrupted the Bighorn sheep Hunt. There is a real need for a nationwide education program that Hunters Are not bad people said Rick Hill a guide who owns mount Chase Lodge in Patten Maine. The California wildlife federation has attempted in vain to have the legislature require Public schools to teach about the role Hunting plays in wildlife management according to Upholt the director. A lot of kids come out of school with anti gun and anti Hunting attitudes. We Are doing what we can to get the numbers of Hunters Back  but in a nation of urbanite that is an Uphill Battle. The younger generations Are involved in so Many things these Days that i Don t think they la be interested in Hunting said Hurley the Maine wildlife official. Hunting and fishing were things people used to do in their spare  he said. They did t have All the activities kids do  the stars and stripes Page 13