Not on Your Bucket List

[rjthehunter]

Not really. The trouble is, there are American hunters, and plenty of them, that are more than willing to exploit wildlife resources of other countries.

The money, ego, lists, etc. will drive some to kill the last one of about anything to cross something off a list or make some money.

Combine that with some countries just not having the resources, knowledge, data, or will to manage a resource correctly...the last stop-gap is our government taking action.

I get it, many times hunting can actually help in conservation efforts for some species. Where practical and when supported correctly, great, good, fantastic. That's just not reality everywhere, far from it.

The trick and tough part is finding the balance, and right people/governments to cooperate enough to find consensus that works. Hunt to support conservation without over doing it. Exploitation is very easy to accommodate...wasn't all that long ago, in our own past in the U.S. that we hunted stuff down to about nothing. Maybe we did learn from our own exploitation of wildlife and are positioned to limit it elsewhere.

It's not as simple as "gubmint over reach".

I can understand that. Money talks, always has, always will.

I think of a recent walrus hunt I was told about. I was told there are more than enough walrus to support more than 1000's being taken every year. But you cannot take any piece of it back to the US with you, because the US deemed them endangered.

To put a halt to importing lions to the US that were legally hunted is interesting. It would be like NZ saying hey sorry residents, you're not allowed to bring any elk back that you shoot in WY because I don't think there's enough... Is the US monitoring wildlife populations in Africa?

 

[BuzzH]

I can understand that. Money talks, always has, always will.

I think of a recent walrus hunt I was told about. I was told there are more than enough walrus to support more than 1000's being taken every year. But you cannot take any piece of it back to the US with you, because the US deemed them endangered.

To put a halt to importing lions to the US that were legally hunted is interesting. It would be like NZ saying hey sorry residents, you're not allowed to bring any elk back that you shoot in WY because I don't think there's enough... Is the US monitoring wildlife populations in Africa?

I believe the US does monitor wildlife to some extent in Africa and elsewhere

 

[Johnny Bravo]

Hurry up and change the title to "On your bucket list"

Mountain lion and bears

Cecil?

Mufasa....

 

[huntin24/7]

View attachment 319980


I may never understand why my dad flew halfway around the world to shoot a striped horse. Then he put it in his Livingroom.....lol

Haha! I definitely get why people wouldn’t want to shoot a zebra. I hunted Africa in 2012 and would easily take western big game over it any day. That being said, zebra were by far the most cagey animal I hunted there and the most fun, and a mature stallion was as spooky and challenging as any animal I’ve hunted there or in the U.S.

 

[Desk Pop]

Not really. The trouble is, there are American hunters, and plenty of them, that are more than willing to exploit wildlife resources of other countries.

The money, ego, lists, etc. will drive some to kill the last one of about anything to cross something off a list or make some money.

Combine that with some countries just not having the resources, knowledge, data, or will to manage a resource correctly...the last stop-gap is our government taking action.

I get it, many times hunting can actually help in conservation efforts for some species. Where practical and when supported correctly, great, good, fantastic. That's just not reality everywhere, far from it.

The trick and tough part is finding the balance, and right people/governments to cooperate enough to find consensus that works. Hunt to support conservation without over doing it. Exploitation is very easy to accommodate...wasn't all that long ago, in our own past in the U.S. that we hunted stuff down to about nothing. Maybe we did learn from our own exploitation of wildlife and are positioned to limit it elsewhere.

It's not as simple as "gubmint over reach".

The United States is a member of CITES. CITES sets export quotas for lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos, etc based on the best available science.

As a member nation, they should respect these quotas and let African nations, and other nations, regulate their wildlife as long as they stay within these quotas.

CITES determines what offtake is reasonable to sustain populations and benefit the wildlife. I don't always agree with CITES outcomes at each convention, but they control what can be exported legally.

Botswana has 130,000 elephants. CITES allows 400 to be exported annually. Botswana allows 300 tags to be sold. Then the US says, "naw, go fck yourself you idiot Africans, we aren't letting these trophies in." Smells imperialistic to me.

The US is one of 184 member countries to the CITES treaty. Intentionally not allowing imports for certain species that are eligible for legal export from their origin countries based on emotional outcry derived from a Disney movie's personification of animals is government overreach. It is imperialistic, rude and condescending.

 

[Desk Pop]

Haha! I definitely get why people wouldn’t want to shoot a zebra. I hunted Africa in 2012 and would easily take western big game over it any day. That being said, zebra were by far the most cagey animal I hunted there and the most fun, and a mature stallion was as spooky and challenging as any animal I’ve hunted there or in the U.S.

I did my eighth safari last summer. My wife came. Before the hunt, I asked her if she wanted to hunt anything.

She said, "zebra."

I said, "why?"

"Because you've never killed one. I want something you haven't shot. And what's more African than a zebra rug," she said.

I laughed. She ended up getting a stallion and yes, I agree that they are cagey and skittish and not easy to put a bullet into. I haven't killed one yet simply because the other stuff interested me more and I only had so much for trophy fees, but I've got a big cat safari in July and they are a common bait so I may end up hanging a few in trees.

 

[BuzzH]

The United States is a member of CITES. CITES sets export quotas for lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos, etc based on the best available science.

As a member nation, they should respect these quotas and let African nations, and other nations, regulate their wildlife as long as they stay within these quotas.

CITES determines what offtake is reasonable to sustain populations and benefit the wildlife. I don't always agree with CITES outcomes at each convention, but they control what can be exported legally.

Botswana has 130,000 elephants. CITES allows 400 to be exported annually. Botswana allows 300 tags to be sold. Then the US says, "naw, go fck yourself you idiot Africans, we aren't letting these trophies in." Smells imperialistic to me.

The US is one of 184 member countries to the CITES treaty. Intentionally not allowing imports for certain species that are eligible for legal export from their origin countries based on emotional outcry derived from a Disney movie's personification of animals is government overreach. It is imperialistic, rude and condescending.

Take some pictures and call it good if it's that big of a deal. If I were ever to hunt Africa or a CITES species out of country, I'd most likely not bother importing anything. I get why some/most would want to.

I somewhat agree on the CITES issues, however.

 

[Desk Pop]

Take some pictures and call it good if it's that big of a deal. If I were ever to hunt Africa or a CITES species out of country, I'd most likely not bother importing anything. I get why some/most would want to.

I somewhat agree on the CITES issues, however.

I have taken an elephant that I could not import, which I knew going into it in 2015. It was well worth it, and I am quite ok having an experience I want, and some photos. I've done this on several international hunts due to the inability to import, or, in a couple cases, I'd rather spend the shipping/customs clearing fee on an additional hunting adventures rather than having more dead stuff in my house. I'm hunting two big cats in Africa this summer. One I know I cannot take back. The other, it is possible, but I'm not sure it is worth the hassle or not at this point...and big cat hunts are far from guaranteed anyway on free range concessions so it may not matter anyway.

Some hunters have to have everything back or they won't hunt it. I understand where they are coming from too.

When the US limits imports on species, Americans still hunt them, but the price of the hunts decrease. The same amount of animals get hunted, but the amount outfitters and concessions get is reduced.

Kind of like if Montana did a sheep auction tag, but said you can't take the ram home...plenty of people would still bid, but people would pay less.

CITES is an interesting thing. Probably mostly good, but not all good for wildlife.

 

[SilentBirdHunter]

Mergansers.

 

[Wild Bill]

Mergansers.
View attachment 320037

Nothing feels quite as good as dishraggin’ a merg going Mach 5 and watching it skim on the water. I’m not a fan of the meat, but the dog likes it and it doesn’t get thrown away.

 

[SilentBirdHunter]

Nothing feels quite as good as dishraggin’ a merg going Mach 5 and watching it skim on the water. I’m not a fan of the meat, but the dog likes it and it doesn’t get thrown away.

When I was a poor college student I tried merganser jerky, spicy stir fry,etc
but it always tasted fishy. Last one I shot was in the 1980s

 

[gouch]

When I was a poor college student I tried merganser jerky, spicy stir fry,etc
but it always tasted fishy. Last one I shot was in the 1980s

I shot a few and tried to make them edible. I found that smoking them was tolerable but not worth the effort. On my old lab Zeke's very first hunting trip I shot a coot to give him something to retrieve right away. I am now convinced that there is no humanly way to swallow coot meat.

 

[MtnElk]

I couldn't kill an elephant, panda bear, or a koala. They're on the bottom of my bucket list.

Boy have I got the thread for you

 

[mdcrossbow]

really nothing on my bucket list. An Ocellated Turkey would be nice.

 

[Steiny77]

I don't have much interest in African hunting.

 

[Rzrbck918]

Feral Cat

But I know its high on some of your lists. Looking at you @fairchase

Edit:
For the newbies, enjoy https://www.hunttalk.com/threads/feral-cat.294890/

 

[noharleyyet]

...merge with Botswana?

 

[Trap]

Mergansers.
View attachment 320037

shooting merganzers is your civic duty. man up! dont you fish?

 

[SilentBirdHunter]

shooting merganzers is your civic duty. man up! dont you fish?

No I sold or gave away all my fishing gear when we moved out of Alaska to Montana. No regrets. That fishing chapter (60 years) is closed.

 

[Mountain Man]

No interest in hunting a zebra or a giraffe.

I agree with you on the giraffe. I used to agree with you on the Zebra until I observed them in South Africa in the wild. Those things are a$$holes to one another and wild as hell. I changed my mind right then and there. I never shot one that trip due to the budget, but I would if given the opportunity in the future.