Wildlife Management: a Hunting Controversy

Wildlife Management: A Hunting Controversy

Wildlife Management: A Hunting Controversy

Wildlife Management: A Hunting Controversy
Is hunting a cruel and unusual method of wildlife management? With many organizations that are trying to influence society on how “hunting” is cruel to the animals being harvested by hunters, it is up to the sportsmen and women to educate the public on how this is false. Wildlife management is a controversial topic, but with proper education on the steps that are needed in accomplishing this task, the controversy will be viewed differently. Is hunting a barbaric means for wildlife management? Look at the alternatives; starvation and disease are crueler to wildlife than any hunting method.
Wildlife management is dependent from revenue collected from hunters. Accomplishing wildlife management starts with the biologists, men and women that work for state agencies and are assigned to different regions within that state. The source of the funding for these positions can be attributed directly from hunting excise taxes collected directly from the federal government. “Each year, nearly $200 million in hunters' federal excise taxes are distributed to State agencies to support wildlife management programs, the purchase of lands open to hunters, and hunter education and safety classes,” (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 2007). Now, that is a very large amount that is generated for maintaining a healthy and viable wildlife population for every state and ensuring that hunting is done in a safe manner.
In addition to the revenue generated by the federal excise tax, hunting also generates revenue for a vast variety of businesses. “12.5 million people 16 years old and older enjoyed hunting a variety of animals within the United States between 2001 and 2006. They hunted 220 million days and took 185 million trips. Hunting expenditures totaled $22.9 billion,” (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, 2008). In looking at total expenditures from hunting...