Seven-year-old Abram Sayler learned a lot of things at Fish and Game’s annual Discover Wild New Hampshire Day Saturday, including this: a red rat snake has bones — and it’s softer and warmer than you might think.
After petting it, Sayler added, “and you kind of feel the scales.”
New Hampshire Fish and Game’s annual event gives the public a chance to explore outdoor life in New Hampshire and the department’s wildlife, conservation, and rescue operations. There are so many things to see, it requires a two-page map.
Greyson Girard, 9, of Bow, took his time aiming an air rifle at a paper target. His shots hit just outside the bullseye, a performance he hopes to repeat when turkey hunting season opens next month.
Asked what tips he’d give new hunters, Girard had one: safety.
“Always look where you’re going with your gun or whatever you have in your hand,” he said. “And you always have to be careful with the trigger.”
Six-year-old Owen Thomas recognized the turtle shells and moose antler inside Fish and Game’s tent. But he had to ask wildlife biologist Brett Ferry what the big round collar was. His eyes went wide when Ferry told him it goes on moose to help the department track them for scientific studies.
Rita Tulloh and her red tail hawk Scarlett O’Hara were popular with kids and adults. Together, they hunt small animals, including rabbits, squirrels and pheasants. Tulloh, a member of New Hampshire Falconers from Epping, said she didn’t have to train Scarlett to hunt, but rather to accept her as a hunting partner.
“It’s a wonderful experience having this relationship with a wild creature,” Tulloh said.
