New hunting and trapping license applicants will have homework requirements as licenses for next season go on sale in St. Lawrence County.

The Department of Environmental Conservation is informing new hunters and trappers planning to go afield this season that they must complete a mandatory hunter, bowhunter or trapper education course before obtaining a license. New course homework requirements were instituted this year.

All hunter education and trapper education courses now require students to review course materials and complete a homework sheet prior to attending the classroom and field sessions.

The new homework portion of the course is intended to provide an introduction to the subject and to enhance the students’ understanding of the course material. Proof of the completed homework is required in order to attend the classroom and field portions of the course.

Students should register for the course well in advance of the classroom and field date(s) in order to allow time to complete the homework requirement, which takes about three hours. All courses also require successful completion of an in-person field day to earn certification for the course.

Access to the homework materials and online homework options can be found on DEC’s website at: www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7860.html or follow the guidelines listed in the various course announcements when you register for a particular class. Actual course manuals and homework sheets are always available from DEC wildlife offices and sportsman education instructors.

DEC works closely with thousands of DEC-certified instructors statewide to provide training courses free of charge. Courses are offered for hunter education, bowhunter education, trapper education and waterfowl identification.

Viewing a list of all available hunter and trapper education courses with the student's proximity to course locations can be done at www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/7860.html or contact a local DEC office for assistance. Students can register from any device – smartphone, tablet or computer – 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

New York’s hunter education courses are highly effective in fostering safe hunters. Approximately 500,000 licensed hunters spend an estimated 10 to 15 million days afield each year.

Reports on the number of hunting-related shooting incidents indicate that 2015 had the third lowest number on record in New York.

The 2015 hunting season yielded the first year without a hunting-related shooting fatality since the 1950s.