tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84000188145194993692024-03-13T10:11:15.719-04:00Fair Chase Hunting<br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br><br>Fair chase hunting: Moral? Ethical? Hunter preference? <br><br><br><br><br><br>We also look at core issues related to the future of hunting such as hunting ethics, hunter<br>education, the public trust of wildlife, and the North American Model of Wildlife Management.<br><br>
Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.comBlogger448125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-36237791323596413712018-05-28T10:50:00.000-04:002018-05-28T10:50:42.695-04:00To Shoot or not to Shoot - how ethical hunting builds character<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">To Shoot or not to Shoot -
how ethical hunting builds character<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">by Eric Nuse</span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Time:
Dark, early and cold<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Date:
Last days of goose season<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Hunter:
Just me<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Witnesses:
None for miles<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYddwjPH5nFdWZBAixGez5MpwVqgrZPUAw6KD-zLaV-_-Ne02kQCBE8OCg0WSRn1nkZkkVE6Qmy297epxpktRcAupgHHERPt3wSLgZGJ1G8RUoDu3REoTJf8xV258Ye2sz1dUu8YOes5GY/s1600/Incoming.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1374" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYddwjPH5nFdWZBAixGez5MpwVqgrZPUAw6KD-zLaV-_-Ne02kQCBE8OCg0WSRn1nkZkkVE6Qmy297epxpktRcAupgHHERPt3wSLgZGJ1G8RUoDu3REoTJf8xV258Ye2sz1dUu8YOes5GY/s320/Incoming.jpg" width="274" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span id="goog_741307626"></span><span id="goog_741307627"></span><br /></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
truck is hidden a half mile away, the decoys are set and a brisk east wind is
at my back. Legal light is still 10 minutes away and life is good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yesterday morning I head the murmur of
geese from my deer stand a good hour after sunrise so plenty of time to sip
some coffee, stretch out and enjoy the solitude.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
good thing about Canada Geese is they usually announce their arrival with a
honk or two. So I figured a little shut eye wouldn’t hurt. I’d been up early
deer hunting for a week and the old body was starting to feel it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">By
the time my brain registered the sound of wings and my eyes focused, the ducks
were landing in the corn stubble on the far side of my decoys. With a slight
tilt of my head from the layout blind I could see three beautiful greenheads. I
love to eat mallard and hadn’t had any time to hunt them this fall. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Shoot
or don’t shoot? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">My
stomach said go for it. But a little voice in my head said not so fast buddy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Whatever
I decide, I know it’s legal and it’s safe – OK so far. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Can
I make a clean kill? I’ve got double Bs in the gun, full and modified chokes. I’m
guessing they are out 35 yards. I’ve killed plenty of geese at this range, but
ducks are smaller and even cripples are hard to swat on the ground with #4s.
Flush them? They would be at least 5 yards further away before I could shoot
and that is the edge of my ability and range for a clean kill.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">They
are moving further away - it’s decision time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As
hunters we face tough ambiguous decisions all the time. Most of the time we are
going to be the only ones who know what we do - no witnesses and no referees.
Every thing you have experienced, read, talked about and thought about coalesces
into a little voice that whispers the answer. For me it was a clear – don’t
shoot.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">As
they walked away, I rethought my decision and came up with two bottom line
reasons not to shoot; 1) marginal odds for a clean kill, 2) poor fit with why I
hunt. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">I
hunt waterfowl as a way to immerse myself in the wild, for the enjoyment and
satisfaction of bringing them in close and hopefully making a skillful wing-shot.
The eating is important but only a tasty bonus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">“The
true test of character is when you do the right thing even though you know no
one will ever know.” (From an old hunter education16mm movie)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">An
hour later the goose Gods smile on me when 23 beautiful Canadas worked my
decoys and on the third pass came right in. Two shots and two geese were dead
in the air. Preparedness and skill, met with opportunity and challenge.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Now
that’s hunting! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Made
all the sweeter by doing it right.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<!--EndFragment--><br />Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com60tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-12784716560021281142018-02-20T09:17:00.001-05:002018-02-20T09:17:39.384-05:00The Conservation Ethic of Hunter’s
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyYhcpcNZyfiMC9AjxKVeolmGCxOcbqwVHb_GauJYJ932tGMUh3W1Dn7rmZG3tJ7gEIWevQ3gx5-miv3TdOkfsQbuWxrz60teF04BdiTjCyk4Ll2dxOhPVnX4XBJAL2vo2LQBAqnnnDynT/s1600/Poz+w%253Ashot%2526Beer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="899" data-original-width="1600" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyYhcpcNZyfiMC9AjxKVeolmGCxOcbqwVHb_GauJYJ932tGMUh3W1Dn7rmZG3tJ7gEIWevQ3gx5-miv3TdOkfsQbuWxrz60teF04BdiTjCyk4Ll2dxOhPVnX4XBJAL2vo2LQBAqnnnDynT/s320/Poz+w%253Ashot%2526Beer.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in; text-align: center;">
Jim
Posewitz, Founder of Orion</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As
hunters, our relationship with the animals we pursue in fair chase is
experimental.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In looking across
human history it is hard to find anything like the association between hunters
and the hunted that has developed in North America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In most places, and through most of recent human history,
wildlife belonged to those of privilege or property.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hunting was, and in most places on earth today remains, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sport of kings</i>.</div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Before
we address the ethics of hunting we need to look at why most of us can even
aspire to be a hunter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When
America was colonized it was common practice for the royalty of Europe to grant
land to relatives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of those
land grants here in America included, in the language of the times, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">…the fishings, hawkings huntings, and
fowlings.” </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
American Revolution separated us from the king and produced a system of free
people governing themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fish
and wildlife were not mentioned in any of our founding documents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The void was filled by court decisions
that established water, fish and wildlife as public resources held in trust by
the states for the benefit of all the people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their words at the time were <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“When the revolution took place, the people … became themselves
sovereign…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>In short, since
you and I are sovereign, the king’s deer became the people’s game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>America would have a democracy of the
wild.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>When
that initial court decision was issued in 1842 Montana had a wildlife resource
that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“… for variety and abundance
exceeded anything the eye of man had ever looked upon.” </i>Forty-one years
later a young Theodore Roosevelt (TR) came west to hunt buffalo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He borrowed a gun, hired a guide and
hunted for nine days through the rotting carcasses of the last commercial
slaughter before finding and shooting a lone, wandering bull.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He found that lone buffalo on Little
Cannon Ball Creek, Montana Territory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Two years later TR would write of a ranchman who made a journey of 1,000
miles across Northern Montana and was, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“…
never out of sight of a dead buffalo and never in sight of a live one.”</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Montana was the wildlife bone-yard of a
continent.</div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>These
experiences contributed to a conservation epiphany among a handful of visionary
hunters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 1887 they formed a
citizen based hunting club to introduce the fair chase sporting code and
restore big game to America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Four
years later they lobbied a provision through Congress allowing presidents to
set aside unclaimed lands for conservation purposes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When TR became president he used that authority to set aside
almost ten percent of America for wildlife restoration along with public forest
conservation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A generation later,
when an economic depression and the dust bowl had our country on its knees,
hunters championed an excise tax on firearms and ammunition to fund the
struggling wildlife restoration.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Today
we take to the field in pursuit of a wonderfully restored wild abundance in a
relationship with nature perhaps unique in human history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we take rifle in hand and head for
the outdoors it is essential that we also carry the conservation ethic that put
both you and the game pursued in the field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We as hunters need to embrace the truth that we and the
antelope, deer, elk, goose and duck we pursue, sprouted from the same diamond
buried in our American heritage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Once we accept and remember that exceptional reality, the decisions made
afield will be easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We will:
respect the animals; honor the relationship we share with them; afford them
fair chase; and measure up to the conservation ethic generations of hunters
passed to our custody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFooter" style="tab-stops: .5in center 3.0in right 6.0in;">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As
a minority, hunters are often asked, “Why do you hunt?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once you learn of the power and beauty
in the North American hunting heritage, you can simply answer, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Because
it matters.”<o:p></o:p></i></b></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br />Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-83463182208544164342018-01-31T14:01:00.002-05:002018-01-31T14:01:13.626-05:00Blind Men and the Elephant of Conservation: <div class="blog--date-name" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: freight-sans-pro, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875em; letter-spacing: 0.32px; line-height: 1.21429em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">
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From the Aldo Leopold Foundation:</div>
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BLOG</div>
<time datetime="2016-01-28" itemprop="datePublished" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; padding-bottom: 0.71429em;">January 28, 2016</time></div>
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Blind Men and the Elephant of Conservation: Toward Ideological Diversity</h1>
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As conservationists, we take it for granted that diversity is good. Biological diversity, at least.</div>
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We know that diverse, intact ecosystems are adaptable and resilient, benefiting not only us but all members of what Leopold called “the land community.” We take it on faith that all community members should be respected and that they have, as he put it, an inherent “right to continued existence.”</div>
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<a href="https://www.aldoleopold.org/post/ideological-diversity/" target="_blank">More</a></div>
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Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-59031054729697203712017-12-23T09:44:00.001-05:002017-12-23T09:44:09.301-05:00Trophy hunting may imperil species already at risk<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">From The Wildlife Society:</span></h1>
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Trophy hunting may imperil species already at risk</h1>
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By Julia John</h2>
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Posted on <span class="updated" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">December 18, 2017</span></div>
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/trophy.png" rel="prettyPhoto" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" src="https://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/trophy-620x264.png" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" title="trophy" /></a><span class="wp-caption-text" style="border: 0px; color: #9a9b97; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0.3125rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Cape buffalo, which are trophy-hunted for their massive horns, gather on the African savanna. ©<a href="https://pixabay.com/en/cape-buffalo-africa-wildlife-nature-2074923/" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">markjordahl</a></span></div>
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A group of researchers is calling for “extreme care” in managing trophy hunting after finding that the harvest of males that hunters worldwide choose could contribute to extinction in some species if not properly managed.</div>
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By targeting animals with large horns and other prized features, researchers found, trophy hunting can “lead to extinction” by removing the fittest genes in populations trying to adapt to increasing environmental pressures.<br />
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/trophy-hunting-may-imperil-species-already-at-risk/" target="_blank">More:</a></div>
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Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-37560072819029615032016-08-19T08:27:00.000-04:002016-08-19T08:27:49.758-04:00WSB study: How do you study elusive bobcats? Ask hunters<br />
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<li style="border: 0px; clear: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://wildlife.org/how-do-you-study-elusive-bobcats-ask-hunters/" style="border: 0px; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_self" title="WSB study: How do you study elusive bobcats? Ask hunters"><img alt="A bobcat creeps across a snowy backyard in Sutton, N.H. This photo is one of many submitted by the public while the researchers were collecting bobcat sightings. ©Robin Gray" class="wpp-thumbnail wpp_featured_stock wp-post-image" height="53" src="https://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/bobcat-70x53.jpg" style="border: none; display: inline; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 5px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" width="70" /></a><a class="wpp-post-title" href="http://wildlife.org/how-do-you-study-elusive-bobcats-ask-hunters/" style="border: 0px; color: black; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_self" title="WSB study: How do you study elusive bobcats? Ask hunters">WSB study: How do you study elusive bobcats? Ask hunters</a></li>
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By Nala Rogers</h2>
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Posted on <span class="updated" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">August 5, 2016</span></div>
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/bobcat.jpg" rel="prettyPhoto" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" src="https://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/bobcat-620x264.jpg" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" title="bobcat" /></a><a href="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/bobcat.jpg" rel="prettyPhoto" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 22.4px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" src="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/bobcat-620x264.jpg" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" title="bobcat" /></a><span style="color: #9a9b97; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0.75rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.4;">A bobcat creeps across a snowy backyard in Sutton, N.H. This photo is one of many submitted by the public while the researchers were collecting bobcat sightings. ©</span><a href="http://mlitvaitis.unh.edu/Research/BobcatWeb/gallery12.htm" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Robin Gray</a></div>
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When it comes to monitoring elusive wildlife, the simple approach is sometimes best. Researchers in New Hampshire have found that hunter surveys are a reliable tool for studying bobcats (<em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lynx rufus</em>), yielding solid data even when high-tech approaches fail.<br />
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/how-do-you-study-elusive-bobcats-ask-hunters/" target="_blank">more</a></div>
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Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-90126690108376978212016-06-29T09:28:00.003-04:002016-06-29T09:28:52.201-04:00Of bears and biases<span class="entry-eyebrow entry-eyebrow--blog" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061; display: block; font-family: ProximaNovaCond-Extrabld, NotoKufiArabic-Bold, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Roboto, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; letter-spacing: 0.05em; line-height: 1.1875rem; margin-bottom: 3px;">From the Huffington Post - Very interesting section on the intersection of ethics and science - Eric</span><span class="entry-eyebrow entry-eyebrow--blog" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061; display: block; font-family: ProximaNovaCond-Extrabld, NotoKufiArabic-Bold, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Roboto, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; letter-spacing: 0.05em; line-height: 1.1875rem; margin-bottom: 3px;"><br /></span><span class="entry-eyebrow entry-eyebrow--blog" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061; display: block; font-family: ProximaNovaCond-Extrabld, NotoKufiArabic-Bold, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Roboto, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.0625rem; letter-spacing: 0.05em; line-height: 1.1875rem; margin-bottom: 3px;">THE BLOG</span><br />
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Of bears and biases: scientific judgment and the fate of Yellowstone’s grizzlies</h1>
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<span class="timestamp__date--published" style="box-sizing: inherit;">06/21/2016 01:25 pm ET</span> | <span class="timestamp__date--modified" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><strong style="box-sizing: inherit;">Updated</strong> Jun 21, 2016</span></div>
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By <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":1}}" href="http://theconversation.com/profiles/jeremy-t-bruskotter-192340" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">Jeremy T. Bruskotter</a>, <em style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":2}}" href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/ohio-state-university" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">The Ohio State University</a></em>; <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":3}}" href="http://theconversation.com/profiles/john-a-vucetich-192337" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">John A Vucetich</a>, <em style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":4}}" href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/michigan-technology-university" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">Michigan Technology University</a></em>, and <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":5}}" href="http://theconversation.com/profiles/robyn-s-wilson-272882" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">Robyn S. Wilson</a>, <em style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":6}}" href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/ohio-state-university" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">The Ohio State University</a></em></div>
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In March, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":7}}" href="http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/pressrel/2016/03032016_US_Fish_and_Wildlife_Service_Proposes_Delisting_Yellowstone_Grizzly_Bear_Due_To_Recovery.php" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">announced</a> its intent to remove protections afforded by the <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":8}}" href="http://www.epw.senate.gov/esa73.pdf" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">U.S. Endangered Species Act</a> (ESA) to grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE).</div>
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Citing four decades of growth in the bear population, the USFWS Director Dan Ashe heralded the decision as “a<a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":9}}" href="http://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/pressrel/2016/03032016_US_Fish_and_Wildlife_Service_Proposes_Delisting_Yellowstone_Grizzly_Bear_Due_To_Recovery.php" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;"> historic success for partnership-driven wildlife conservation</a>.”</div>
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However, conservation organizations oppose “delisting” GYE grizzlies. They cite<a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":10}}" href="http://www.sierraclub.org/lay-of-the-land/2016/05/vital-ground-grizzly-bears-and-greater-yellowstone" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">persistent threats</a> to grizzlies, <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":11}}" href="http://www.humanesociety.org/news/press_releases/2016/04/opposition-yellowstone-grizzly-delisting-041216.html" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">public opposition</a> to delisting and ongoing <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":12}}" href="https://www.nrdc.org/stories/yellowstones-grizzlies-arent-out-woods-yet" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">scientific uncertainty</a> regarding the population’s viability. Indeed, scientific uncertainty, especially threats posed by a changing climate, is one reason a federal court<a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":13}}" href="https://casetext.com/case/greater-yellowstone-coalition" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">reversed</a> a <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":14}}" href="http://www.fws.gov/policy/library/2007/07-1474.pdf" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">similar decision</a> back in 2009, returning federal protections to GYE grizzlies.</div>
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...A second source of underappreciated insights is from the academic discipline of conservation ethics. A broadly applicable insight from that discipline is that <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":38}}" href="http://www.michaelpnelson.com/Publications_files/Human%20Demensions%20EEforWM%20Nelson_Vucetich%202012.pdf" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">robust conservation decisions</a> result from sound and valid arguments that are necessarily comprised <em style="box-sizing: inherit;">both</em> of scientific premises and ethical premises.</div>
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The implication is that in many instances the best an expert can do is explain their judgment fully. That is, to lay bare all of the premises (scientific and otherwise) necessary to arrive at the judgment being proffered; and in so doing, demonstrate the robustness of the judgment (or reveal its flaws).</div>
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So an expert judgment is not merely a judgment made within the area of one’s expertise. Rather, an expert judgment is one whose underlying argument can be laid bare and demonstrated to be sound and valid for an audience of nonexperts. Importantly, this includes both scientific assessments as well as value judgments. Sadly, courses that convey skills in analyzing ethical arguments (i.e., courses in critical thinking and environmental ethics) are not typically part of the curricula that produce conservation professionals.</div>
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<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/the-conversation-us/of-bears-and-biases-scien_b_10594408.html" target="_blank">Read whole article</a></div>
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<span class="share-bar-image-wrapper" data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_image"}}" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: block; position: relative;"><img alt="grizzly bears" src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/126803/wide_article/width1356x668/gy29b3sp-1466018225.jpg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: inherit; height: auto; max-width: 100%;" /></span><small style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 13.6px;"><i style="box-sizing: inherit;">The grizzly, or brown, bear in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is posed to lose protections under the Endangered Species Act. <a data-beacon="{"p":{"mnid":"entry_text","lnid":"citation","mpid":39}}" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/yellowstonenps/7437503536/in/photolist-cke9FA-9Zkj1e-DJzpm-HLJtyT-oHYiip-pAQSky-cke9BC-6QbdWe-9AWmHy-oWuCmp-pdYbSn-9ATt1k-8YpsCS-q93C7g-6nUtBU-9YYSga-9XSNTj-a1AMuj-sHCv3i-9YCDue-aW7u8F-cso8L7-efXBYZ-cso8Rq-rLBwzh-aW7uSk-5einNT-4bqccV-rRtpFh-a12KiK-5eioh6-nCGuMN-a5zU5g-6GC4GB-a5zU1r-nCCGV2-a5zU8V-a5CMgb-cfsKP9-nEDidj-eg4nm7-6EZQsU-9KYVYX-5t5Je1-DbCzyB-GTeepg-ddz3cC-9XSNo7-a1C5ow-dZ8oAH" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e7061;">Jim Peaco, Yellowstone National Park via flickr</a></i></small></div>
Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-48757115526691291422016-06-02T12:10:00.002-04:002016-06-02T12:10:35.721-04:00 Hunting and Environmentalism: Conflict or MisperceptionsHuman Dimensions of Wildlife, 14:12–20, 2009<br />Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC<br />
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IRENA KNEZEVIC<br />
Joint Graduate Program in Communication and Culture, York University/<br />Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada<br />
<br />This work examined some assumptions that underpin the conflict between hunters and<br />anti-hunting movement. The moral contradictions of anti-hunting activism are positioned<br />in the complex context of consumer culture, managed environmental protection,<br />and industrial food production. The assumption that environmental groups are by definition<br />opposed to hunting is investigated. Given that both hunters and environmental<br />groups are interested in land conservation, and given the rapid habitat loss around the<br />globe, the question is asked whether joint conservation efforts would prove beneficial<br />not only to both groups’ interests, but also to the fragile North American ecosystems<br />and the species that reside in them.<br />
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Introduction<br />There are two billion chickens that are being slaughtered. Why is the fuzzy<br />seal photo-op the important one? Why aren’t you down in a slaughterhouse<br />where cows are being killed or calves are being killed or lambs are being<br />killed or chickens are being killed? (Williams, 2006, p. 10)<br />Danny Williams, the premier of Newfoundland and Labrador faced off with Paul and<br />Heather McCartney on Larry King Live in March of 2006. The McCartneys were visiting<br />to protest the annual harp seal hunt that for several years has been a favourite among activist<br />celebrities. Photos of red pools of seal blood on white snow and celebrities posing with<br />baby seals are usually meant to present the hunt as a practice of obtaining seal fur,<br />frequently obscuring the fact that many residents of the Canadian east coast and the north<br />consume seal meat on regular basis and that seal oil has a variety of medicinal and other<br />uses, to say nothing of the local cultural and economic significance of the annual hunt.<br />Harp seals are not endangered, and if anything they have in recent years seen higher<br />competition for food due to the shrinking habitat that has resulted from global warming.<br />
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...Violence and death associated with hunting is so overt and immediate that it makes<br />hunting an easy target for criticism. That criticism in turn ignores the “great paradox of<br />eating” (Kass, 1994). Death of living creatures is fundamental to continuation of life. Pete<br />Dunne, the director of Cape May Bird Observatory and as avid a hunter as he is a birdwatcher<br />writes, “Today, most people fail to recognize death as a natural part of life, to<br />view hunting as a mechanism that makes people an integral part of that natural process”<br />(2005, p. 662). Our detachment from our food sources has made it possible for us to eat<br />meat and somehow pretend that killing is not a part of the process. Aldo Leopold noted<br />that there are dangers in not owning a farm, one being “the danger of supposing that<br />breakfast comes from the grocery” (1968, p. 6).<br />
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...Culture creates an atmosphere where: “Nature is viewed by the mechanism of social domination<br />as a healthy contrast to society, and it is therefore denatured” (Adorno & Horkheimer,<br />1944, p. 19). These understandings of nature misdirect energy and resources into a conflict<br />rather than cooperation. Questioning our relationship with nature as well as our food system<br />is more productive than the persistent questioning, by both hunters and environmentalists,<br />of each other’s motives. That process can only benefit the population segment profits from<br />stalled conservation efforts (i.e., land developers and corporate polluters).<br />Our general understanding of and relationship to nature needs to be re-examined lest<br />our nostalgia continues to justify the commercial, utilitarian attitude that has become so<br />essential to how we treat our environment. For that task to be performed properly, prejudices<br />against hunting must be re-examined. To critique hunting without comprehensively<br />critiquing the larger context within which hunting exist is to gloss over more pressing<br />social and environmental issues by picking an easy scapegoat issue.<br /><br />Read full paper -Human Dimensions of Wildlife<br />Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information:<br /><a href="http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~content=t713666717">http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~content=t713666717</a>Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-12479962694567609212016-02-01T07:01:00.002-05:002016-02-01T07:01:24.575-05:00Blind Men and the Elephant of Conservation<header class="entry-header">
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Blind Men and the Elephant of Conservation: Toward Ideological Diversity</h1>
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<a data-disqus-identifier="3783 http://www.aldoleopold.org/?p=3783" href="http://www.aldoleopold.org/post/ideological-diversity/#disqus_thread">2 Comments</a> </div>
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<strong>By Tovar Cerulli, 2015 </strong><a href="http://www.aldoleopold.org/Programs/micasita.shtml"><strong>Mi Casita Writer-in-Residence</strong></a><br />
As conservationists, we take it for granted that diversity is good. Biological diversity, at least.<br />
We know that diverse, intact ecosystems are adaptable and resilient,
benefiting not only us but all members of what Leopold called “the land
community.” We take it on faith that all community members should be
respected and that they have, as he put it, an inherent “right to
continued existence.”<br />
When I walk down to the beaver pond near home and look out at the
water and surrounding land, I know that each plant, fungus, insect,
amphibian, reptile, fish, bird, and mammal—even each unseen microbe in
the soil—is part of that community, part of a larger, dynamic, evolving
organism. As such, each deserves my respect: pine and alder, mayfly and
jewelwing, salamander and turtle, minnow and trout, heron and mallard,
mouse and coyote.<br />
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<img alt="Diversity" class="wp-image-3790 size-full" height="353" src="http://www.aldoleopold.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Cerulli2-1.jpg" width="600" /><div class="wp-caption-text">
A snapping turtle lays its eggs near the Leopold Center.</div>
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Concerning ideological and cultural diversity, we are ambivalent at best.<br />
<a href="http://www.aldoleopold.org/post/ideological-diversity/" target="_blank">more:</a> Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-14693067240954801562015-11-20T10:05:00.001-05:002015-11-20T10:05:04.533-05:00Beaver Dams Control Nitrogen Flow in Northeastern Rivers<header class="post-header" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: 'Open Sans', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 22.4px; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; font-family: 'Open Sans', serif; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0.1875rem; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-size: small;">And I thought beaver dams were just great wildlife and fish habitat! Eric</span></h1>
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Beaver Dams Control Nitrogen Flow in Northeastern Rivers</h1>
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By Joshua Rapp Learn</h2>
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Posted on <span class="updated" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">November 19, 2015</span></div>
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/NE-beaverdam1.jpg" rel="prettyPhoto" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" src="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/NE-beaverdam1-620x264.jpg" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" title="NE beaverdam" /></a><span class="wp-caption-text" style="border: 0px; color: #9a9b97; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0.3125rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Image Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/davidrsmith/4980805719/in/photolist-jQNPSe-aBrTDd-jQRmDE-9v7rsL-9v7rp5-9v7ryd-9v4r6g-rNKsG-rNKsE-6C3H78-8A8W1F-7GPUZL-a4RHYK-a4RJcg-a4RJ1V-a4RJ8e-7GL1fH-6C7Rj7-jQPxER-jQPzuc-3bJhkq-jKPkt-eN5Pes-dmKB5n-dHfAxy-jQR55s-jQPqdX-jQNwxz-bfBx4n-dmKCDQ-dmKCMy-jQNXji-jQQXS7-jQPw5r-jQNT2a-jQR86h-jQNApx-jQPHmp-LRmYt-jQPnre-jQNZdZ-jQPN4a-jQNBK8-jQNUvc-jQNzrv-jQPSNa-giE6w7-giErNG-3L2WiK-8vRK1n" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">David Smith</a>, licensed by <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">cc 2.0</a></span></div>
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Beavers may be providing watersheds a service by removing some of the agricultural nitrogen runoff in northeast rivers.</div>
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“There’s a huge concern about the amount of nutrients of our lands that get into coastal waters,” said Arthur Gold, a professor and chair of the Department of Natural Resources Science at the University of Rhode Island and coauthor of a <a href="https://dl.sciencesocieties.org/publications/jeq/abstracts/44/5/1684" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">study</a> published recently in the<em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Journal of Environmental Quality.</em></div>
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<em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Read more at the <a href="http://wildlife.org/beaver-dams-control-nitrogen-flow-in-northeastern-rivers/" target="_blank">TWS web site</a></em></div>
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Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-39867945991949001302015-11-13T10:21:00.002-05:002015-11-13T10:21:35.905-05:00Global Anti-Poaching Act Passed by House<header class="post-header" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: 'Open Sans', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 22.4px; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><h1 class="entry-title" style="border: 0px; font-family: 'Open Sans', serif; font-size: 2rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0.1875rem; vertical-align: baseline;">
Global Anti-Poaching Act Passed by House</h1>
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By Zachary Sheldon</h2>
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Posted on <span class="updated" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">November 6, 2015</span></div>
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/antipoaching.png" rel="prettyPhoto" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="" src="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/antipoaching-620x264.png" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" title="antipoaching" /></a><span class="wp-caption-text" style="border: 0px; color: #9a9b97; display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0.75rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.4; margin: 0.3125rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Poaching of black rhinoceros (<em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Diceros bicornis</em>) in South Africa increased by 21% from 2013 to 2014.<br />Image Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/vidyo/6149870420/in/photolist-anrGdC-mcfTj4-dZtMMX-vxMvw-nainZ1-6hYtq5-s8URi-9SxVXM-6GSZvx-o9eFBA-mMH4XS-eJbjX1-xsxfQL-9t9Uty-hBnvmk-4yo2MR-fgFoPZ-3WX88r-dFNKDy-jYRmYP-mvP5FQ-7daPNM-3BDoZj-8reZf4-wnzSJw-o9fSht-7ZSdEZ-841e9-dPKxBW-uX38SX-8cC2r-9zCFw9-hKnYeF-mFFTsk-o43gM1-x9bZGR-nwjkDY-7RDcHu-7LgYcR-eJ5hot-dr4b2J-xg25ab-4SuxBn-hvaMMh-fuUVUa-7jpU7v-e4mEez-drSEc8-cAXUDm-2kxWoF" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Ray Morris</a>, licensed by <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">cc 2.0</a></span></div>
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On 2 November the U.S. House of Representatives passed <a href="https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/114/hr2494/text" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">H.R. 2494</a>, the “Global Anti-Poaching Act”. The bill passed by voice vote after 23 minutes of speeches in favor of the act.</div>
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Describing the importance of the bill, House Foreign Affairs Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA) <a href="https://foreignaffairs.house.gov/press-release/house-takes-stand-against-wildlife-trafficking" style="border: 0px; color: #e64946; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">said</a>, “The very disturbing reality is that some of the world’s most majestic animals have become ‘blood currency’ for rebel groups and terrorist organizations in Africa,” adding, “Time isn’t on our side. Each day of inaction means more animals poached and more cash for terrorists.”</div>
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The legislation seeks action against wildlife trafficking through three main avenues: strengthening and expanding wildlife enforcement networks; punishing countries failing to make efforts to combat wildlife trafficking; and increasing the penalties of wildlife trafficking.</div>
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/global-anti-poaching-act-passed-by-house/" target="_blank">read more</a></div>
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Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-10744199056553477912015-10-28T10:40:00.001-04:002015-10-28T10:40:07.765-04:00This Week on "Randy Newberg Unfiltered"<div class="ebc vF" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'normal arial', sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 11px; margin-top: -4px; padding-left: 2px; word-wrap: break-word;">
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From the Outdoor Wire</div>
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Wednesday, October 28, 2015</div>
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BOZEMAN, Mont. – On the latest episode of <a href="http://randynewberg.com/">"Randy Newberg Unfiltered"</a>radio show, host Randy Newberg chats with Jim Pozewitz, long time friend, conservationist and founder of Orion – the Hunter's Institute.<br /><br />The show is available now on RandyNewberg.Com, iTunes and Stitcher,<br />"We referred to this podcast as the Poz-cast since Jim and I go way back and talk, unfiltered, on hunter responsibilities and how conservation is led by hunters and their success," said Newberg. "Jim is a leader in the conservation field as many of his books and papers on conservation are still used today by state wildlife agencies, schools and more."<br /><br />Newberg talks with Pozewitz on the "Dirty Thirties," which is the start of the conservation movement with key leader, President Theodore Roosevelt. The duo dissects Roosevelt's legacy, beginning with his start in forming a relationship with government and society to better land and wildlife.<br /><br />Learn more at RandyNewberg.Com, <a href="http://facebook.com/RandyNewberg">http://Facebook.com/RandyNewberg</a>and http://Instagram.Com/RandyNewbergHunter<br /><br />About Randy Newberg, Hunter: Randy Newberg is the voice of the public land hunter in America. Decades of hunting all species across public lands has provided both the experience and perspective that has allowed him to become the leading advocate for the self-guided hunter; hunters dependent upon public lands for hunting access. With his popular TV show, Leupold's Fresh Tracks with Randy Newberg airing on Sportsman Channel, accompanied by the long-standing Hunt Talk web forum, Newberg is looked to for advocacy and leadership as hunting and access issues become politicized. Now added to those platforms is the Hunt Talk Podcast where Newberg discusses relevant issues to hunters - unfiltered. Visit RandyNewberg.Com to download the bi-weekly podcast, information to download the weekly TV show and log in to the Hunt Talk forum. Subscribe to Randy Newberg's YouTube channel to get tips, behind the scenes, and ideas for the western big game hunter. Learn more at RandyNewberg.Com,<a href="http://facebook.com/RandyNewberg">http://Facebook.com/RandyNewberg</a> and http://Instagram.Com/RandyNewbergHunter<br /><br />MEDIA CONTACTS:<br />Michelle Scheuermann, BulletProof Communications LLC, 651.964.0264; <a href="mailto:michelle@bulletproofcomm.com">michelle@bulletproofcomm.com</a></div>
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Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-54169904393649136432015-08-31T20:11:00.001-04:002015-08-31T20:11:50.577-04:00A hunter's elevator speechIf you had less than a minute to tell a stranger what drives your love of hunting, fishing and wild places, what would you say?<br />
Here is what a small group of us in the Eastern Chapter of the Backcountry Hunter's and Angler's came up with.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13pt;">We unite avid outdoors people who enjoy getting off
the trail, and who hunt and fish following strong conservation ethics.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13pt;">Grounded
in the views of Aldo Leopold and Theodore Roosevelt, we value the full
range of wild flora and fauna, from apex predators to invertebrates. We
believe that what we do as hunters and anglers must put the good of the
environment first. We are vocal about conservation policy, speaking up
for wildlife and wild places. We look for common ground where hunters,
anglers, and environmentalists can work together.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13pt;">Whether
we hunt and fish in the West, the East, or both, we value the
“backcountry ideal”—the quiet and solitude of wild places near and far,
large and small. We see ourselves as full participants in the natural
world and enjoy being immersed in it.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13pt;">Firmly
embracing ethical hunting and fishing practices, we honor the animals
and fish we pursue. We voluntarily limit our use of off-road vehicles
and other gadgets, and also limit our take.</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 13pt;"></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13pt;">From
wild places across the nation to Washington, DC, we are
boots-on-the-ground people. We make a difference by caring and by being
involved.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgB3XWR0OZ7W94h3oHvdfoMy9ODzqa1VvLECYM539dOY-ZnwLfafnH-xR1d0YBdWQLGQeBUm3SmE5tmIAdoAY2SYI-ejCx9cg3Z5otAJ58uJXnO57vzaNiUv9MuKGIX4wkP7TJVVLcKNnR/s1600/Brookie+in+water.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgB3XWR0OZ7W94h3oHvdfoMy9ODzqa1VvLECYM539dOY-ZnwLfafnH-xR1d0YBdWQLGQeBUm3SmE5tmIAdoAY2SYI-ejCx9cg3Z5otAJ58uJXnO57vzaNiUv9MuKGIX4wkP7TJVVLcKNnR/s320/Brookie+in+water.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-52041290645608745432015-07-13T16:24:00.000-04:002015-07-13T16:24:10.295-04:00New ethics campaign<div class="info box well">
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The new hunter ethics campaign being launched by one group
of Montana volunteers is simply the latest step in what will likely be a
long process to educate hunters and nonhunters alike.</h3>
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Last
week the Citizen Advisory Committee for Montana Fish, Wildlife and
Parks’ region 3 announced the official plan for its Hunt Right campaign.
The goal is to promote ethical hunting and educate nonhunters to the
fact that the vast majority of sportsmen and women keep ethics at the
forefront of their mind while out in the field.</div>
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<a href="http://helenair.com/news/opinion/an-ir-view-new-ethics-campaign-will-have-positive-influence/article_3c1daab4-21a5-5827-9f7e-a34eef6ac570.html" target="_blank">Read full article</a></div>
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Note: Orion board member Thomas Baumeister is involved with this effort with other Orion member input.</div>
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To find out more information about the Hunt Right campaign, look at their Facebook page at <a href="http://www.facebook.com/huntrightmt" target="_blank">www.facebook.com/huntrightmt</a> or go to a website set up for them by the Montana’s Outdoor Legacy Foundation at <a href="http://huntrightmt.org/" target="_blank">huntrightmt.org</a>.<br />
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Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-56840594555814545102015-05-28T18:43:00.001-04:002015-05-28T18:43:06.932-04:00Final 'Waters of the U.S.' Rule Represents Victory for Sportsmen, Fish and Wildlife, Clean Water <h2>
<a href="http://www.backcountryhunters.org/index.php/backcountry/current-news/929-final-waters-of-the-u-s-rule-represents-victory-for-sportsmen-fish-and-wildlife-clean-water">
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<img alt="Thank you EPA and Army Corps for your 3 2" height="175" src="http://www.backcountryhunters.org/images/images/News/Thank_you_EPA_and_Army_Corps_for_your-3_2.png" style="float: right; margin: 20px;" width="350" />WASHINGTON
- A highly anticipated rule that would enhance critical fish and
wildlife habitat, improve the nation's supply of drinking water and
restore clarity to the federal Clean Water Act was finalized this
morning, eliciting praise from business owners and sportsmen's groups,
including Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.</div>
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Today's announcement by the administration concludes a
multi-stakeholder process aimed at eliminating confusion surrounding the
scope of the Clean Water Act. The resulting "Waters of the U.S." rule
reflects a lengthy and comprehensive vetting process, including more
than 1 million public comments. Widely supported by citizens, sportsmen
and outdoor-focused businesses, it represents a practical approach that
addresses the needs of both industry and the general populace.</div>
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"The release by the administration of the final Waters
of the U.S. rule culminates an unprecedented effort to restore clarity
to a bedrock natural resources law, the federal Clean Water Act," said
BHA Executive Director Land Tawney. "The rule will conserve resources
important to our fish, our wildlife, our citizens - and to the waters
and wetlands that are central to our national identity.</div>
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"A chorus of ducks can be heard quacking from the
wetlands where waterfowl are busy nesting and rearing their young, and
fishtail slap high-fives are surfacing on the headwaters of our nation's
most precious trout and salmon streams," continued Tawney, an avid
waterfowler and angler. "These are some of the key habitats protected
via the Waters of the U.S. rule. We thank the administration for
persevering in the face of unrelenting opposition to sustain these
places - and the outdoor opportunities they provide - for future
generations to experience and
enjoy." </div>
<div align="left">
<a href="http://www.backcountryhunters.org/index.php/backcountry/current-news/929-final-waters-of-the-u-s-rule-represents-victory-for-sportsmen-fish-and-wildlife-clean-water" target="_blank">More</a> </div>
Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-77006066260252237822015-04-29T14:15:00.001-04:002015-04-29T14:15:08.871-04:00Stewardship and the HuntFrom the Backcountry Hunters and Anglers <a href="https://www.backcountryhunters.org/index.php/backcountry-blog/333-stewardship-and-the-hunt" target="_blank">website</a><br />
<br />
<em>The following is a talk given by Dr. George N. Wallace at
Colorado State University's (CSU) College of Natural Resources Fall
Seminar Series on "The Culture of Stewardship", December 9<sup>th</sup>, 2004. George is an active BHA member and retired CSU professor.</em><br />
<img alt="george wallace" height="261" src="https://www.backcountryhunters.org/images/stories/blog/george_wallace.JPG" style="float: right; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 20px;" width="350" />I
know that the number of fishery and wildlife biology students that hunt
has declined and are perhaps now a minority. I am going to propose that
hunting can contribute to land stewardship and foster a commitment to
land health as it has for many noted conservationists - though it does
not always do so.<br />
<a href="https://www.backcountryhunters.org/index.php/backcountry-blog/333-stewardship-and-the-hunt" target="_blank">Read on</a> - it is worth the time! Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-40400348839169863272015-04-17T20:24:00.003-04:002015-04-17T20:24:36.266-04:00Sara the Bear Has 105 Descendants<article class="post-7573 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-fyi-news">
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<span style="font-size: small;">From the Bangor Daily News:</span></h1>
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Posted on <span class="updated">April 14, 2015</span></div>
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<a href="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Bear-Cub.jpg" rel="prettyPhoto"><img alt="Bear cub" src="http://wildlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Bear-Cub-620x264.jpg" title="Bear cub" /></a>
<span class="wp-caption-text">Image Courtesy of Randy Cross/Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife</span></div>
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Sara the bear and her prodigious family left an incredible impression
on biologists in Maine who have been studying the animals for decades.
While Sara died in 1987, seven years after first being studied by
biologists, 15 of her black bear (<em>Ursus americanus</em>) descendants
have been collared and are being tracked by biologists with the Maine
Department of Inland Fisheries. Now, five generations of cubs trace
their lineage back to Sara. The sheer amount of cubs that have come from
Sara may be partly due to abnormal longevity in the family line,
according to Randy Cross, a biologist with the Department and a member
of The Wildlife Society.<br />
Read more at the <a href="http://bangordailynews.com/2015/04/13/outdoors/mama-bears-family-tree-numbers-105-descendants/" target="_blank">Bangor Daily News</a>.<br />
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</article>Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-86270789290859069472015-03-09T17:14:00.002-04:002015-03-09T17:14:41.668-04:00Birdwatchers, Hunters Train Their Scopes on Conservation<h1 class="postTitle" id="postTitle2">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span class="byline">By <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" id="author476">Caren Cooper</a> |
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<span class="datestamp">March 9, 2015</span>
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<i>The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of</i> Scientific American.</div>
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<a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:A_group_of_men_stand_birdwatching.jpg"><img alt="" class="size-full wp-image-16805" height="399" src="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/files/2015/03/birdwatching.jpg" title="birdwatching" width="600" /></a><div class="wp-caption-text">
A group of men stand birdwatching. (Ryan Hagerty/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/Wikimedia)</div>
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Sparked by <a href="http://richardlouv.com/books/last-child/children-nature-movement/">Richard Louv’s</a> book on <a href="http://www.theptc.org/storage/Do%20Our%20Kids%20Have%20Nature-Deficit%20Disorder%20Louv.pdf">Nature-Deficit Disorder</a>, many <a href="http://www.childrenandnature.org/">organizations</a>, <a href="http://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/795/files/health_benefits_081505.pdf">agencies</a>, <a href="http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/education/ee/whyteachoutside.html">teachers</a> and the <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ceq/initiatives/ago">White House</a>
have made the push to get people outside for the benefit of their
mental and physical health. Now there is another reason: to benefit
environmental health. In a new study my colleagues and I show that
outdoor recreationists—in this case, birdwatchers and hunters—are more
likely than non-recreationists to carry out conservation activities.<br />
We chose to publish the <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jwmg.855/abstract">paper</a> in the <em>Journal of Wildlife Management </em>because state wildlife agencies have a long history of designing programs for their hunting<br />
<a href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2015/03/09/birdwatchers-hunters-train-their-scopes-on-conservation/" target="_blank">more: </a>Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-88678983862194973962014-12-13T10:32:00.000-05:002014-12-13T10:32:14.902-05:00California wildlife managers ban prizes for competitive huntsThe California Fish and Game Commission voted last week to prohibit
rewards for hunting contests involving species such as coyotes and
foxes, classified by the state as non-game species or furbearers.
Previously cash and merchandise prizes were awarded in competitions,
often termed “predator derbies”, for contestants who harvested the most
animals. The ban will not prohibit hunting the species, nor will it
prohibit trophy hunts for game animals such as deer.<br />
Read more about the ban at <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/03/us-usa-hunt-california-idUSKCN0JH2FS20141203" target="_blank">Reuters</a>.<br />
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<br />
<span id="articleText">Before approving the measure, California Fish and
Game President Michael Sutton said awarding prizes for killing the
largest number of coyotes and other creatures was unethical and that
such contests “are an anachronism and have no place in modern wildlife
management.”</span><br />
<br />
<span id="articleText">Note from Eric - The quote from Sutton above brings out an interesting nuance - it seems like he is saying that the attitude or mind set of the hunter is important as it relates to ethics. If you are doing it for fame or money primarily it is unethical. If you do it for challenge and utilization of the animal (honoring the animal) it is ethical. </span><br />
<br />
<span id="articleText">In a recent discussion on the controversial Idaho derby one of the Orion board members said this</span><br />
<br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Todd
Wilkinson recently published an excellent piece that addresses several
of the questions you raise below, Eric. I highly recommend it to all:</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/opinion/columnists/the_new_west_todd_wilkinson/we-hunt-predators-but-we-can-t-say-why/article_2c0adcf0-9705-5a62-990c-4bdd7af8dbf8.html?_dc=880032000364.7357" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;"></span></a><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" target="_blank">http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/<wbr></wbr>opinion/columnists/the_new_<wbr></wbr>west_todd_wilkinson/we-hunt-<wbr></wbr>predators-but-we-can-t-say-<wbr></wbr>why/article_2c0adcf0-9705-<wbr></wbr>5a62-990c-4bdd7af8dbf8.html?_<wbr></wbr>dc=880032000364.7357</a></div>
<a href="http://www.jhnewsandguide.com/opinion/columnists/the_new_west_todd_wilkinson/we-hunt-predators-but-we-can-t-say-why/article_2c0adcf0-9705-5a62-990c-4bdd7af8dbf8.html?_dc=880032000364.7357" target="_blank">
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">One
of the most interesting observations of the researchers upon whom he is
reporting is that most hunters of conventional game animals (i.e. those
that will become
meat) report deep feelings of empathy with their prey, whereas predator
hunting seems to be rooted in a lack of empathy. Ironic, to say the
very least.</span><span id="articleText"><br /></span>Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-42759753070379666512014-07-15T08:15:00.001-04:002014-07-15T08:15:52.930-04:00Man Charged for Feeding Bears <br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;">VERMONT FISH & WILDLIFE</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;">Press Release</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">For Immediate Release: <span class="aBn" data-term="goog_620000339" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ">July 15, 2014</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt;">Media Contact: Col. David LeCours, <a href="tel:802-828-1529" target="_blank" value="+18028281529">802-828-1529</a>; Forrest Hammond, <a href="tel:802-885-8832" target="_blank" value="+18028858832">802-885-8832</a></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 16.0pt;">Man Charged for Feeding Bears</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">MONTGOMERY,
Vt. -- A Montgomery Vermont man was charged by the Fish & Wildlife
Department for intentionally feeding bears.
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Jeffrey
Messier, 54, of Black Falls Road was charged with feeding bears after
Game Warden Sgt. Carl Wedin received a report of a bear being killed in
self-defense at a
neighboring residence on June 22, 2014. Sgt. Wedin responded and
recovered the bear. Its stomach contained a large number of sunflower
seeds.
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
investigating warden went to Jeffrey Messier’s residence where he
discovered evidence of bear feeding and encountered a bear walking
around the residence. The bear
showed no sign of being afraid of people and walked right up to the
warden. The bear then approached a picnic table where sunflower seeds
were placed. It was obvious to the warden that this bear had been
intentionally fed on several occasions and had lost
its fear of humans. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Further
investigation by Sgt. Wedin revealed that several other bears also came
to the residence often enough to be named and that many of them in
recent years may have
been killed or injured in incidents with other landowners.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">According
to the Vermont Fish &Wildlife Department, black bears are found in
most forested portions of Vermont where they rely on wild foods such as
berries, cherries,
beechnuts, apples and acorns to survive. But the department also
points out that bears can easily become attracted to other foods such as
birdseed, garbage and pet food.
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Bears
are normally shy and not aggressive toward humans,” says bear biologist
Forrest Hammond. “However, a bear that has been fed by humans soon
loses its shyness and
can become dangerous, especially to the landowner feeding the bears and
to their neighbors. Often, as in this case, fed bears will seek
similar foods elsewhere, and in the process cause property damage and
scare people not expecting to find bears on their
porches and in their back yards.” </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“At
this time we are responding to reports throughout the state of bears
causing damage while attempting to get at chicken feed, bird seed,
stored garbage, and food kept
in screened porches. In most cases this does not end well for the
bears.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“People
such as Mr. Messier that feed bears often think they are helping them,”
said Hammond, “but in reality such behavior causes problems for other
landowners and often
ends with the death of the bears being fed. When we start receiving
multiple reports of bears causing problems in an area we most often find
that someone is intentionally feeding them.”
<span style="color: red;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The intentional feeding of bears is illegal in Vermont. If convicted Messier faces a fine of up to $1,000 and a one-year
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">revocation of his hunting, fishing and trapping licenses.
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">For information about living with Vermont’s black bears, see the Vermont Fish & Wildlife website (</span><a href="http://www.vtfishandwildlife.com/" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">www.vtfishandwildlife.com</span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">). </span>Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-64860345663708142772014-04-24T07:52:00.000-04:002014-04-24T07:52:11.126-04:00How Do You Get To Carnegie Hall?<div style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 14px;">
When my ECS Gordie was a youngster, we each enjoyed a two-for-two day hunting woodcock. I killed both birds he flushed with two shots, and he made two finds and retrieves.</div>
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Unfortunately, it’s not always possible cleanly to kill wild upland birds on the wing in the gnarly places where they live. I cringe whenever dispatching a wounded woodcock after it freezes me with an icy stare from a baleful eye.</div>
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Bird hunters have long been told that burning powder on the clays field is the best method for minimizing crippling shots. For the hunter just as for the inquisitive violinist in the title, their mutual solution has always been “practice, practice, practice.” Having great equipment well suited to the job at hand is certainly part of any performance equation. But for some of us geezers, performance improvement is primarily an internal process.</div>
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And so I had mixed feelings when I learned the other day that an American arms manufacturer is offering a $5,500 “integrated shooting system.” In <a href="http://www.remington.com/pages/news-and-resources/press-releases/2013/Corporate/IntroducingRemington2020.aspx">an article introducing this arm</a> in October, 2013, the company stated “The advanced internal ballistics computer immediately generates a firing solution….” That sounds less like the deer hunting I know and more like Burt Lancaster loading a forward-tube torpedo for a bow shot on the <span style="color: #252525; font-family: Helvetica;"><i>Akikaze</i> in the </span>Bungo Straits. My problem with this, after chewing on it for a few days, is that it replaces the internalized “practice, practice, practice” with its external substitute “purchase, purchase, purchase.”</div>
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The possibility that this “shooting system” may reduce crippling shots is attractive, even if the hunter’s shooting skill is improved simply through his wallet. Further, it seems to me that some if not many fair chase issues concern events happening before the shot rather than during the shot. To the extent that’s true, I’m not sure that this system, while still something I’d probably not choose to use for aesthetic reasons, runs afoul of fair chase hunting.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 14px;">But I’m no expert. So, like some callers to radio talk shows, having set the table, I’ll just hang up and listen.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-22912949276773085172014-04-16T12:02:00.002-04:002014-04-16T12:57:31.141-04:00Posewitz recieves BHA's Aldo Leopold Award<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
DENVER, CO - Four sportsmen
from across the West were presented with awards at the Backcountry
Hunters & Anglers' Annual National Rendezvous in Denver, in
recognition of their outstanding contributions to protecting backcountry
habitat and promoting conservation efforts.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
Jim Posewitz of Helena, Montana; Bob Mirasole of Chattaroy, Washington; Oscar Simpson</div>
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of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Scott Willoughby of Eagle, Colorado were the recipients of this year's awards.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
"The awardees truly embody
the boots-on-the-ground conservation ethic our membership values" said
National Board Member and Awards Committee Chair, Jay Banta. "These guys
live for hunting and fishing the backcountry and have dedicated a good
part of their lives to keeping that tradition alive. Our national awards
are but one small way to distinguish their ongoing efforts."</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
Jim Posewitz of Helena,
Montana received the Aldo Leopold Award, which is given to an individual
or a group who has done meritorious work on preserving backcountry
values and land habitats. Posewitz retired from the Montana Fish,
Wildlife and Parks in 1993 and went on to found Orion, the Hunters
Institute, a sportsmen organization that leads the conversation about
hunting ethics and fair chase. Jim is also the author of numerous
influential books on fair chase and our hunting traditions.</div>
Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-45230220980744386802014-04-11T15:31:00.000-04:002014-04-11T15:31:25.802-04:00Is It Hunting?This essay is cross-posted with permission from Phillip Loughlin's <a href="http://hog-blog.com/is-it-hunting/">Hog Blog</a>.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="date">
<b>Is It Hunting?</b> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="date">
April 7, 2014 </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="date">
</div>
Last week, my brother and I spent two full days at <a href="http://www.crystalcreekbowhunting.com/" target="_blank" title="Crystal Creek">Crystal Creek Bowhunting</a>,
a high fence ranch over near Del Rio, Texas. Our plan was to target
axis deer and hogs. The package we paid for also allowed us to shoot a
turkey. We could swap the axis for any other exotic we encountered,
which could have included sika deer, blackbuck antelope, or various
sheep (ramboulet, mouflon, aoudad, or hybrids). </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Each of us spent one arrow, shot at wild hogs during the last light
of the first night’s hunt (neither of us connected). Each of us also
passed up a single shot opportunity at a ”wild” sheep during the trip. I
got caught flat-footed by a big tom turkey that snuck in through the
brush and suddenly appeared, five yards away. Other than that, we had
no shot opportunities and spent the majority of the time in the field
enjoying the plethora of birds that flock through Texas during the
spring migration. I may have napped a little in the warm, spring
morning sun. Neither of us killed anything except time. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
During the trip, the contentious debate about high fence hunting kept
running through my mind. In particular, I kept thinking about the
insistence by some folks that high fence hunting isn’t hunting at all.
The argument centers on the fact that high fence hunting is easy, and
that the animals don’t have a fair chance of escape. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
So is it the difficulty of the hunt that makes it “hunting”? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I’ve got a spot at the <a href="http://www.hunttejon.com/" target="_blank" title="Tejon Ranch">Tejon Ranch</a>,
back in California, where I could guarantee a shot at a wild hog. Even
better, I could just about pinpoint when the animals would appear, and
where they’d show up first. Everyone I ever took to that spot had at
least one shot opportunity. I am certain that, had I wanted to do so, I
could have laid around camp all day long, driven out to that spot in
the last half hour before sunset, and killed a hog (if I shot straight)…
every trip. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Tejon isn’t a high fence ranch. There were no feeders, and no food plots. Was that “hunting”? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
When I was guiding for mule deer out at <a href="http://www.cooncampsprings.com/" target="_blank" title="Coon Camp Springs">Coon Camp Springs</a>,
in California’s eastern Sierra, my clients had a 100% shot opportunity
rate. Once I learned the lay of the land, I had specific areas that
almost always produced deer. By the time the clients showed up, I could
usually have them tagged out within two days… often sooner. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Coon Camp Springs is about 7000 acres of unfenced land, surrounded by
millions more acres of public and private property. With the exception
of some habitat restoration work, there is nothing unusual there to
specifically attract or hold deer. But the hunts were typically easy.
Was that “hunting”? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
A few years back, I joined my brother on his first elk hunting trip.
The first morning, the sun came up on us about four or five miles into
the Uncompahgre Wilderness. We were surrounded by elk. Fifteen minutes
later, my brother had a 320″ bull on the ground. The next morning, I
set up on the edge of some dark timber while the guide and wrangler took
the horses down to pack out my brother’s bull. By the time they got
back up the mountain to where I was, I had almost finished skinning and
boning out my own bull. Sure, it was a fairly long hike in and out, but
it wasn’t what I’d call a “hard” hunt. In fact, it was far easier than
some high fenced, hog hunts I’ve been on. Was it “hunting”? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Enough with the redundancy, then. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Besides the relative ease of all of those hunts, high fence and low,
they share one other thing in common. I enjoyed them. Even the
ostensibly “fruitless” bow hunt on the high fence ranch was a great
time. I had fun, and really, isn’t that what hunting is about? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
There are people who would tell me that my visit to that high fence
ranch wasn’t “hunting”. But I have to say, it sure felt like it to me.
As I sat there with my release clipped on, waiting with ragged breath
and racing pulse for the spotted boar to take just two more steps… it
felt like any other time or place, sitting in the same position with the
same apprehensive tension. Or leaning back in the stand, nearly dozing
under the late morning sun… I could have been on any hillside in any
place. And later, around the skinning pole with the guys who were
successful, it was the same jokes and banter that I’ve heard around
skinning poles in every state and setting I’ve ever experienced. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
No, I was there… and I’m pretty certain I was hunting. I am also
dead sure that I enjoyed the experience, and it makes me wonder; in what
world ruled by reason and logic could anyone tell me that I didn’t? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Isn’t that a foolish thought… to tell someone else that they couldn’t
have enjoyed an experience because you wouldn’t enjoy it yourself? </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Is it hunting? It is to me. Maybe it doesn’t meet your definition, but that’s alright.</blockquote>
Jim Tantillohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12520467623399679472noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-76936946280587455522014-04-05T09:52:00.000-04:002014-04-05T20:06:05.388-04:00Fair Chase and the Hunt for Survival The following is an essay I was invited to write for the <a href="http://www.humansandnature.org/about-us-pages-13.php" target="_blank">Center for Humans and Nature</a> on the question, <i><b>"Does hunting make us human?"</b></i> I focused in on the question, <i><b>"Is hunting still important to humans in the modern era? Does it still
contribute to our being human? And if so, is it a good thing?"</b></i><br />
<br />
"...I contend that modern fair chase hunting contains a seed that could
spark a transformation in our relationship to nature. I am cautiously
optimistic because this love of the hunt has sparked a transformation
before."<br />
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<a href="http://www.humansandnature.org/hunting---eric-nuse-response-110.php" target="_blank">more: </a><br />
<br />Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-30913009588315038022014-03-28T11:18:00.000-04:002014-03-28T17:29:29.932-04:00Trying to find the bright line in a pile of sand...<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>At the recent Orion and Backcountry Hunters and Anglers joint Board meetings this issue came up as it relates to smart rifles and other technologies. Below is a slightly edited post that was on this <a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8400018814519499369#editor/target=post;postID=7086398308295115440;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=44;src=link" target="_blank">Blog in 2012</a> as it relates to canned hunts:</b> <br />
<br />
In a recent article, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-petersen/canned-killing-dont-call-it-hunting_b_1480296.html">“Canned
Hunting: Don’t Call It Hunting!”</a> outdoor writer David Petersen discusses
the difference between fair chase and canned hunts, and he quotes Orion founder
Jim Posewitz approvingly. </div>
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“A fenced shoot,” Posewitz writes, “is
just the sale of a fabricated image to people who have neither the skill nor
the inclination to obtain the real thing.”</div>
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Petersen agrees, and argues, “There is honorable
hunting, and there is cowardly captive killing. The motivations and characters
defining each are as distinct as day and night.”</div>
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Petersen is wrong. The motivations and character of hunters are
NOT as distinct as day and night. There
is no distinct line between canned hunts on the one hand, and fair chase on the
other. </div>
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The difference between honorable
hunting and cowardly hunting does not depend on the presence or absence of a
fence. Ideals of honor and cowardice,
however, as well as ideals of fair chase, depend crucially on the hunter, and
upon the hunter’s skills and aptitude. </div>
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Fair chase has traditionally been defined relative to the animal—in
particular, to the animal’s ability to escape.
</div>
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What’s missing in most debates about fair chase is the
awareness that we need also to define fair chase relative to the human hunter—and
to be specific, to the individual hunter’s ability to hunt. (And here we also know
that hunters come in all shapes, sizes, interests, and abilities.)</div>
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Furthermore, we must acknowledge that there is a fundamental
ambiguity to the very concept of fair chase. This ambiguity involves the philosophical
problem of vagueness, a problem that has long been identified by philosophers
as the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">sorites paradox,</i> from the
Greek term meaning “heap” or “pile.” </div>
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<br /></div>
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The paradox is this:
start with a pile of sand, and begin removing the sand, one grain at a
time. At what point does the pile or
heap become a “non-heap”?</div>
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The
thought experiment can also be run in reverse: start
with a grain of sand, and add to it another grain of sand. Do you now
have a
pile of sand? Of course not. Now add a third grain. Is it a heap
yet? Of course not. Now, continue adding sand, one grain at a
time . . . at what point do you have a
heap of sand? </div>
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The upshot is that there is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">no</i> clear dividing line between having one or two grains of sand
(that might constitute the concept dust) and having a pile, or a heap, or even
a mountain of sand. Thus the very
concept of heap or pile or mountain is ambiguous.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Baldness
is another inherently ambiguous concept (my own baldness, however, is
clearly unambiguous). Begin with a full head of hair and remove it one
hair at a time. When do you cross the line from having hair to being
bald? (For me, it was around the age of 20!) </div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIJodTkrGuE8kF_NilhKjhTRqOB4DCp6080Q8-FMznH02KerCVBc4uLS1scPiMD-_abQdHGOpuQ4jvzLXCadNpGeYd6KolcvpKhKGfRB-BYImG1AB-1rClvdaKcSq_SGuTa4KBJqHilO53/s1600/Jim+cropped+from+group+photo.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIJodTkrGuE8kF_NilhKjhTRqOB4DCp6080Q8-FMznH02KerCVBc4uLS1scPiMD-_abQdHGOpuQ4jvzLXCadNpGeYd6KolcvpKhKGfRB-BYImG1AB-1rClvdaKcSq_SGuTa4KBJqHilO53/s320/Jim+cropped+from+group+photo.jpg" height="320" width="276" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Author Jim Tantillo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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Trying to define fair chase is exactly like this—like trying
to define “baldness” or “pile.”</div>
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<br /></div>
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So what does all this have to do with hunting? </div>
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On the one hand, or to be more precise, on one end of the
spectrum (and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">spectrum</i>, a term from
physics, is exactly the right term to use) we have hunting practices that are
clearly akin to a single grain of sand or to my gloriously bald pate. </div>
<br />
<br />
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To illustrate the point: imagine a deer chained to a post in
a 10’x10’ chain-link enclosed pen, being shot at close range. Clearly this is
not fair chase: the deer has no ability
to avoid death, and the hunter needs no ability at such close range either to
pursue or to shoot the tethered animal.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Remove
the tether.
Now the deer is in a 10 x 10 enclosure, but can move around. Is this
fair chase? Clearly the hunter is at more of a disadvantage
than in the first scenario: the deer may jump at precisely the same
moment as
he/she squeezes the trigger, and the hunter may wound the animal or
possibly
even miss entirely. It may take two
shots to bring the animal down, particularly for a poor marksman.</div>
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Does this second scenario constitute fair chase? Clearly not, the animal is still enclosed,
and little to no skill is needed on the part of the hunter.</div>
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Let us now imagine that we expand the enclosure—how about a
full acre? And while we are at it, let’s
add an acre’s worth of brushy vegetation.
The deer has the ability to roam about, but the hunter must still stay
out of the fence to shoot the animal.</div>
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All the hunter need do in this case, is wait patiently for
the deer to come along within view inside the fence, and take a killing shot.</div>
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Is this fair chase?
Probably not, although now the lines are getting a little more
fuzzy. How does waiting outside the
fence differ from an archer sitting and waiting in a tree stand? But I’ll leave that question for another
essay.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Let’s keep going, trying to get closer to fair chase. Let’s put a gate in the fence, and allow the
hunter to enter and pursue the animal within the one-acre confines of the
enclosure. The animal can still move
around and has plenty of early-successional shrubland (let’s go ahead and fill
the enclosure with thorny multiflora rose and honeysuckle) in which to hide.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Now it takes the hunter the better part of a morning to
locate, stalk, and shoot the deer. But
after several hours of patient stalking, the hunter is successful.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Does this “hunt” now constitute “fair chase”? Observe that we have come a fair way from
shooting the animal that was tethered inside what was essentially a dog
pen. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Most
hunters still would not be comfortable labeling the one-acre stalk on a
deer--multiflora rose or not--as a fair chase hunt. And yet notice
that some hunters <i>might</i> . . . . We can imagine hunters with
disabilities, for example, who might be content with such a one-acre
stalk if confined to a wheel chair. Or a young hunter, just starting
out, may appreciate and learn from such an experience.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwG7Ku7YTvv3eXHULHqG8YYpXvgEl3T4Nn-MYMesHsJljYGp24rGl6j5Pbe-VqHRcKuGgT8ghDpXvOTXVG_sK1NOiO0RAHWn9nYlpzvWJi5-8HkkPgLkfZ3zOos_mXCBLTBD20DjoaeeNR/s1600/Sidebar+on+sorites+paradoxes.tiff" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwG7Ku7YTvv3eXHULHqG8YYpXvgEl3T4Nn-MYMesHsJljYGp24rGl6j5Pbe-VqHRcKuGgT8ghDpXvOTXVG_sK1NOiO0RAHWn9nYlpzvWJi5-8HkkPgLkfZ3zOos_mXCBLTBD20DjoaeeNR/s640/Sidebar+on+sorites+paradoxes.tiff" height="640" width="371" /></a></div>
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Note that I am not implying that this necessarily would be a
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">good</i> hunt, for young hunters or hunters
with disabilities. I am simply
suggesting that the hunt might provide sufficient challenge to each individual
hunter, and each hunter might possibly go home satisfied with their hunting
experience. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Now let’s continue the sorites part of our thought
experiment. Let’s rerun the thought
experiment a thousand times, adding one additional acre with each
repetition. First the hunter pursues the
deer in a two-acre enclosure, and then in a three-acre enclosure . . . and so
on, and so on, and so on. (And let’s,
for the sake of argument, assume there is only a single, individual deer to be
pursued—not legions of overpopulated deer as occur in many areas of the
country.)<br />
<br />
At what point does the enclosure become large enough that we cross a line between canned hunting and fair chase? </div>
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<br /></div>
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Perhaps never, for some hunters. For them, hunting inside a fence is always
unethical. But for others, trying to
pursue a single deer in a 1,000-acre enclosure, or a 5,000-acre enclosure, or a
20,000-acre enclosure, would be challenging and fair regardless of the
proximity of the fence. </div>
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<br /></div>
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So now let’s just remove the fence. And imagine the same, solitary, single deer
roaming about unrestricted over a 20,000-acre, or 50,000-acre, fenceless
area. Would this hunt now constitute
fair chase?</div>
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<br /></div>
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I’m pretty sure if you plunked down a hard-core deer hunter,
and took away his tree stand, and made him stalk a single deer over 50,000
acres (that’s 78.125 square miles!), he or she would most likely call that a
fair chase hunt. </div>
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<br /></div>
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While I myself might never hunt a
captive animal in a high fence setting, unlike David Petersen I am not about to
tell someone else that they should not do so.
As long as a hunter conscientiously strives for a clean, quick, one-shot
kill, and does so safely while respecting the law, then that hunter acts
ethically and morally. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The difference between canned hunting
and fair chase is like the difference between a grain of sand and a pile of sand. When viewed on each end of the hunting
spectrum, fair chase and canned hunting are clearly different. But there is no distinct line, no clearly
unambiguous boundary, to be drawn between fair chase and canned hunts, or
between honorable hunters and cowards.</div>
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____________________________</div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">Jim
Tantillo is the Executive Director of <a href="http://www.huntright.org/">Orion,
The Hunters’ Institute</a>. He has M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Cornell
University, where he currently also teaches ethics and environmental philosophy
in the Department of Natural Resources.</span></i><br />
<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: 12pt;">A
grouse hunting purist, Jim will generally argue until he is blue in the face
that the One, True, Correct Way to Hunt Grouse is with a 16 gauge Parker double
gun over the staunch point of a well-trained English setter. In the spirit of political toleration,
however, he also argues until he is equally blue in the face that his
retriever- and spaniel-owning friends be permitted to hunt grouse legally as
they see fit, despite their aesthetically misguided preferences for flushing
dogs or 12 gauge autoloaders!</span></i>Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8400018814519499369.post-26334054936484144972014-03-16T16:13:00.004-04:002014-03-16T16:13:40.547-04:00A Caretaker and a Killer: How Hunters Can Save the Wilderness<h4 class="headline">
<span style="font-size: small;">From the<a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/03/a-caretaker-and-a-killer-how-hunters-can-save-the-wilderness/284416/#comments" target="_blank"> Atlantic on line </a>by Tovar Cerulli, co-chair of the Back Country Hunters and Anglers</span></h4>
<div class="dek">
Stereotypes of gun-toting brutes and tree-hugging hippies
miss the basic facts about who is protecting nature—and why. </div>
<div class="metadata">
<span class="authors"><a class="author" href="http://www.theatlantic.com/tovar-cerulli/" rel="author">Tovar Cerulli</a></span> <span class="date last-child"><time datetime="2014-03-14T10:12:32-04:00">Mar 14 2014, 10:12 AM ET</time></span>
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<img height="339" src="http://cdn.theatlantic.com/static/newsroom/img/mt/2014/03/4923611842_25d055d63e_o/lead.jpg?n2fjn2" width="570" />Eric C. Nusehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08415209205400590485noreply@blogger.com0