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From: riddle@ut-sally.UUCP (Prentiss Riddle)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: Predators vs. hunting
Message-ID: <656@ut-sally.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 17-Dec-83 19:11:34 EST
Article-I.D.: ut-sally.656
Posted: Sat Dec 17 19:11:34 1983
Date-Received: Sun, 18-Dec-83 09:07:46 EST
References: <4553@uiucdcs.UUCP>
Organization: U. Texas CS Dept., Austin, Texas
Lines: 28

As to the assertion that predators weed out the old and the sick, while
hunters go for the best specimens:

In the case of a species of "loners", one might be able to argue that the
best specimens would be the animals most able to evade the hunter, but
I wouldn't think that this would apply so easily to herd animals.  Where
you see one member of a herd, there will be others around.  Given a choice,
a predator goes for a straggler, a weakling on the edge of the herd which
will be easy to grab and relatively poor at either escaping or defending
itself once attacked.  A hunter, on the other hand, will generally prefer
a trophy animal, ideally the biggest buck possible.  Furthermore, a
hunter doesn't share a predator's concern about the animal's ability to
flee or fight back, since he kills at a distance with a single shot.  If
human "predators" had to attack large, hoofed animals at close range and
armed only with their teeth, then they, too, might prefer the feebler
specimens!

Choosing to hunt bucks for their antlers, by the way, has one additional
disadvantage from the point of view of wildlife maintenance:  if one of
the justifications of hunting is to control the game population, then
the target of preference should be the female, not the male.  It only
takes one buck to fertilize a whole herd of does; only by eliminating a
doe are you making a decided impact on next year's crop of Bambis.

	Not anti-hunting, just skeptical --

	Prentiss Riddle
	{ihnp4,seismo,ctvax}!ut-sally!riddle