Before being involved in hunting, I didn’t realize that conservation was so heavily supported by hunters. The money made from hunters (hunting licenses, tags, guns, ammunition, ect.) is put back into conservation efforts for wildlife management. As someone who wants to preserve the outdoors, I was happy to learn that the money I would spend for hunting was going toward a cause I believe in. Even though I didn’t get an animal last year, I know the money I spent on tags was put toward a good cause.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation has a great article on conservation called “25 Reasons Why Hunting Is Conservation.” Below are some of my favorite reasons, click here to read the full article:
“Reason No. 2 why Hunting Is Conservation: In 1900, only 500,000 whitetails remained. Thanks to conservation work spearheaded by hunters, today there are more than 32 million.
Reason No. 6 why Hunting Is Conservation: Habitat, research and wildlife law enforcement work, all paid for by hunters, help countless non-hunted species.
Reason No. 7 why Hunting Is Conservation: Through state licenses and fees, hunters pay $796 million a year for conservation programs.*
Reason No. 10 why Hunting Is Conservation: An 11% tax on guns, ammo, bows and arrows generates $371 million a year for conservation.*
Reason No. 14 why Hunting Is Conservation: Hunting funds conservation AND the economy, generating $38 billion a year in retail spending.*
Reason No. 17 why Hunting Is Conservation: A wildlife management tool, hunting helps balance wildlife populations with what the land can support, limits crop damage and curtails disease outbreaks.
Reason No. 21 why Hunting Is Conservation: Hunters provide for conservation—and for their families. Hunting is a healthy way to connect with nature and eat the world’s most organic, lean, free-range meat.“
For more information on conservation, check out the following links:
Fish and Wildlife Service Information on Conservation
National Shooting Sports Foundation on Conservation