Fishing and Hunting Workers

AI & job outlook

What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.

Exposure to current AI

Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.

OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.0), with simple added tooling (β 0.0), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.1). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.

Job outlook

Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.

“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.

Tasks

All 30 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.

• Steer vessels and operate navigational instruments. Core · importance 4.8
• Scrape fat, blubber, or flesh from skin sides of pelts with knives or hand scrapers. Core · importance 4.7
• Patrol trap lines or nets to inspect settings, remove catch, and reset or relocate traps. Core · importance 4.6
• Remove catches from fishing equipment and measure them to ensure compliance with legal size. Core · importance 4.6
• Direct fishing or hunting operations, and supervise crew members. · importance 4.6
• Locate fish, using fish-finding equipment. Core · importance 4.5
• Interpret weather and vessel conditions to determine appropriate responses. Core · importance 4.5
• Kill or stun trapped quarry, using clubs, poisons, guns, or drowning methods. Core · importance 4.5
• Travel on foot, by vehicle, or by equipment such as boats, snowmobiles, helicopters, snowshoes, or skis to reach hunting areas. Core · importance 4.5
• Maintain and repair trapping equipment. Core · importance 4.4
• Obtain permission from landowners to hunt or trap on their land. Core · importance 4.3
• Select, bait, and set traps, and lay poison along trails, according to species, size, habits, and environs of birds or animals and reasons for trapping them. Core · importance 4.3
• Maintain engines, fishing gear, and other on-board equipment and perform minor repairs. Core · importance 4.3
• Put fishing equipment into the water and anchor or tow equipment, according to the fishing method used. Core · importance 4.3
• Compute positions and plot courses on charts to navigate vessels, using instruments such as compasses, sextants, and charts. Core · importance 4.2
• Obtain required approvals for using poisons or traps, and notify persons in areas where traps and poison are set. Core · importance 4.2
• Sort, pack, and store catch in holds with salt and ice. Core · importance 4.2
• Skin quarry, using knives, and stretch pelts on frames to be cured. Core · importance 4.1
• Track animals by checking for signs such as droppings or destruction of vegetation. Core · importance 4.1
• Transport fish to processing plants or to buyers. Core · importance 4.1
• Connect accessories such as floats, weights, flags, lights, or markers to nets, lines, or traps. Core · importance 4.1
• Wash decks, conveyors, knives, and other equipment, using brushes, detergents, and water. Core · importance 4.1
• Harvest marine life for human or animal consumption, using diving or dredging equipment, traps, barges, rods, reels, or tackle. Supplemental · importance 3.9
• Attach nets, slings, hooks, blades, or lifting devices to cables, booms, hoists, or dredges. Core · importance 3.8
• Release quarry from traps or nets and transfer to cages. Core · importance 3.7
• Teach or guide individuals or groups unfamiliar with specific hunting methods or types of prey. Core · importance 3.7
• Oversee the purchase of supplies, gear, and equipment. · importance 3.6
• Participate in animal damage control, wildlife management, disease control, and research activities. Core · importance 3.6
• Load and unload vessel equipment and supplies, by hand or using hoisting equipment. Core · importance 3.4
• Wash and sort pelts according to species, color, and quality. Core

Emerging tasks

Newer responsibilities O*NET has flagged as growing for this occupation.

• Operate and maintain drone technology for aerial surveillance of hunting and fishing areas.

Work activities

• Locate animals for fishing or hunting purposes.
• Obtain documentation to authorize activities.
• Drive trucks or other vehicles to or at work sites.
• Navigate water vessels.
• Remove skin or other body parts from animals.
• Maintain forestry, hunting, or agricultural equipment.
• Position animal trapping or capture equipment.
• Sort forestry or agricultural materials.
• Package agricultural products for shipment or further processing.
• Capture or kill animals.
• Obtain written authorization to perform activities.
• Communicate safety or hazard information to others.
• Attach equipment extensions or accessories.
• Protect wildlife or natural areas.
• Transport animals, crops, or equipment.
• Clean equipment or facilities.
• Train workers in farming, forestry, or hunting techniques.
• Load agricultural or forestry products for shipment.
• Direct activities of agricultural, forestry, or fishery employees.
• Coordinate resource procurement activities.

Knowledge, skills & abilities

O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).

Abilities

Knowledge

Essential skills

Transferable skills

Skills in demand

Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.

• Geography Specialized Skill
• Inductive Reasoning Common Skill
• Biology Specialized Skill
• Depth Perception Common Skill
• Deductive Reasoning Common Skill
• Critical Thinking Common Skill
• English Language Common Skill
• Microsoft Excel Common Skill
• Time Management Common Skill
• Speech Recognition Specialized Skill
• Information Ordering Specialized Skill
• Finger Dexterity Common Skill
• Visualization Specialized Skill
• Reading Comprehension Common Skill
• Learning Strategies Specialized Skill
• Instructing Specialized Skill
• Complex Problem Solving Common Skill
• Active Listening Common Skill
• Social Perceptiveness Common Skill
• Equipment Maintenance Specialized Skill
• Mathematics Common Skill
• Telecommunications Specialized Skill
• Equipment Selection Specialized Skill
• Active Learning Common Skill
• Physics Specialized Skill
• Systems Analysis Specialized Skill
• Writing Common Skill
• Negotiation Common Skill
• Psychology Specialized Skill
• Chemistry Specialized Skill
• Foreign Language Common Skill
• Installation Specialized Skill

Tools & technology

Work context

How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.

How to get in

Job zone

Zone 2 — Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed

Education

Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.

Typical entry-level education

No formal educational credential · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement

Related experience

Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.

Preparation level

SVP (Below 6.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.

What to study: Natural Resources and Conservation . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.

Education of current workers

Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.

Interests & work styles

The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.

Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)

Interest areas

Work styles

Related occupations

Part of the Agriculture career cluster.

• Sailors and Marine Oilers · 53-5011.00 Compare →
• Motorboat Operators · 53-5022.00 Compare →
• Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels · 53-5021.00 Compare →
• Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals · 45-2093.00 Compare →
• Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse · 45-2092.00 Compare →
• Forest and Conservation Workers · 45-4011.00 Compare →
• Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers · 51-3022.00 Compare →
• Agricultural Equipment Operators · 45-2091.00 Compare →
• Fish and Game Wardens · 33-3031.00 Compare →
• Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand · 53-7062.00 Compare →
• Riggers · 49-9096.00 Compare →
• Commercial Divers · 49-9092.00 Compare →

Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.

What you can do with this

Options the data surfaces for Fishing and Hunting Workers — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-role-45-3031-00,
  title  = {Fishing and Hunting Workers},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-45-3031-00}
}