Love it or hate it, hunting is an indelible part of Minnesota life. Nearly 600,000 people take up a gun or bow each year, and the first deer hunt is an important rite of passage for many kids.

The littered six-packs and Stop-sign targets found all too often around wildlife areas and public forestlands show that many trigger-happy idiots still roam the woods, but most hunters are, in fact, far more conservation-minded than the average citizen.

The revenue raised by hunting licenses and stamps, as well as funds donated by conservation organizations like Ducks Unlimited, Pheasants Forest, and the Izaak Walton League, have paid for over half of the one million acres of wildlife management land found around the state.

Thanks largely to hunters, Minnesota has more public wildlife lands than any other state in the Midwest. And in many cases hunting is an essential management tool—I know a vegetarian ecology professor who takes up a rifle during the deer season.

Minnesota has over 100 legal game species. Deer, goose, duck, ruffed grouse, and pheasant are some of the most popular. Any questions you have about seasons (most are between September and December), locations, or licenses can be answered by the DNR Information Center.

Licenses can be obtained in person at sporting goods stores, bait shops, resorts, hardware stores, gas stations, and DNR offices; by phone at 888/665-4236; or online at www.wildlifelicense.com/mn.