Over centuries, hunting was an honored tradition that had tremendous cultural and economic value. Today, it is not surprising that hunting is not as honored as it once was, with the number of hunters dwindling over the past decades. The US Fish and Wildlife Service research spotlights a decrease in hunters by 16% from 2011 to 2016 (National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, 2016). Despite the falling numbers, anti-hunting movements are burgeoning in full swing.

Hunting, however, can have positive effects on wildlife if done correctly. In regions with enormous wildlife, such as the Adirondacks, hunters and the wilderness depend on each other. In general, hunters play two significant roles in preserving nature: maintaining the balance between prey and predators and providing/demanding funds and care for wildlife.

A herd of deer (Jack Barnes, 2013)

Every ecosystem has a carrying capacity – the number of living organisms a region can support without environmental degradation [carrying capacity, n.d]. For example, if the number of deers exceeds the carrying capacity, vegetation and plants disappear because of overgrazing. Hunting deers sustainably, in this scenario, can protect the integrity of the land for other organisms while also maintaining a thriving population of deers. Similarly, if the number of wolves exceeds the carrying, the number of its prey, like deers, will decrease significantly. Hunting wolves in sustainably will help to maintain healthy numbers of wolves and deers in the forest.

The role of individual communities in preserving wildlife is as important as that of government agencies. In a rapidly urbanizing country like the United States, investors might disregard the importance of forests for construction projects. Given the shortcomings in government institutions’ funding, public parks’ landowners struggling financially will continue spiraling downwards economically (de Nevers, Greg, & Huey Johnson, 1995). Selling land to private owners, who will exploit the land for profits, will only permanently damage wildlife’s habitat. On the other hand, hunters can fund landowners in exchange for sustainable hunting. While this might seem unbeneficial for nature, sustainable hunting does not permanently destroy habitats and is far better than construction.

Regions with pristine wilderness, like the Adirondack region, have experienced a considerable decline in hunters. Responsible hunters demand care for wildlife protection. The. understand the relationship between the natural system and the social system. Anti-hunting movements must acknowledge that hunting, when done responsibly, can be an excellent tool for wildlife conservation. Therefore, environmentalists should consider responsible hunters as one of them, not as individuals against them.

Citations:

U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau. 2016 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation.

“Carrying Capacity.” Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford University Press, 2002.

de Nevers, Greg, and Huey Johnson. “Hunting as a Tool for Wildlife Management.” The George Wright Forum, vol. 12, no. 4, George Wright Society, 1995, pp. 39–44, http://www.jstor.org/stable/43597445.