Benefits Depend on Participation

Wildlife Councils are the alternative to failing R3 initiatives

Persistent and seemingly irreversible declines in hunter numbers haven’t been impacted by hunter recruitment, reactivation, and retention or ‘R3’ as the hunting world has dubbed it. Almost 50% of those that complete hunter education stop buying hunting licenses within 2 years. Likewise, liberalizing tags, lengthening seasons and adding legal weapons categories haven’t produced ANY increase in hunters long-term. 

Today, only 4.6% of Americans identify as hunters (meaning that 95.4% do not).

Fortunately, there’s another approach to safeguard hunting for future generations, and that’s to change the way the public thinks and feels about hunting, fishing, and trapping.

The Michigan Wildlife Council (MWC) is a group of nine citizen volunteers appointed by the Governor and funded by $1 from the sale of every base hunting, trapping, and fishing license. The sole purpose of the Council (Michigan Public Act 246 of 2013) is strategic marketing, education, and outreach to the general public about:

• The value of hunting, trapping, and fishing as wildlife management tools,
• The essential importance of license dollars to habitat, wildlife, and conservation work,
• The contributions of consumptive recreation to Michigan’s economy,
• The roles that hunting, trapping, and fishing play as parts of Michigan’s cultural heritage.

In 2015, when the MWC conducted its’ first (baseline) survey, 62% of Michiganders said they approved of hunting for food, to protect agricultural production, manage populations or safeguard human health or safety. But at the same time:

• 39% didn’t think hunters were responsible people.
• 42% didn’t think or didn’t know whether hunters followed regulations.
• 61% didn’t think or didn’t know whether management was important for healthy wildlife populations.
• 44% believed or didn’t know whether legal regulated hunting led to species extinctions.

Today, thanks to MWC efforts, 84% of Michiganders approve of hunting, 67% have favorable opinions about hunters (an increase of 14%), and 89% agree that hunting is important to Michigan’s culture. Eighty-seven percent agree that hunting is a valuable management tool and 78% agree that wildlife and habitat work are largely funded through the sale of hunting and fishing licenses. Even more remarkable, in a 2024 survey by Responsive Management, Michigan was the only state where public support for hunting, trapping, and fishing hadn’t declined since a previous survey in 2022.

And yet, the evidence suggests that most hunters and anglers are indifferent to this new and remarkably successful approach. At a recent MWC meeting, a quorum of members wasn’t present until two hours after the meeting began and the one-person audience was invited to participate like an appointed member.  It’s not uncommon for members to skip meetings entirely.

More important, the predictable result of apathy on the part of some MWC members is that the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has assumed de facto leadership of the Council. Because hunting, trapping, and fishing aren’t the only (or anymore, the most important) part of the DNR’s recreational portfolio, the goals of the MWC have sometimes shifted towards the promotion of other ‘non-consumptive’ outdoor recreational activities.

Although these other activities are very worthwhile, hikers, birders, and forest bathers don’t buy licenses and can lose sight of how conservation actually is funded.

To date, the only group encouraging the MWC to stay on task has been the Nimrod Society, an organization dedicated to establishing state-based wildlife councils (and, incidentally, responsible for bringing the wildlife council concept to Michigan). But Nimrod isn’t strong enough to go it alone. Unless hunters become more engaged, the interests of the council inevitably will realign with the most reliable participant (DNR). Decisions are made by the people that show up.

The future of hunting depends on the attitudes of an increasingly diverse and non-rural public. Most don’t appreciate the difference between fish and wildlife protection and sustainable wise use. The MWC has demonstrated its effectiveness by increasing public appreciation for conservation and the financial benefits provided by hunters. Unless something changes, hunters will be missing a unique and valuable opportunity to build and maintain support for the future.