Here's a question: does anyone know whether hunting is a right or a privilege. One answer answers the OP.
A hunting license is a privilege, just like a drivers license.
Congress has the authority to manage and regulate wildlife. Almost 200 years ago SCOTUS said that Congress has implicitly delegated that authority to states, as long as in the opinion of Congress, the state(s) are managing the wildlife "properly". This doctrine has been upheld by the courts time and again ever since. If Congress has a good and
specific reason it can step in and take over management of specific species or class of wildlife. The Migratory Bird Act and the amending Waterfowl Act are an example where the Feds directly oversee management. The MBA required treaties with other countries which is the sole authority of Congress, and required cooperation among states, The authority to manage migratory birds has been delegated to the USFWS.
The Endangered Species Act is another example. The Feds must list a specific
species and that species must be considered at risk by those who Congress delegated it's authority to--in this case that's USFWS. The courts have been quite adamant about that. The courts have also upheld--multiple times--for species that are not specifically protected by the Feds, of the authority of states to regulate hunting seasons, population size, to discriminate between residents vs nonresidents, etc.
The bottom line is the states have the
authority to manage the wildlife, Congress has the
right to manage or delegate management to states or anybody else they feel like.
