As to hunter numbers...
I believe that overall hunter numbers may be declining. But- what I have witnessed over the last 25 years is that the average hunter is hunting more and different game. In the 80's and some of the 90's in my area- you had many who just hunted deer ( and mostly firearms season). Today - those same people are turkey hunting, some are are waterfowl and/or archery hunting for deer , and some hunt the muzzleloader season. Even with less overall numbers of hunters- it is more crowded with those "fewer " hunters - hunting other species besides deer.
The future as I see it will be determined by access to hunting property. The available property becomes less each and every year for private land. Access to private land is becoming in more cases - a $$$ game. This puts increased pressure on public hunting. Time will tell
