Why hunting is possitive Essay Example for Free

Why hunting is possitive Essay The human being has been hunting ever since time began. It was the only way of life back then. A hunter was either successful and survived or not successful and died. Hunting is still a way of survival for some people. There are many anti-hunting activists out there trying to bring down hunting. They say that it is cruel and mean to kill a defenseless animal. What they don’t understand is that if we didn’t hunt, the world would be completely different. Hunting has many positive effects on not only the environment but also the economy and people’s life. When people think of the most dangerous animal in North America they think of bears and sharks. There have only been 28 deadly bear attacks and 10 deadly shark attacks in the past 10 years (Rice, 2011). The most dangerous animal may well be the deer. There are nearly 32 million deer alive today (25 Reasons, 2013). With roads and highways going through areas that are heavily populated by deer, more than 1 million car accidents are caused by dear per year. Due to those 1 million car accidents, there is $1 billion in vehicle damage, 200 deaths and 10,000 personal injures per year (Rice, 2011). Hunting lowers the risk of a driver hitting a deer. For every deer hit by a car, hunters kill 6 (25 Reasons, 2013). When a hunter kills a deer they take away the chance of that deer getting hit by a car. If we didn’t hunt, those numbers of vehicle accidents caused by deer would go up dramatically because the population would be higher. Hunting is also a method of conservation as it keeps the population of animals down, keeping them compatible with human activity. Hunters not only help wildlife conservation by keeping the population down but also by purchasing the weapons and ammunition. In 1937 hunters requested an 11% tax on weapons and ammunition by introducing the Pittman-Robertson Act. The tax from this Act generates $371 million dollars a year (25 Reasons, 2013). In just state licenses and fees alone, hunters generate $769 million a year for conservation programs (25 Reasons, 2013). Altogether including donations hunters pay more than $1. 6 billion dollars for conservation (25 Reasons, 2013). The money goes to conservationist across the country (Hunting and Wildlife, 2012). The land area and the number of licenses in that area is what decide where the money gets  distributed (Hunting and Wildlife, 2012). The money supports conservation efforts by the department of natural resources such as conducting research, wildlife reintroductions, and improving wildlife habitat. Hunting conservation not only keeps the population of animals down, but it can also help bring the numbers of endangered animals up. Hunting regulations and conservation efforts have brought many species’ populations from few numbers to many. In 1907 only 41,000 elk remained in North America, now there are more than 1 million. In 1900 there were only 500,000 whitetail deer and  only 100,000 wild turkeys, now there are more than 32 million whitetail and 7 million wild turkeys (25 Reasons, 2013). Also many non-hunted animals benefit off the conservation efforts that hunters provide (25 Reasons, 2013). These animals were able to make a rebound in their numbers by the conservation efforts. These efforts include the conservationist protecting the land and making untouchable areas. President Theodor Roosevelt was an avid hunter and conservationist. He created 230 million acres of protected forest and wetlands for wildlife (25 Reasons, 2013). Hunting has a major impact on the economy. There are a total of 15. 5 million hunters over the age of six in the United States of America (Fueling, 2013). When a person goes hunting they have to have gear to hunt. Hunters also sometimes travel to go hunt, whether it is in a different state or just down the road. The purchase of the gear and travel has an impact on the American economy. In 2011 American hunters spent $38. 3 billion dollars in hunting equipment and travel expenses. That is more than the revenue of Comcast for that same year (Fueling, 2013). Travelers spent $10. 4 billion on trip related expenses in 2011 (Fueling, 2013). The total amount of money spent on gear in 2011 was $27. 9 billion (Fueling, 2013). Duck and geese hunters use decoys and calls when they hunt. They spent $302 million on the decoys and calls in 2011 (Fueling, 2013). A hunter cannot 1 / 2 hunt without a weapon whether it is archery or a firearm. In 2011 hunters spent a total of $6 billion on guns, ammunition, and archery equipment (Fueling, 2013). Hunters are improving the American economy in these hard economic times. In 2011 hunters in America have spent 30% more on hunting than five years ago (Fueling, 2013). Another aspect of the American economy is providing  people with jobs. Hunters supply the people of America with over 680,000 jobs (25 Reasons, 2013). Those 680,000 people are able to have an income and support their family because of hunters. Hunting is a tradition passed down from generation to generation. People have been hunting since the beginning of time. The ways of hunting have changed the way life is today. Back in the time of the Native Americans they didn’t have a grocery store that they could go and get food at. The men were hunters and warriors and the women would plant gardens and take care of the village. They  depended on the men to go and kill an animal that would feed their family and tribe. These tactics have been passed down from generation to generation and has evolved immensely. Not only has the ways of hunting evolved, but also the tools used to hunt have evolved. People today still depend on hunting as a primary source of meat for their families. Hunting puts food on the table for survival. A buck that is 180 pounds that is killed will yield 72 pounds of meat (How Much, 2005). In 2012, 31,140 bucks were harvested in Michigan (Frawley, 2012). If all of those bucks weighed 180  pounds then 2,242,080 pounds of venison to feed families would have been harvested. There were a total of 418,012 harvested in Michigan in 2012 (Frawley, 2012). 418,012 deer fed families and was food on their tables. Hunting can teach many responsibilities and life lessons. The first lesson hunting can teach is how to handle a powerful weapon. In order to use a weapon to hunt, a hunter has to take a hunters safety class to learn how to use the weapon and how dangerous it is. A weapon is such a simple machine but powerful enough to take a life. A person has to respect and learn how to handle the  weapon with care and responsibility. Learning how to use the weapon can provide a person with a way to defend them if they were in harm’s way. When a person is out hunting they get to respect and observe the beauty of nature. They can view how delicate it can be but also how much strength it can hold. Hunting teaches survival skills such as how to clean the animal, how to be self-sufficient by providing yourself with a meal and pulling the trigger on an animal. Overall hunting is positive in many ways. It has been tradition since the beginning of time. There are many ways that hunting is improving and evolving. There are many more changes that can happen to make it more successful. It has many contributions to an individual, a creature, and a country. References Frawley, B. (June, 2012). Michigan deer harvest survey report 2012 seasons. Michigan Department of Natural Resources, http://www. michigan. gov/documents/dnr/ MI_Deer_Harvest_Survey_Report_2012_426213_7. pdfFueling the American economy. (2013), America’s sporting heritage, http://www. sportsmenslink. org/uploads/page/Economic%20Impact%20Report%20E-version. pdfHow much will your deer yield, (July 10, 2005). Butcher amp; Deer, http://www. butcher- packer. com/index. php?main_page=document_general_infoamp;products_id=331Hunting and wildlife conservation go hand in hand. (December 27, 2012), Department of Natural Resources, http://www. michigan. gov/dnr/0,4570,7-153-10370_12141-294259,00. htmlRice, D. (2011, November 1). Deer-car collisions increase this time of year. USA TODAY. http://usatoday30. usatoday. com/news/nation/story/2011-10-31/deer-car-accidents- rise/51019604/125 reasons why hunting is conservation. (2013), Rocky mountain elk foundation, htt p://www. rmef. org/Conservation/HuntingIsConservation/25ReasonsWhyHuntingIsConservation. aspx POWERED BY TCPDF (WWW. TCPDF. ORG).