Hunting Pics

In the hunting circles, especially the African hunting circles, the ultimate goal is to take the "Big 5." The Big 5 consists of Elephant, Lion, Leopard, Cape Buffalo, and Rhino. These are storied beasts, steeped in legend, and all dangerous to hunt regardless of weapon used. Leopard and Cape Buffalo are reasonable price-wise to harvest. Lion and Elephant are expensive, particularly trophy males. Rhino are in a whole different class, usually in the six figure range.

Yes, Rhino numbers are drastically down from historic levels. There are two different types of rhinos, the White Rhino and the Black Rhino. The White Rhino is the more affordable and more available option, with only a few Black Rhino harvested each year (prices in the high six figures.) So why hunt rhinos? The answer is surprisingly simple, and quite logical.

Rhinos are poached in large numbers because their horns are believed to have aphrodiasiac powers, specifically in Asia. Africa is a very poor continent. People are literally starving there, especially in the more wild areas where rhinos are found. Poaching one rhino and selling its horn on the black market represents an amazing opportunity to better one's life and feed one's family. It is hard to blame the natives for poaching the rhinos when we take the time to look at the conditions in which they live. As such, every rhino that can be found gets poached. The natives are responsible for the decline in rhino numbers, not the white hunters such as the one in the picture.

How can this issue be resolved? Yes, there are game scouts and patrollers, but the African bush is very vast and the motivation to poach high. This is not a viable solution. The answer is to make the rhinos more valuable alive than dead. By allowing a limited number of white hunters to come in and legally take a rhino for six figures, and have a large portion of this money go to the local people, all of a sudden the natives become the best friends of the rhinos. Their number one goal has now changed to making sure that every rhino is protected and revered. They want there to be enough rhinos around that the government will allot a few tags to white hunters. The absolutely enormous financial infusion that stems from the legal harvest of one white rhino is worth so much more than hawking a few horns on the black market. The same has been done with elephants, tremendously successfully. Money talks, here in the US, and in Africa.

There is one other solution to the great white hunter's dream of taking the Big 5. It is common to take elephant, leopard, cape buffalo, and lion. Not very many hunters choose to hunt a rhino, as it is the least sporting of the lot and by far the most expensive. Cape Buffalo are an amazing rush to hunt, and hunters will commonly return to hunt them many, many times. They never get boring, regardless of how many dugga boys one has harvested. As I was saying, if one wishes to pursue the completion of the Big 5, there are "Green Hunts" available. In a green hunt situation, one hunts with a dart gun loaded with tranquilizer. A licensed veterinarian accompanies the hunter and professional hunter along on these hunts, to make certain that the rhino is ok, and help it come out from the tranquilizer. Green hunts are significantly cheaper, the native people still benefit financially, and the rhino population is not diminished.

A green hunt does pose the problem of no trophy to display on one's wall. This has a solution as well. When the rhino is "asleep," very detailed measurements of its head and its horns are taken, along with multiple pictures. Skilled taxidermists here in the states are able to create a reproduction that looks and feels just as good as the real thing. I personally have no desire to hunt rhinos, but I have nothing against one who chooses to do so. I'll gladly stick to cape buffalo and perhaps a leopard for at least a while.

^^ Not my dad, but one of his friends from his childhood who helps guide mountain lion hunts (and the occasional bear)

What right do you have to dictate how I or anyone else spends their money? Countless people spend several hundred dollars on a dinner, a few hundred for a show or good seats at a game, then a grand on a hotel for the night. So what if I take this same amount of money and shoot an Eland? What about those bottles of wine, or extravagant truffles that cost thousands? Everyone with the means, or nearly everyone, indulges. Some choose to buy a bass boat. Others choose to shoot a lion.

On the surface, it might seem that the bass boat is the more ethical purchase. However, that bass boat does a great deal to pollute the world, perhaps pollute the lake, and does absolutely nothing for conservation. My lion hunt contributes to the conservation of the ecosystem, the economy of the local people, and has a direct effect on lion conservation. As far as being guided, I might tend to agree with you...except that 100% of hunting done by foreigners in Africa is guided. There are no exceptions, it is simply the way it is. This is also a positive for the local economy.

In the case of the deer, they are bred specifically for their antler size. It is amazing what can be grown through selective breeding and a careful diet and perhaps hormones (do a google search for the whitetail Goliath). These deer are sold by score (inches of antler basically), and often picked out before the "hunt." I am against these canned hunts in principle, but do not believe they should be outlawed.

The animals on canned hunts are livestock. There are high fences surrounding their enclosures, and they cannot escape. They are bought and sold like cattle, fed, watered, etc. Why should I care if people want to shoot them? Many people like the idea of harvesting their own meat, or "hunting" in this setting. It is still more humane than buying beef or chicken at the store.

The animals are not suffering. They live good lives, ranging in fairly large enclosures. This, in my and many other hunters' opinion, is absolutely not hunting. It is shooting, that is all. Again, I see people as being free to spend their money however they may choose. The animals are treated well, the farmer/rancher makes his buck, and everyone is happy.

This is where the debate really gets going. Hunting in South Africa is essentially the same as in Texas. All the ranches are fenced. The wildebeast the OP harvested was shot in an enclosure, I guarantee it. The enclosures are quite large, but so are many ranches in Texas. Often the animals hunted on these South African hunts are not even indiginous to that part of Africa. Clients come to shoot African animals in Africa. They do not bother researching whether or not their Blesbok or Springbok was ever actually originally found in the area.

The truth is, hunting Africa now is not like hunting Africa in Roosevelt's or Hemingway's time. It is an industry, and wild Africa does not exist in many places. Now that Botswana is closing, things are even more dire. Tanzania is heralded as the most authentic African safari experience to be had. A full bag 21 day Tanzania safari is the ultimate goal for any savvy hunter. Rightly so, Tanzania is the priciest option for safari. A proper full bag safari is a six figure endeavor, and in my opinion, a bargain at that price.

Humans have changed our environment. There is no denying that, by anyone. As such, as have effected game populations, both positively and negatively. I am going to use the example of whitetail deer. There are more deer now than at any time in history. How is this possible? Haven't we cut down vast amount of forest? Yes, of course. Drive up into the mountains sometime and take a hike. How many deer did you see? Zero. Now drive back to a rural area. How many deer did you see? Probably many.

We have a significant amount of agriculture, as well as lawns, gardens, etc. Just the roads and their shoulders with all the grass and clover come into play. In essence, we have created a smorgasbord for deer, and have eliminated their predators at the same time. We have a responsibility to manage the population now.

Deer spread disease, especially when they are overpopulated. Did you know that the state of NY has a deer herd of over 1 million? Yes, a million deer in NY. This is an overpopulation, and the Department of Environmental Conservation agrees. They issue licenses for deer, and do so in a very controlled manner. There are DMPs, or Doe Management Permits issued, specific to every area of the state. A population's numbers are not influenced by the number of males, but rather by the number of females.One male can breed hundreds of females, so unless every single male is eliminated it is not doing much for population control.

Sometimes when a severe overpopulation happens, and the carrying capacity for an area is exceeded, the deer suffer greatly. There comes a time when the understory is browsed out, and the deer become thin and hungry. Then a hard winter hits, and these deer slowly die. This is not responsible management. In short, we have created a situation, and it is our responsibility to control it.

What about hunting for invasive species? Nutria in the south are a tremendous problem. Asiatic carp are commonly bowfished for, and are rarely eaten. However, hunters and fishermen are urged to kill carp in as great a number as possible. Carp are herbivores, so what damage do they do? Simple. They eat all of the weeds, algae, and other hiding area where smaller fish and minnow live. Fish lay their eggs in this vegetation, so that their young have a place to hide and not get eaten. Carp will literally eat every bit of vegetation they can find, effectively killing entire populations of native fish. This is merely one example.

Hunters have, in recent times, been the greatest stewards of wildlife that there are.. Banner organizations such as Ducks Unlimited and the National Wild Turkey Federation have been responsible for more conservation in regard to these target species than anyone else. Fifty years ago turkeys were very rare. Due to captive breeding and release programs, as well as land conservation, the wild turkey now lives in 49 of the 50 states, and in great numbers. Ducks Unlimited protects wetlands and migratory routes. It is these sportsmen who feel a connection to their quarry who work so tirelessly to make certain that healthy and huntable populations endure, so that they may continue to do that which they enjoy, and so that one day their children may have the same experiences.

The great majority of game conservation funding in the US comes directly from the sales of hunting licenses. Hunting is a management and conservation tool, not a sport for bloodthirsty killers. There are always bad examples, and plenty of uneducated rednecks out there with questionable ethics. Unfortunately these are the cases that make the news, the yahoo who spotlighted ten deer after he got drunk. The papers list this as a hunter committing a crime, rather than a poacher breaking the law. A hunter is a conservationist, an environmental steward, and a friend to the game he pursues. There is a quote I like: "I do not hunt to have killed, but I kill to have hunted."

O and for the record I really don't care what people blow their money on, a lot of the time people spending mad bank on something stupid like a night at a club actually gives a lot other ppl a source of income. So generally spending is actually a good thing for the economy, do idk why ppl bitch about rich ppl wasting their money, it helps you out in a way... So yea if you earn it, you are entitled to spend it on whatever you want.

Man