How Hunting Is Driving "Evolution In Reverse": Newsweek

Some of the most iconic photographs of Teddy Roosevelt, one of the first conservationists in American politics, show the president posing companionably with the prizes of his trophy hunts. An elephant felled in Africa in 1909 points its tusks skyward; a Cape buffalo, crowned with horns in the shape of a handlebar mustache, slumps in a Kenyan swamp. In North America, he stalked deer, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep and elk, which he called "lordly game" for their majestic antlers. What's remarkable about these photographs is not that they depict a hunter who was also naturalist John Muir's staunchest political ally. It's that just 100 years after his expeditions, many of the kind of magnificent trophies he routinely captured are becoming rare.

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Comments

[FZliveson]

Just a little bit of health word on hunting the strongest of the herd;
There is a disease CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) in wild game, which disease
closely resembles BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy or MAD COW DISEASE)
There is no evidence (YET) that CWD can jump over into the human species, but the
possibility has been shown to exist. So.....To avoid risk of CWD-related human illness
it is best to consume the flesh of only healthy game. And, how do we identify healthy game?
Well they are the big, fast ones that are the hardest to capture.
Reference: http://www.grinningplanet.com/2004/01-13/mad-cow-beef-labels-eco.htm

[dan-o]

I don't know if any of you know this but the number of animals killed during hunting season is hardly ever enough. The conservationists in the Depatment of Natural Resources set the quota by doing population studies. A lot of hunters do not get anything so the needed culling of the herds are hardly ever met.

Sarcastic- I think we need to stop the murder of Rats in the big cities. It is terrible that the poor rats have to be exterminated just to prevent disease among city dwellers. I think if disease were allowed to run rampant then that would help strengthen the Human herd in major cities by thinning out those with weak immune systems.

[RTIII]

I've got no problem with hunting so long as its: humane, the meat is collected for consumption, and only of species whose natural predators we have removed from the environment (deer, elk, etc).

This clearly excludes the predators. THEY should be absolutely completely protected from humans.
.

[Berettasskeeter]

Why?
Semper fi

[FZliveson]

RTIII when you say about predators that; "THEY should be absolutely completely protected from humans." do you realize that you would be putting livestock and humans in danger? Not everyone lives in an asphalt jungle with mass-transit and taxis running everywhere. If you want to see more people toting firearms, just allow the wolves, big cats and packs of coyote to flourish near people's homes and that will be a necessity once again.

[larry278]

Don't tell me, artificial insemenation of female game animals isn't practical. How many technicians who were trying to collect sperm with desirable traits would be killed or injured?

[Berettasskeeter]

Actually, your sarcastic remark is spot on. It's been tried, as has contraceptives through darting. It proved to be unreliable, extremely expensive, and a general waste of time that took money out of the tax base that would have been enhanced by the taxes and fees paid by hunters.
Semper fi

[derekc06]

but i do agree that some rethinking of our hunting laws would be a good idea...

[Berettasskeeter]

Who do you think should rethink those laws, and to what end? Do you think it should be ALF, the Humane Society, PETA? How about lawmakers unfamiliar with what hunting actually accomplishes?
Semper fi

[derekc06]

gotta say i'm not sure i buy this one... at least not here in the US... these animals generally have the opportunity to pass on their genes before they're hunted... and it's debatable whether or not the "fittest" are actually the ones being tagged...

[ashabot]

A grinning man posing with a rife over the dead body of a magnificent bear who was, only moments before, a miracle of life. How sad sad sad and deeply and disgustingly ignorant and cruel.

[Berettasskeeter]

Without anthropomorphizing the animal, can you explain, in detail, precisely how it is ignorant or cruel?
Semper fi

[KodeBloo]

Oh, but I bet you cried your little eyes out when they televised the remains of those military"contractors" (aka paid m.urderers) being dragged through the streets of Iraq, huh?

Semper this!

[FZliveson]

What would you prefer, ashabot, a photo of the bear gnawing on the man, who only moments before was a loving father and a brilliant violinist? If the man had a permit to drop the bear, he followed the laws, which were created in concert with conservationalists at the state and (perhaps) federal levels.

[motoGpifupleez]

Population management is the shield many "hunters" hide behind. Let me relate a story to you. A few years back, here in Alabama, the Wildlife Management Federation allocated a weekend extension in an attempt to thin down an overpopulation of does (female deer). Dozens signed up and were completely aware of the reason for the operation and yet, at the end of day one, not a single "hunter" returned with a carcass. When asked why the most common answer was "I didn't see a big enough buck worth shooting". The program was cancelled on the spot and the next day a group of Army sniper teams were brought in to take care of the task as an opportunity to give them some experience in the woods. And don't go crazy animal lovers, all the meat went to the homeless shelter and soup kitchen programs. Looking to bag the biggest "rack" is not efficient population management, it's an ego stroke, pure and simple. Over the course of 20 years in the Motorcycle/ATV industry as a dealer, I had the opportunity to interact intimately with many an outdoorsman, especially during the Fall/Winter when they are most active and can tell you from direct experience that while there are indeed some very conscientious sportsman out there, the greater portion are in it for the trophy-be it the biggest wall mounted head or the most accessory bedecked ATV to ease their trip to their well appointed shooting house.

[Berettasskeeter]

Do you remember the newspaper that reported your anecdote? Or can you provide a reference to check on. I've been over most of the country, and hunters are not easily confused about shooting bucks during doe season, therefore I sort of doubt your veracity.
Semper fi

[motoGpifupleez]

Birmingham news, Anniston Daily News, WAIT-TV, WBRC-TV, WBIQ Public TV.
The hunters were not confused, they did not wish to "waste" their one deer on the does they were told needed to be culled. They wanted a trophy buck. That is why hey were dismissed after the first day. Doubt to your hearts content.

[Berettasskeeter]

What bilge! Look at the photos on the link:

http://www.bluewaterbiggame.com/gallery/african_elephant_hunting_gallery.cfm

Elk hunting is strictly controlled, with the express purpose being to allow the herds to grow and thrive, allowing hunters to take only older animals, which are also the animals with the trophy heads. Do some research on Africa. In some countries, its the elephants that are destroying their habitat because of the legal restrictions on ivory importations around the world. Hunters still hunt them, at costs often approaching $10,000 per licence!
The problem of the kangaroo is poaching, as written by the author. Licenced hunting under conservationist policies is not the problem.
Grow up, do your research, including asking hunters about their sport. If you don't know any hunters, I pity you. However, there are plenty of good hunting websites available. I also urge you all to go to the states' websites concerning elk, bighorn sheep, and to the sites of the countries that allow elephant hunting. Get your education before speaking foolishness or before believing the nonsense of the author.
Semper fi

[BlackYowe]

Most of the damage is done by poachers.

http://fishwildlife.blogspot.com/2007/10/wyoming-wardens-frustrated-with.html

[Berettasskeeter]

Poaching will be, and always has been, a problem. But widespread poaching is not. The majority of poaching is done by people who hunt for meat, to put food on the tables of their families. In those cases, most of the poaching is of does, which meat is more tender than that of bucks. Poaching is always a concern on the game wardens, and is kept somewhat in check by draconian penalties for the offense, which often includes loss of firearm, loss of vehicle, and in some cases loss of home.
The article was not about poaching, except in the case of the kangaroo. It speaks of hunting in general, and trophy hunting specifically.
Semper fi

[greendream]

Bring back the wolves.

[rubygreen]

As long as Palin isn't around!

[Js420]

Serious regulation needed...

[FZliveson]

What sticks in my craw is the fact that Lily Huang, the author, goes to artistic extreme
when writing. The part where she says:

"...Canada, is home to a population of bighorn sheep, whose most vulnerable individuals are males with thick, curving horns that give them a regal, Princess Leia look."

I don't know if she is looking for some award for scriptural fluorescence or what, but to flop over the gender line and then refer to a male sheep as having the look of a female of a different species from
a fiction movie cost Lily the minimal credibility she was trying to build for herself.
Nice try...No cigar. I wonder if Princess Lily smokes cigars...That would make sense if she were consistent with her thinking from the article!

[BlackYowe]

Yes that is way over the top!

[Berettasskeeter]

Why is it over the top? With so many people here anthropomorphizing animals, why shouldn't she do the same?
Semper fi

[Cogitoe]

So the "meek" will inherit the Earth......

Seems to be working to a degree in the human race as well. Intelligence and money generating potential are now more likely to lead to a mate and children than brawn, good looks and a proven immune system. Revenge of the scrawny.

[bradley7777]

More like triumph of the immoral and backwards.

Please see Idiocracy.

[Topfeeder]

Why does it gotta be a black bear? The Huffpo only posts photos of slayed black bears. No one would be posting on this story if it were a brown bear or a white bear.

[Berettasskeeter]

I would! Polar bears are a game animal, as are Kodiak and Grizzly bears. Further, both are highly skilled predators responsible for a good few human deaths. A hunter has to be pretty sure of him/herself to go after one of them!
Semper fi

[eeVas]

the article was very intersting but there was one major mistake. The idea of calling the surviving animals as "losers". If they are surviving and reproducing they are not losers. They are the "fittest". What the environment, including preditors, deeps the fittest is what survives. This is the definition of evolution. The fittest is not necessarily the strongest, tallest, or biggest. In fact the biggest could be a negative facture to survival way before man started hunting. Think about the death of the dinosaurs.