NOVICE HUNTERS: Wear Orange or Become the Hunted

Idaho's Hunter Orange requirement exists to prevent hunters from becoming the hunted.

Think we're joking?

WE'RE NOT.

Here's why...

CONTROVERSIAL FACT || CAMO IS USELESS IN BIG GAME HUNTING

It's science.

Developed by the Brits, camouflage was originally intended to help soldiers of the 1960s evade opposing forces. Not long after, hunters adopted the practice to advance their prey-stalking techniques. Or so they thought.

As it turns out, big game such as deer, for example, have a limited color perception known as dichromatic vision. For deer, it's a spectrum that only identifies blue and green hues.

Because most modern camo palettes and patterns contain varied green hues, the majority of camo gear on the market is utterly useless.

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ENTER || ORANGE BLAZE

Undetectable by big game when broken up by a pattern, orange blaze allows hunters to effectively hide from prey while remaining safely visible to those around them. It's a practice the state of Idaho strongly encourages the hunting community to adopt.

CHOOSE ORANGE || MAKING THE CASE

If this is the part where you're expecting us to hit you with a shocking death toll, kindly exhale, relax, and read on.

In truth, between 2007 and 2016, the Department of Environmental Conservation's Hunter Education Program reported 41 hunting-related fatalities among 195,098 U.S. registered hunters. From 1997 to 2017, DOEC data also reflects a 50.5% decline in unintentional firearm fatalities.

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While the number of fatalities remain low and on the decline, concerns regarding Idaho's recent influx of transplants raises concern.

As 2021's fastest growing state in America, Idaho gained 53,151 new residents last year. The growth spike has inspired several within the hunting community to vocalize concern for the effect transplant novice hunters might have on safety conditions.

In short, inexperience coupled with camouflage is the chief concern here.

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To maintain the steady decline of accidents seen in years past, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission requires hunters to wear orange "while hunting pheasants where the Upland Game Bird Permit is required," as well as on sponsored hunts and during organized youth hunts.

REQUIREMENTS || IMPORTANT INFO TO KNOW

Where the Upland Game Bird Permit is required, hunters must wear a minimum of 36 square inches on hunter orange from the waist up.

Hunter orange benefits more than just the hunting community. As athletes and outdoor enthusiasts tend to share the same spaces as hunters, the bright orange color worn by all parties helps save lives.