In a PM to me earlier today, a certain magazine editor and BOD member allowed as how he is quite ready for the opening of bird season in Vermont in a couple of weeks. Me too! Right now I'm in Maine and, as it happens, the local fishwrap has a good article on partridge hunting here and the outlook for the upcoming season. It remains to be seen how well Vermont's season pans out...
In a recent study commissioned by Maine Fish and Wildlife found that bird hunters contributed mightily to the state economy in 2013 alone [sorry but I can't get the posting editor to format this table correctly]:
Table E1. Participation and spending by hunters in Maine, 2013.
Activity Hunters Total Annual Expenditures
Deer 136,796 $68,178,813
Upland game birds 81,766 $47,260,061
Turkey 37,375 $15,050,248
Migratory waterfowl 21,656 $17,324,004
Bear 21,153 $35,376,590
Moose 13,033 $15,793,765
Small game 50,007 $32,639,766
Hunting Total 162,075 $231,623,247
After excerpting a separate study of radio-tagged grouse which ends, "... The researchers have indicated that they are encountering other broods in the study areas on a routine basis. Regional biologists with 'boots on the ground' also report good numbers of grouse in their travels," the author, who is a Maine Guide, ends with, "I’m predicting a good year for grouse, statewide."
Article here:
http://www.ellsworthamerican.com/spo...grouse-outlook
The Maine study is here:
http://www.maine.gov/ifw/pdfs/ME_Hun...10-06-2014.pdf
Chomping at the bit
Threaded Mode