Fortunate Hunt Essay

The Cherokee nation tells a story to their children about the origins of hunting. In the story, Kanati or “Fortunate Hunter,” teaches his twin sons a lesson after they comment a careless act with the animals of the forest. The story ends with Kanati telling his children that they must always be careful when dealing with nature, and they must always think before they act while in the wilderness. To the Natives, hunting was extremely labor intensive and great skill was required to bring meat back to the village. Hunting was an element of survival. Today, hunting is not an element or a necessity to survive, but the principle remains the same. Using the most basic of weapons, whether it be a primitive bow and arrow or a flintlock muzzleloader, …show more content…
A main focus in the conservation movement included timber and wildlife management. As part of wildlife management and hunting regulations, the federal government established the Boone and Crockett Club. Over a century after establishment, Boone and Crockett constructed an official position on hunting ethics and harvesting wildlife for hunters to follow as well as a national record book of big game taken using appropriate hunting ethics outlined by Boone and Crockett. The club defined a Fair Chance Hunt as follows, “...the ethical, sportsmanlike, and lawful pursuit and taking of any free-ranging wild, native North American big game animal in a manner that does not give the hunter an improper advantage over such animals”(Boone and Crockett Position Statement: Fair Chase). In this statement, it mentions that game must be taken in a manner that does not give unfair advantage to the hunter. As previously mentioned, long range hunting equipment extends the effective range of the hunter beyond the range of the animal’s senses. Recognizing this and following their definition of a Fair Chance Hunt, Boone and Crockett Club concurs and addresses the use of long range hunting tactics in the following