Upcoming Learn to Hunt workshops offer Illinois residents a path to learn traditional hunting skills.
The series of free workshops will give new hunters an opportunity to learn from experienced mentors and to get hands-on experience hunting for deer, turkey, squirrels, pheasants, ducks, geese and other game. Hunting is a great way to exercise, share time with friends and family outdoors, obtain natural meat, and support conservation.
Some upcoming workshops include:
- Trapping in Illinois 101 (webinar) — Dec. 9 at 6 p.m.
- Introduction to Water Trapping in Illinois Workshop — Dec. 13 at 9 a.m. (Moraine Hills State Park)
- Wild Game Cooking with Tasting — Dec. 18 at 4 p.m. (SITKA Gear, Vernon Hills)
- Late Season Deer Hunting Tactics (webinar) — Dec. 18 at 6 p.m.
- Late Season Squirrel Hunting in Illinois with Mentored Hunt — Dec. 20 at 7 a.m. (Sand Ridge State Forest Headquarters)
Advance registration is required. New events are regularly added to the Learn to Hunt online calendar of upcoming workshop dates.
The Learn to Hunt program was developed by the Illinois Natural History Survey with support from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and other partners. Past and future workshops include presentations and hands-on activities covering:
- hunting history and ethics,
- game animal behavior and ecology,
- safely using firearms and archery equipment,
- purchasing and using proper clothing and gear,
- hunting laws and licenses,
- butchering, storing and cooking harvested game,
- scouting and accessing land,
- target shooting practice,
- and live hunts with an experienced hunting mentor.
The program aims to teach adults hunting skills, preserving the knowledge and allowing the sport to continue to benefit Illinois through its economy, the management of healthy wildlife populations, and conservation.
Since the 1970s, hunting in Illinois has steadily declined. Now, fewer than 2% of Illinoisans are hunters and public lands make up only 2% of the state. Researchers have also found that today young people who are interested in the sport often have no connection to hunting through family members or friends.
The Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign provides scientific expertise and transformative research to the people of Illinois and beyond. PRI is home to the five state scientific surveys: the Illinois Natural History Survey, Illinois State Archaeological Survey, Illinois State Geological Survey, Illinois State Water Survey, and Illinois Sustainable Technology Center.
MEDIA CONTACT
Dan Stephens, hunter and trapper recruitment program manager
danieljs@illinois.edu, news@prairie.illinois.edu
(217) 300-0875