Nick87
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Yah and game recovery is on the wrong side of the line.
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Thermal recovery drones?
- Thread starter Life by the Horns
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X13
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The devil is in the details on this one. Great tool to recover game and a great tool to give yourself an unfair advantage while hunting.
Nick87
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Imo recovering game crosses into unfair at dome point as well. I wouldn't blame someone who does it. I've had an instance where I thought about calling a guy with a dog too. I just don't think it's a great thing to always have that as an option.
cgasner1
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Think this will encourage people to just hit animals instead of kill them
Nick87
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Exactly.
Benfromalbuquerque
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I’ve read up on drones, owned a Mavic 2 Pro and keep up on stuff because it’s awesome. I’d say look as high price point as you’d want to completely lose. Tech is advancing by the day and the new drone you buy today will depreciate completely within two years.
The DJI Mavic Enterprise used sells for the Autel Evo II thermal new price. There’s a reason for that like object avoidance, battery life. Autel is in France, DJI is China.
np307
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I think it's a little hyperbolic to say that more recovery tools will make people more likely to take bad shots. You also need to consider the argument that things outside of your control happen and you owe it to the resource to do everything possible not to waste it. I had a deer last fall that I had to put my dog on the track. Deer was dead within 50 yards, just didn't leave a blood trail.
On the other side of the coin, there are certainly issues with thermal drones. One big issue is they miss a lot of the picture that is gained from a dog and handler investigating a hit site and starting a trail. They can give both false negatives and false positives. Can they be used nefariously? Sure. So can a dog and so can a bright flashlight. Regulation is reasonable, banning outright I don't think is.
On the other side of the coin, there are certainly issues with thermal drones. One big issue is they miss a lot of the picture that is gained from a dog and handler investigating a hit site and starting a trail. They can give both false negatives and false positives. Can they be used nefariously? Sure. So can a dog and so can a bright flashlight. Regulation is reasonable, banning outright I don't think is.
Hunters are going to have to take a stand against technology if we want to continue. Unfortunately I’m not sure how many ethical hunters are left. It’s going to Teddy Roosevelt movement to right the ship. Sorry for shitting on your thread life at the thorns but that’s how I see it.
Nick87
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It's just part of hunting imo. If he was dead within 50 yards you probably would've found him grid searching that area?
np307
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On a marginally hit deer, a grid search will often bump a deer out of his bed and cause him to travel a lot farther, making recovery even less likely. In my opinion, the attitude that losing deer that could be recovered is "just part of hunting" just doesn't square with my responsibility as a hunter.
Nick87
Well-known member
Ok.
I don’t disagree with you should do everything you can to recover an animal. But drone technology has a massive window for abuse. I’m not saying that everyone who uses one for recovery is going to, but the potential is beyond anything I can think of in recent memory.
At a bird hunting preserve in Missouri last fall, the owner had one. He flew it most evenings, and knew where every single buck on the place was. I mean twenty of them, to within which tree they were under, and what direction they were facing. He was able to pattern the deer from it, too. And it was easy. I mean stupid easy.
You might have been looking for recommendations on one, but the ethics of using them are inherently tied to the technology, and any discussion regarding them must bring that into account. And the ethics are- using it to hunt violates the fair chase principles that have been the foundation of the North American Model of Conservation, and is therefore a threat to the future of hunting if left unchecked. Even if that’s simply “drone operator’s license and register with fish & game”. But the more that are out there, the more people will be tempted to use it as a shortcut, to the detriment of the resource.
You might have been looking for recommendations on one, but the ethics of using them are inherently tied to the technology, and any discussion regarding them must bring that into account. And the ethics are- using it to hunt violates the fair chase principles that have been the foundation of the North American Model of Conservation, and is therefore a threat to the future of hunting if left unchecked. Even if that’s simply “drone operator’s license and register with fish & game”. But the more that are out there, the more people will be tempted to use it as a shortcut, to the detriment of the resource.
Mallardsx2
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Drones have 0 place in hunting and scouting.
If ya can't make the shot and find your deer, you don't deserve it, and you should consider golf or just target shooting.
Scouting with Thermal Binocular or thermal of any kind for big game equates to the same level of douchebaggery.
If ya can't make the shot and find your deer, you don't deserve it, and you should consider golf or just target shooting.
Scouting with Thermal Binocular or thermal of any kind for big game equates to the same level of douchebaggery.
Gellar
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mxracer317
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