I had heard a lot of wierd numbers, but can't seem to find a good source.

Does anyone know where I can find out how many hunters there are in the world?

last I heard there were about 14 million hunting license buyers in the USA. If we can assume that we represent a fourth of the world's sport hunters, I would think the number 56 million will be as close a guess as you'll find.

Bill Quimby

World population is approx 6.9 BILLION....

"WE" are all hunters....some of us get to use our own guns

quote:

Originally posted by AzGuy:
World population is approx 6.9 BILLION....

That makes my guess of 56 million sport hunters slightly more than 8 percent of everyone alive. I may be too high.

Bill Quimby

http://www.dces.wisc.edu/docum...ers.ppt#270,26,Slide 26

Looks like Austria and Germany have more hunters now than they have had in 40 years.

Looks like there is about 8 million hunters in Europe. And 830 million people in Europe. So that's not as small a percentage as I would have though.

They might have us be per capita.

In 3rd world countries if you want supper you most likely have to hunt or forage ,sport hunting aside!

I have been to, and lived in lots of 3rd world countries.

Only a couple did the population have guns.

I don't consider nyama bush meat poaching as hunting. And I don't consider some little guy with a blowgun or a spear as partaking in the activity of hunting. He's a consumer, going to the super market. Not discounting his skill, but he doesn't hunt to get closer to the outdoors, he is outdoors.

A hunter is a hunter weather for sport or subsistance. Sorry to say a poacher is a hunter also. To hunt is to seek out your quary. Now if you want to change your query to sport hunting OK so be it.

quote:

Originally posted by billrquimby:

quote:

Originally posted by AzGuy:
World population is approx 6.9 BILLION....

That makes my guess of 56 million sport hunters slightly more than 8 percent of everyone alive. I may be too high.

Bill Quimby

Actually 56 million is 0.8% of everyone alive....and I believe you are probably very close to being right on.

Looks like I misplaced the decimal point when I did my math. Although, I think 0.8% is low, by applying what little I know about the hunting on six continents, I came up with only slightly more than 33 million sport hunters worldwide. The number of subsistence hunters (including poachers) undoubtedly is more than twice that.

My best guess:
6 million Canada
8 million Europe
14 million USA
3 million Mexico
500,000 Australia, New Zealand
500,000 Africa
750,000 South America
400,000 Asia

Bill Quimby

I'd say your numbers are way low, especially for the US. John Jackson figures more like 45 million.
LINK

With all due apologies to John, it's been many, many years since there were 45 million people buying hunting licenses in the United States. The number has declined every time the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service counted them.

The 14 million I used, for example, is out-of-date, too. The number apparently has dropped to 12.4 million, according to USA Today.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/n...-fewer-hunters_N.htm

Bill Quimby

Sorry Bill, but the CF article never said 45 million people bought hunting licenses. It said that 45 mill consider themselves hunters, but simply didn't get licensed in the year 2001 (plus those under 16 yoa). Plenty of people don't get licensed every year. Many more hunted most of their lives but don't any more for a variety of reasons - but would still consider themselves to be hunters. Plus, a lot of folks hunt overseas now and I'll bet that that number has been growing steadily for the past decade or more.

USA Today used USF&W data for their article, which includes only those who got a hunting license in a particular year.

12.4 million? I don't think so. But 45 million? I doubt that too. It's somewhere in between, but a lot more than 12.4.

Steve:

The USFWS works from data provided by the states, and uses it to apportion funds raised through excise taxes on hunting, fishing and shooting equipment. The state game and fish agencies that spend these funds would scream bloody murder if the numbers were off by much, so I would think 12.4 million license buyers in 2006 probably was as accurate as it could be.

Don't know if there is a factor for people who buy more than one type of hunting license in their state or, for that matter, in multiple states.

I guess people who still hunt albeit irregularly are allowed to call themselves hunters if they don't hunt in a particular year, but I don't think those who haven't hunted in years still deserve the title just because they did so in the past.

Bill Quimby

I saw a number several years ago that listed 20 million as the number of hunters worldwide.....if my memory is correct that is.

7.6 mil in Europe (without Russia):

http://www.face.eu/huntingin_census-en.htm

I don’t if it’s worth my time to get into this, or if it even belongs here, but as far as I’m concerned, one of the worst things that ever happened to hunting in the US (and probably globally) was the creation of the Boy Scouts of America.

The "environmentalist" philosophy of “take only photographs, leave only footprints” is almost policy with the BSA.

So whenever I hear that “take only photographs ..” crap, whether from a scout-leader or an environmentalist, I just tell them that I live by a different philosophy: “If you’re not planning on killing something, you ought to just stay the f**k home. You’ll only get in the way”.

Baden-Powell can kiss my ass.

Baden Powell was by my understanding a hunter.

The new philosiphy in the USA is pushed by the sponsor organization of the Boy Scouts..... ready for this The Mormon church.

The morally straight ethic is also pushed by the Church.

That tv show on Showtime "Bullshit" with Penn and Teller did a big show on the boyscouts. I am not really a fan.

4-H is the pro hunting, pro gun youth organization.

Hunters or guys who kill game? There is a difference.

Cheers,

Brian

Brian I agree there is a difference between hunters and collectors.

And I also agree that Bass Pro sucks.