Field & Stream, one of the most popular magazines among sportsmen, made waves this past week as it’s cover was not the typical shot of an animal or hunting gear, but rather a female hunter.
Clad in camo and wielding a bow, huntress and TV host Eva Shockey graces the May cover of the “What’s Next” issue. She is only the second woman to appear solo on the cover since the magazine’s beginning 119 years ago. The first woman was Queen Elizabeth who appeared with her hunting dogs on the 1976 January edition.
The growing trend in women hitting the field deems the cover only appropriate, with female hunters growing by 10 percent between 2008 and 2012 according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Currently 3.35 million women are participating in the sport; an impressive number considering the activity has historically been male dominated.
“One of the most exciting things about the future of hunting and fishing is how many women are taking up the sport for the first time.” said Anthony Licata, Field & Stream Editor-in-Chief. “It’s certainly time for a woman to be on the cover of Field & Stream, and Eva Shockey is an ideal ambassador for female hunters.”
Shockey, costar of her father’s show on the Outdoor Channel, Jim Shockey’s Hunting Adventures, tells Field & Stream that the growing trend in women hunters will only continue to increase. This, according to Shockey, is due to platforms such as mainstream television that are now running not only hunting shows, but also featuring women in the outdoors.
This growing sportswomen trend can also be attributed to the rise in big screen movies that portray women wielding bows and more. The popular Hunger Games series, based on books by Suzanne Collins, depicts a female heroine who uses her knowledge of the outdoors and strong bowhunting abilities to overcome her impending death.
Disney has even taken advantage of the trend and featured a young bow-wielding huntress of their own in the 2012 film, Brave.
The hunting industry is also recognizing women more for their leadership roles, skills and hunting prowess, featuring many in their ad campaigns, on their television shows, and in person at events such as the Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade show held in January each year. Huntresses such as Shockey, Olivia Opre, Olympian Corey Cogdell and many others have played a large role in making this possible and many can also be credited with influencing more (and younger) women to hit the field.
None of this seems to come as a surprise to Shockey. When asked by Field & Stream “what’s next?” she replied: “I’d say women are.”
We couldn’t agree more.