Not the only small game in town

This week’s column deals with West Virginia wildlife officials’ attempt to recruit more young hunters by converting the state’s youth season for squirrels into a youth season for several small-game species:

West Virginia wildlife officials are hoping a small change in a hunting-season regulation will make a big difference in the number of people who hunt.

We’ll find out Oct. 2, when the state holds a one-day, youth-oriented hunt for small game.

In past years, that single-day season was called the “youth squirrel season.” Hunters age 8 to 14, when accompanied by properly licensed adults, were turned loose on the state’s bushytail population.

This year they’ll be turned loose on nearly everything that runs or flies.

“As long as an animal is considered ’small game,’ it will be legal for kids to hunt on that day,” said Scott Warner, a Division of Natural Resources biologist.

Deer will be off-limits, of course, as will turkeys, bears, wild boars and migratory game birds such as woodcock, mourning doves, ducks and geese. Everything else — squirrels, rabbits, grouse, quail, crows, coyotes, foxes, bobcats, raccoons and snowshoe hares — will be fair game.

Warner said the season’s main goal “is to provide additional opportunities [for young people to harvest game] and to increase [adults'] interest in getting kids afield.”

“We’re very concerned that the number of young people getting started in hunting has declined so much in recent years,” he added. “Our youth seasons have been very popular since we started having them, and we thought that converting the youth squirrel season to a youth small-game season was a logical way to get more parents and kids into the woods.”

Roughly one-third of all the adults who responded to the DNR’s annual Bowhunter Survey said they took a youngster hunting during at least one of the DNR’s four youth seasons.

Of the four — squirrel, waterfowl, deer and turkey — participation in the squirrel season was highest by far. Nearly 80 percent of the adults who took kids afield did so during the squirrel season.

“We weren’t surprised by those numbers,” Warner said. “We knew that there’s a lot of interest in taking young people to hunt in the days leading up to the regular hunting seasons, and the numbers bore that out. We think that by making the squirrel season a small-game season, those numbers will go up even more.”

The subject of youth hunting is near and dear to Warner because he has two young children – son Sam, 6; and daughter Ashton, 3.

“They’re still too young to take part in the youth season, but I’ll definitely take them after they turn 8, provide they’re interested,” Warner said. “I don’t want to push them to hunt, but I definitely want to be there if they want to go.”

All hunters aged 8 to 14 must be accompanied and closely supervised by properly licensed adult hunters. Hunters age 15 to 17 may hunt alone, but must have hunting licenses.

Warner said the key to hunting with younger children is to have realistic expectations.

“This is their hunt, not yours,” he said. “So you should try to hunt in a place with easy terrain, so they can keep up. You should keep the hunt short; one to two hours is about right. You should take a few snacks along.

“Youth hunts aren’t necessarily about killing game, although that certainly can happen. They’re more about interacting with your kids. They’re a time to build memories. If you focus on those things, you’ll end up having a good time, and so will your kids.”