I understand the emotions and sympathies behind an anti-hunting perspective, but to say that hunters do not conserve is unfounded and untrue.
Ducks Unlimited do so much to promote conservation, educate about the importance of conservation, ethical hunting as well as spending millions of dollars on purchasing land, land easements, lobbying congress for wetland protection, etc., etc.
As in regards to paying the same as hunters for the privilege to bird, here are some costs:
You can buy a combo small game / fishing license for $34
Duck stamp is $15
Small game license only is $17
For a once in a lifetime Elk bowhunt, the permit is $185 and you are not guaranteed an elk. When the season is over its over (approx. 3 weeks) and you have to wait another 5 years to reapply for another permit that is picked in a draw.
Large portions of these permit and license fees go right back into CONSERVATION measures.
So if we were willing to pay the same as hunters to bird, here is an example:
Lets say you would like to drive out to The Bear River Bird Refuge in the springtime to see all the migrating birds.
You could either pay for a combo pass (lets you in the entire year) for $34 plus $15 for a birder stamp.
Or you could pay $17 plus $15 for a birder stamp and be allowed to bird in this area from, lets say, March 1 thru June 1 (approximately 3 months like the waterfowl season), and then not allowed back in the refuge to bird.
Or, lets say that there is a once in a lifetime bird such as the Purple Gallinule that was just seen a few months ago. You could buy a permit for $185, after you have been drawn out randomly, and given only 3 weeks to go to the area it was spotted, in the hopes that you may see it. With no assurances that you will see it.
Just some analogies to consider.
This is not to say that birders do not contribute huge sums of money, time, volunteerism, etc. to conserve habitat, birds, and so on. Because they do. (I'm sure I don't have to list all the organizations. Audubon Society, ABA, Sierra Club, etc., etc)
But lets not ignore the fact that responsible hunting programs and hunters are our partners in conservation.
My brother is an avid duck hunter. I am not. I don't enjoy killing birds. (I learned that when I was 10 yrs old, with a BB gun) But my brother is a very conscientious, responsible hunter, that respects the widlife, the birds, and their habitat.
In order for us as conservationists, environmentalists, ecologists, birders, tree huggers, animal lovers, etc. to be respected and heard, we must do the same towards the hunting community, especially when they support many of the same ideals that we hold dear.
I still don't like the Crane hunt!
Enough said!
I'm done with my rant!
Peace,
Stephen Peterson
From: "Richard Wood" <rwoodphd@msn.com>
Reply-To: "Richard Wood" <rwoodphd@msn.com>
To: <birdtalk@utahbirds.org>
Subject: [BirdTalk] Re: [birdnet] Northern Utah Rarities
Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2004 21:29:30 -0600
I don't think that we don't know anything about hunting. I think we know more than the hunters ("conservationists"...not) think we know or want us to know.
I guess not many are aware of the son and his dad that just went hunting and the son killed his dad, and now is charged with murder. This happened in Utah. I've never heard of anyone getting killed by another birder while birding.
I would, as a birder, gladly pay what a hunter pays to hunt just to bird, just so we could be rid of the idea that hunters conserve.
Richard
PS. I'm not going to wade into the pro/con hunting
discussion, but it appears by some responses
we'd best stick to things we think we know
something about - birding.
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