NYS DEC Commissioner Amanda Lefton has just announced a new Hunter Achievement Awards (HAA) Program. Hunters and trappers in New York will be eligible for the new awards for successfully harvesting any of 24 different species of game.

When I opened the announcement, it said that the new HAA program is similar to the highly popular Angler Achievement Awards (AAA) program. For those not familiar with it, the AAA program has been around since 1990.

Successful fishermen are able to get awards for over 40 different species of fish in three different categories (Youth, Adult and State Record). Note that as of 2024 the AAA program was changed to allow for digital submissions with a smart phone.

The new Hunter Achievement Awards entitle the successful recipient to a species-specific sticker. Hunters and trappers can get one sticker per species per year. I can envision people trying to collect the whole set of 24. That would be quite a challenge and require local folks to head to the Adirondacks to trap an American (Pine) Marten.

Here are the 24 species that are eligible for the new awards: bear, antlered white-tail deer, antlerless white-tailed deer, turkey, pheasant, ruffed grouse, woodcock, snowshoe hare, cottontail rabbit, grey squirrel, Canada goose, wood duck, Mallard, bobcat, red fox, grey fox, coyote, raccoon, beaver, river otter, fisher, American Martin, mink and muskrat.

Obviously, all rules and regulations must be followed by the hunter or trapper. Harvest reports must be submitted before applying for these awards. There is an entry form available on the DEC website that must be filled out completely to qualify for an award. The form must be submitted no more than 30 days after the close of the season for that species.

To qualify for the award, a hunter or trapper must submit a photo showing the applicant and the game. DEC asks that all pictures be respectful of the animal and be in good taste (something we should all be doing anyway). The applicant can choose whether or not to allow DEC to use their photos for promotional purposes.

The DEC reserves the right to reject an application due to things like incorrect species, illegal methods used, failure to report harvest, incomplete documentation, etc. 

It’s great to see the DEC implement this new HAA program. It should help encourage people to participate in hunting and trapping (especially younger people). Hunters and trappers are a crucial part of wildlife management. We are the original conservationists.

Not everyone understands why our role is so vital. If we consider a hypothetical area of land with enough food to support 100 animals over the Winter, and 50 new animals are born and grow up that year, what happens? I guess, perhaps some people that are opposed to hunting think the animals draw straws to decide who gets to eat all winter and be healthy, and who doesn’t. More likely, the people have never really thought hard about it.

What really happens, of course, is that all of the animals eat until the food is gone. Then they all starve. They all become weaker. They get diseases, predators catch them more easily and eat them, and the whole herd suffers. The role of the hunter and trapper is to harvest the surplus animals so their population matches the resources available. The herd is strengthened and healthy because of our efforts.

Let’s all enjoy the outdoors!

John S. Van Etten is the current president of the Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs of Sullivan County, Inc.