This is the time of year when many hunters venture into the fields alongside birders, but with very different goals. Many different types of game birds can be legally hunted, including mallards, Canada geese, ring-necked pheasants, mourning doves, wild turkeys and different types of quail, though the legal limits and hunting seasons vary regionally.As a birder, do you support bird hunting? I don't hunt myself, but I don't object to the practice when it is regulated and done with awareness of bird conservation issues. Share your thoughts in the comments, and don't forget to cast your vote!
Ring-Necked Pheasant
Photo © Just Chaos
Comments
I am a birder and conservationist, married to a hunter who is also a birder and conservationist. Hunters pay special taxes beyond sales tax, on arms and ammunition. These taxes are ear marked to purchase and manage habitat for game birds. They also are required to buy federal duck stamps to hunt waterfowl, and must purchase state small game licenses to hunt all birds. Those moneys are spent on the purchase and improvement of bird habitat. The habitat that supports game birds also supports non-game species.
Birders are free to use these hunter purchased lands to enjoy birding at all times of the year and are not required to pay any fees to do so.
Perhaps birders should support these public lands purchases that support wildlife of all kinds. One way would be to purchase Duck Stamps. These stamps, by the way, are works of art and are collectible. Every year the nation’s best wildlife artists vie for the honor of having their art displayed on that year’s stamp.
The previous poster said it very well. In addition to that to hunt successfully you must understand the game you are hunting. What they want for food, where they sleep/roost, how to position yourself to intercept them on their way to either. How you take the game is regulated also. You are not permitted to bait game. In some cases you must take game birds in flight (dove,duck, quail, ect) When you understand the game you become a better conservationist. The comeback of deer and turkey are largely due to the efforts of hunters and hunting organizations (National Wild turkey Federation, Ducks Unlimited, Rockey Mountain Elk Foundation, ect)
One of the nastiness things I remember from childhood was finding dead deer in the woods because their population grew too large to support them over the winter. Conscientious hunting is appropriate, although I strongly feel the hunting should be for the table, not just for sport.
An extremely good example of hunting as a conservation tool took place in Arizona. The Buenos Aries Ranch was bought buy Natures Conservancy, to try and reintroduce Mexican Bobwhite. The ranch was abundant with Gambels, and Mearns quail. Owning the ranch Natures Conservancy stopped all hunting, both game bird and mammal, so the Mexican Bobwhite population would not be disturbed. They also stopped any domestic grazing. The end result was the native grass dried up the already scarce water. The predators flourished for a while, killing off all the big, and small game animals. The Gambels, and Mearns quail became over populated, and developed an avian bacteria that ran through the coveys, and nearly wiped out the entire population. On top of that, the Bobwhite population kept getting killed off by predators, and hawks.
Moral of the story. No, hunting is not for everyone. It is a necessary conservation tool to keep a healthy environment for the wildlife. Pristine conditions did not exist when America was discovered. The Native Americans were already here, and were practicing conservation very efficiently, i.e. hunting, wildfires, etc.