A recent Pennsylvania Game Commission sales analysis report shows hunting license sales have jumped by more than 12 percent. From June 15 through Oct. 31, hunters spent $15,184,049.80 purchasing 747,544 Pennsylvania hunting licenses of various kinds. During the same period in 2008, the agency brought in $13,542,571 for sales of 689,321 licenses. Resident Adult Hunting license sales increased 9.17 percent to 527,275. While Resident Junior Hunting and Resident Junior Combo sales increased by 15.52 percent and 15.01 percent respectively, and 14,834 Mentored Youth Permits were purchased during the first years permits were issued, elder hunter hunters surpassed the kids interest with a 137.09 percent increase in Senior Lifetime Combo Upgrades and a 132.70 percent uptick in sales of Resident Senior Lifetime Hunting licenses.

It's always good to nip stupid rumors in the bud before they blossom into regional buzz that warrants larger stories. Have you heard the one that alleges that in an effort to curb the Mercer County coyote population, the Pennsylvania Game Commission stocked cougars near Sheakleyville and Goddard State Park? Len Hribar, law enforcement supervisor at the commission's Northwest Region Office, had the following response: "The Game Commission has not stocked mountain lions ever anywhere in Pennsylvania."

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