Now that it appears some decent autumn weather has arrived, hunters will be stepping into the woods and fields in search of deer, turkey, grouse, pheasant and rabbit. The question many are asking is, “Why is small game so scarce in our state?” Didn’t we just get hit with a sizeable license hike?

Of the $749 million in excise tax revenues generated by sportsmen and women to state and territorial fish and wildlife agencies through the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration and Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Programs, New York probably will get a pittance of that. Why? New York just doesn’t have that many qualifying programs

Okay, now let’s compare what a small game hunter can reasonably expect in Pennsylvania. It offers all that New York offers plus thousands of acres of public game management land.