I am writing a paper for my English Composition class on why hunting should continue being used as a wildlife management tool. I need 5 sources and none of them can be internet site unless it is information that is normally in hard copy form, but can also be found on the internet. Any suggestions for me? It would be best if it is information that is published in hard copy, but can also be found on the internet. Thanks guys.

Your state fish and game dept. should have a wealth of info. Also if you have Capstick's Rhino hunting video there is a short documentary on how hunting dollars helped save the rhino from extinction. I would be willing to loan it to you if you don't have it.

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Also if you have Capstick's Rhino hunting video there is a short documentary on how hunting dollars helped save the rhino from extinction.

Actually, some of Capstick's books make the same point and make a very good read even if not for a class.

check with SCI, i think you'll get a ton of stuff

I would suggest doing a search, or even phone inquiry with the NRA, trust me they have tons of info!

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Originally posted by Fish30114:
I would suggest doing a search, or even phone inquiry with the NRA, trust me they have tons of info!

Completely agree.

And if you are interested in reading one of the guys who got it all started, look for books on Hunting by Teddy Roosevelt. I can re-read his classic, The Wilderness Hunter, and never get bored. It would provide a reference about "why" the Game Conservation Movement initially began.

Best of luck to you.

I think the your strongest points can be made about the following.

Comparing Elephant populations in Kenya vs countries where hunting elephant is legal. You would also want to compare poaching in both countries and introduce information on culling in Kenya to keep populations down.

My next point would be the finances of wildlife management and how much money hunters spend on land and animals. Getting some info from SCI would be key. Lots of "nature lovers" TALK about saving the animals but never reach for their wallets!

I would then take a look at reintroduced species. Here in Mass wild turkeys were wiped out as recently as the early 1980s, after finally getting some succesfull transplants from NY State of wildbirds we now have an exploding populations. In this case we wouyldn't have a SINGLE turkey in Mass if it wasn't for hunters.

Similiar stories exist for Elk, big horn sheep etc out west.

I think a specific reference for hunting for wildlife management would be the Quabbin Reservoir here in Mass. It has been closed to hunting since the 1930s when it was created and the deer population exploded. All the ground cover was eaten, deer were starving and the water wasn't going through the natural clensing process that the ground cover provided to the the rain water coming in. In the early 1990s hunting was introduced to control the population and keep the deer numbers in check. The ground cover has come back and the balance of nature has been returned.

See if your local library has any of Valerius Geists books on deer / elk / sheep. He's about as close to "the authority" on ungulate management.

You may also check with the authorities at Bannf National Park in Canada, as well as some of the game authorities at Yellowstone National Park. Each park has been struggling with overpopulation and been working with game and fish departments to reduce herds through hunting (or culling, depending if you are pro or con hunting).

Another interesting resource would be the outfit in the East that culls white-tailed deer in populated areas. If I recall correctly, they go by "White Rhino". HTH, Dutch.

go up to african hunting - there's a new post on hunting helping conservation fro ntl. geographic

Don't forget to look into the efforts of groups that were started by hunters to preserve habitat and enhance wildlife such as Ducks Unlimited and others.

Check with World Wildlife Fund, the international organization for which recognizes hunting as a valuable management tool, National Wildlife Federation and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. All have hard publications you can cite to, within which should also be articles on your topic that cite to published studies.

Try "Heart and Blood: Living with Deer in America" by Richard Nelson. He gets at it from a dozen or so angles, including actually going out in the field with some anti-hunting types.


Okie John