The old saying, “Business is the business of America,” is one of the central tenets of American life. Here in Maine, at least in November, we should have a similar motto, something like: “Hunting is the business of Maine.”

And, despite claims that hunting is in decline, which reminds us of yet another famous quip, Mark Twain’s “reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated,” Maine’s hunting culture is alive and well. According to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, more than 200,000 people hunt annually in Maine. Those hunters generate more than $200 million in related economic activity.

The $200 million figure, which sounds like an awful lot at first blush, comes from a 2011 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service national survey. The report states Maine hunters spent $98 million on food, lodging and transportation; $60 million on equipment; and $40 million on magazines, membership dues, permits, licenses and other related items.

The numbers are healthy in other categories, as well, not just economic. The Maine Office of Tourism, on its website beckoning hunters to the state, reports there is a big herd, a fact possibly associated with the relatively mild winters we’ve seen following 2008 and 2009, which wildlife biologists say were particularly hard on the deer population. The office reports the herds have rebounded and now number about 200,000 whitetail deer, 29,000 moose and 25,000 black bear. For waterfowl, there is “world-class” sea duck hunting on the coast and wild turkeys number more than 60,000, and are expanding their range north and east.

While northern and central Maine is usually where we think most hunting takes place, a quick analysis of the state’s 2012 deer harvest report shows that a lot of the 21,412 total harvested deer (which was up from 18,839 in 2011, but down from 2003 and 2004, when 29,000 to 30,000 deer were taken) were caught in southern Maine towns.

One long-term hunting trend is the upfront costs the sport requires, which is an unfortunate development for those who would like to hunt simply for the joy of putting food on their tables. Buying a decent rifle, ammunition, clothing and footwear, and then paying the annual license fees and butchering, is prohibitively expensive compared with going to the local grocery store and picking up Cello-Packs of meat. That stubborn fact probably keeps many men, women and children away from what used to be a rite of fall.

But that new reality has a flipside. Because of the expense involved, today’s hunters are more of an economic engine. The national Cabela’s chain built a store in southern Maine a few years ago expressly to tap into a growing market. While hunters can still get away with the standard fare, there are a multitude of accessories and better quality items that make for a more enjoyable and perhaps more successful hunt.

And those who want to limit hunting and hunters’ rights and block access to property should keep that overall impact in mind. “Posted” signs may be designed to keep out hunters and their stray bullets, but they also restrain the positive local impact those hunters could have.Those unfriendly to the idea of hunting should also keep in mind that hunters are a blessing to the non-hunters among us. Ask anyone who’s slammed their vehicle into a gangly deer or gigantic moose or lost their gardens or apple harvest to a flock of hungry turkeys, and they’ll likely curse the large animals and birds. While it’s special to have wildlife all around us, they also pose a danger and nuisance, and hunters provide a check on their burgeoning populations.

But mostly, hunting is an excuse to get back to nature, and back to a slower way of life. Anyone who’s been on a scavenger hunt knows the thrill of the hunt. There’s something basic and aboriginal about hunting, and we are lucky to live in a state that celebrates a way of life that is all but gone in the lower New England states. To cite the signs in the variety stores – Welcome hunters!

–John Balentine, managing editor