Its all about perspective!

[Dsnow9]

-I write this from two perspectives, one being a lifelong hunter and am now 77. The other being a field biologist and science educator having taught high school biology, chemistry, and ecology.

Where I fish, the regulations forbid taking a native, non-hatchery trout over a certain size. Such fish are considered to be ecological/genetic treasure chests.

I feel the same way about superb examples of deer, elk, pronghorn, mountain sheep or goats. If i had it my way, any of these species, over a certain size would be off-limits unless a hunter drew a rare trophy animal tag. For example, any deer over a 3x3, could not be killed without such a tag.

Having hunters most always be selecting out the best specimens is just plain "Bad Biology" . Once one begins to study this topic, the consequences to wildlife become overwhelming.

I’ll save em for the rest of ya! I’ll take care of the forkies and dinks. It’s my specialty!

 

[Rack Daniels]

Just the way I’m gathering this…

You’re coming from Texas to buy 7200 acres in historic Missouri River Breaks country, with a staunch no-access mindset, so you can keep game animals happy on your piece of private in hopes of playing biologist and breeding better bucks on your own section…. Sweet. Sounds about par for new Montana landowners….

 

[Mustangs Rule]

I believe that we can approach our life's decisions from two basically different stances. I will describe them metaphorically as being either up-right or upside-down.

Let me offer some different examples. My mother's side of my family were dairy farmers. My father's side were residential builders. I learned both occupation's, have been both.

When circumstances required trimming down the herd, we kept the best, sold the lesser cattle.

When winter came in my Native New England, construction layoffs were often unavoidable. So, who did a contractor keep? The "thrive not survive answer" was always to keep the best workers with the most experience, who could be the core of the spring crew.

This ego habit which has persisted for so many thousands of years, by with hunters methodically seek out and kill the best specimens prior to winter, is from a logic healthy herd standpoint, simply ridiculous.

Native People did not do that, why eat tougher meat anyway?
Predators did not take out the best. Actually, most often the predator prey relationship was such a close match that game animals in their prime had a significant edge, so the dumb young, the sick and the old were culled out making the herd more vital.

Enter modern hunting tools from crossbows to guns and what has happened is that we are culling out the best to hang racks and horns on the wall after reading "monster bucks and bulls mags."

What comes next from field bio studies, is a proven fact that these great specimens are very often a sub-gene pool of survival excellence that has been honed by natural selection over many thousands of years.

Way too many hunters, most even, have been destroying the best for way too long. They are not up-right, but upside-down.

 

[Rack Daniels]

I believe that we can approach our life's decisions from two basically different stances. I will describe them metaphorically as being either up-right or upside-down.

Let me offer some different examples. My mother's side of my family were dairy farmers. My father's side were residential builders. I learned both occupation's, have been both.

When circumstances required trimming down the herd, we kept the best, sold the lesser cattle.

When winter came in my Native New England, construction layoffs were often unavoidable. So, who did a contractor keep? The "thrive not survive answer" was always to keep the best workers with the most experience, who could be the core of the spring crew.

This ego habit which has persisted for so many thousands of years, by with hunters methodically seek out and kill the best specimens prior to winter, is from a logic healthy herd standpoint, simply ridiculous.

Native People did not do that, why eat tougher meat anyway?
Predators did not take out the best. Actually, most often the predator prey relationship was such a close match that game animals in their prime had a significant edge, so the dumb young, the sick and the old were culled out making the herd more vital.

Enter modern hunting tools from crossbows to guns and what has happened is that we are culling out the best to hang racks and horns on the wall after reading "monster bucks and bulls mags."

What comes next from field bio studies, is a proven fact that these great specimens are very often a sub-gene pool of survival excellence that has been honed by natural selection over many thousands of years.

Way too many hunters, most even, have been destroying the best for way too long. They are not up-right, but upside-down.

Well said! ForkyGang por vida!!

 

[Northwoods]

My thoughts on this are not going to be popular.

This culture of needing to kill big mature animals and the buck/bull shaming that goes with it is ruining what hunting should be, IMHO. Most of us are all guilty of it. We like to blame influencers, etc. and not take accountability for the dumb a$$ hunting culture that we’ve created. Many hunters honestly feel it’s not a good hunt unless the hunter takes a beautiful mature animal. Additionally, they get upset with the guy/gal that is happy to be out in the woods and takes home a lesser better eating animal.

If hunters want to kill only big mature animals that are rutted up and chewy that’s fine. It’s their hunt but they need to be a little open minded about the competitive, prideful culture they are creating. Personally, I’m really beginning to believe it’s better for the heard to let the mature animals bread.

Unfortunately, there is no going back. We will have to live with what we’ve created. No way are we going to be able to greatly reduce tags and convince hunters to leave the big mature breaders in the woods simultaneously. Plus, little bucks don’t get social media likes and some men need those big antlers on the wall to compensate for other things.

I’m not saying I won’t ever shoot another big one, but trophy animals and antlers are not at all a factor anymore in why, where, and what I hunt.