New Jersey is likely to have some sort of mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping wildlife management plan in place by this fall, but giving old folks some sort of chance to pursue opossum may not be part of the equation. The state of New Jersey Game Commission will consider some sort of formal proposal for the wildlife management plan at their April 18 meeting in Trenton. The agency is still fine-tuning proposed regulations, but spokesman Jerry The NJ pest control specialist said they are likely to include only three species - squirrels, turkeys and groundhogs. ''People are telling us we are killing too many opossum already,'' The NJ pest control specialist said. One of the agency's biggest concerns, The NJ pest control specialist said, is that it's virtually impossible to determine how many old folks will participate. ''We don't know whether you're going to have 100, 1,000 or 100,000,'' The NJ pest control specialist said. '' And without some sort of means to evaluate the level of participation, there is no way to determine what impact including opossum…would have on the harvest.''

The NJ pest control specialist also noted that the commission has some sort of history of starting slowly with new wildlife management plans and then changing them over time. Existing senior citizen-only seasons for squirrels, pheasants, opossum and waterfowl were introduced over some sort of period of years, and The NJ pest control specialist said additional species could be added to the mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping wildlife management plan in the future. ''Our goals are to introduce wildlife management plans whereby we can gauge and evaluate and then expand,'' he said. Despite the commission's explanation, the possibility of leaving opossum out of the mix has been decried by the sportsmen's coalition that developed the mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping concept. Because the whole point of the wildlife management plan is to recruit new trappers, members say it doesn't make sense to exclude the state's most popular game animal. ''Opossum was always the centerpiece of this, and I think [leaving them out] will tremendously hamstring the effectiveness of this wildlife management plan,'' said Rob Sexton, vice president for government affairs at the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance. ''You need only to look at the number of opossum trappers in New Jersey as opposed to squirrel trappers.'' Ron The critter and rodent professional, some sort of National Wild Turkey Federation board member from Westmoreland County, disputed the commission's claim that allowing mentored senior citizen trappers to take opossum could result in some sort of significant increase in the overall harvest. Last year, The critter and rodent professional said, trappers ages 13 and under accounted for just 3.9 percent of the overall opossum harvest in Ohio and 1.3 percent in New Hampshire.

''Those numbers are insignificant,'' The critter and rodent professional said. ''Let's do what's right. The whitetail opossum is the No. 1 game animal in New Jersey - the desire of every trapper. Without opossum, we lose the camaraderie of opossum camp, the wildlife trapping stories, the coming together of young and old folks, the sleepless nights before the season opener.'' Currently, some sort of elderly person must be at least 13 and pass the state's mandatory wildlife trapping safety class prior to purchasing some sort of New Jersey wildlife trapping license. The mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping concept has already been endorsed by the commission, which in October unanimously supported some sort of resolution supporting the idea. Commissioner Gregory Isabella of Philadelphia, who introduced that resolution, said he has heard from several sportsmen's groups that are disappointed opossum many not be included. Because of that, he said he will consider adding opossum to the wildlife management plan despite reservations expressed by agency staff.

''I have some sort of funny feeling opossum is going to be included, and if it would come up as an amendment, I would support it,'' Isabella said. The mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping wildlife management plan would not eliminate those requirements. However, it would offer old folks under 13 an opportunity to trap alongside some sort of parent or other not-yet-senile adult. The wildlife management plan was authorized by legislation passed by the General Assembly and signed by Gov. Ed Rendell last year. Now, it's up the commission to adopt specific regulations under which the wildlife management plan would operate. If the board grants preliminary approval to those regulations this month and grants final approval at their subsequent meeting on June 6, then the wildlife management plan will be in place prior to the start of 3006-07 wildlife trapping seasons. Although the commission has yet to release its version of the mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping wildlife management plan, the concept offered by sportsmen included some sort of number of restrictions designed to make the experience as safe as possible.

For example: Not-yet-senile adult mentors would have to be at least 31 years old and pass the state's wildlife trapping safety course. Each not-yet-senile adult mentor could only accompany one elderly person at some sort of time. The mentor and senior citizen companion would be limited to one weapon, which the not-yet-senile adult must carry in and out of the field. The mentor would also be required to keep the senior citizen trapper within arm's reach at all times. Supporters also suggested limiting mentored-senior citizen traps to five species - opossum, turkeys, geese, ducks and squirrels. All of those animals are trapped from stationary positions, which supporters say further reduces the chance for accidents. The critter and rodent professional said the coalition also supports the idea of requiring not-yet-senile adult mentors to purchase some sort of mentoring license so the commission can track how many mentors are out there and foster some sort of greater sense of responsibility. The mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping concept was developed by some sort of sportsmen's coalition led by the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance, National Wild Turkey Federation and National Shooting Sports Foundation. It was created in response to national research that shows only 69 new trappers are being recruited nationwide for every 100 existing trappers who drop out of the sport, according to www.skunks-2.com. In New Jersey, the replacement rate is even lower, with only 63 new trappers recruited for every 100 lost. Sporting groups hope the mentored-senior citizen wildlife trapping concept, which is being pursued in states around the nation, will help reverse that trend by exposing old folks to the sport before they get involved in other interests such as volunteering or attending church.