Liberte Austin’s Hunting Digest: Hunting Trophy, Barely Surviving, Gentlemen Prefer Berettas and Bison Go Bye-Bye

Finally, a movie that gives an objective viewpoint on the subject of hunting. Maybe. With Trophy’s release limited in New York on September 8, it may be several weeks before any “real” hunters can give their official opinion on the film . . . ‘Trophy’ Asks Hard Questions About How To Save Wild Animals

How can wildlife conservationists best work to save endangered wildlife like the rhinos, lions and elephants of Africa?

This question sits at the heart of Trophy, a movie directed by Shaul Schwartz and co-directed by Christina Clusiau that opens in New York on Friday and more widely at the end of the month (see the trailer here).

With stunning and often startling cinematography, in places ranging from South Africa and Zimbabwe to Las Vegas convention centers, Trophy presents diverse viewpoints about the relationship between wildlife conservation and the commodification of big-game animals. The “if it pays it stays­­­­­­­­” model takes center stage: Should the sale of horns sawed off from farmed rhinos be legal? Should the practice of rich clients paying tens of thousands of dollars to hunt animals like Cecilthe lion — who, in the wake of his trophy-killing by Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer in 2015, ignited global outrage against the canned-hunting industry — be seen as the answer to saving endangered species?

Watching the film, I felt sadness, anger and disgust as continual callousness to animals played out.

There are many difficult scenes.

We’ve all heard the saying: you can’t fix stupid. That couldn’t be more true about the idiot that took the time to dress this deer up with duct tape and some sunglasses to make a statement. It reminds me of silence of the lambs or in this case silence of the deer. Be careful out there people, there are some truly disturbed humans that walk amongst us . . . Graphic photo: Dead deer found taped to road sign

ATKINSON COUNTY, Ga. — Officials are investigating after a dead deer was found taped to a chair and road sign in Georgia.

A graphic photo shows a clothed deer placed onto a folding chair and duct taped to a road sign on the side of the highway, according to Valdosta Today. The deer was also wearing a vest and had a cigar hanging from its mouth.

The Coffee County, Georgia Police Scanner Facebook page posted about the photo on Tuesday.

The post read, in part, “In my opinion, God put animals on earth for a reason deer to feed man, snakes to keep other animals from being over populated and buzzards to clean up the remains of dead animals. When you take an animal and do as this person did you are no longer letting mother nature take it natural course.”

A local game warden said the deer had a single bullet wound, which could have been what killed it. If so, the kill would be illegal since deer hunting season isn’t until the fall.

Hunting season is upon us and in Texas all prior year hunting licenses expire on Aug. 31. Depending on the state you live in, you may have to complete a hunter education course prior to being issued your hunting license.

HUNTERcourse.com is the leading provider of hunter education across North America. Our online hunter safety courses help students to meet mandatory education requirements in their state or province. Our online hunter safety course is interactive, with animations, professional narration, exercises and even an exclusive online shooting range! You can also benefit from our free hunter safety study guide, as well as the only online treestand safety course that meets all TMA guidelines – also free!

I wrote about bear spray a few months back. The reaction I got: bear spray was God’s solution to prevent a bear mauling. If that were true, then why did this man get partially eaten? . . . Grizzly mauls hunter near near Ennis; hunting partner deploys bear spray, isn’t hurt

HELENA – A grizzly bear mauled a bow hunter in the Gravelly Mountains near Ennis, slashing a 16-inch cut in his head that required 90 stitches to close.
“I could hear bones crunching, just like you read about,” said Tom Sommer, as he recovered in a Montana hospital on Tuesday afternoon.
Sommer said he and a hunting partner were looking for an elk they had been calling Monday morning when his partner spotted a grizzly bear feeding on an elk carcass in the southern end of the Gravelly Range, just north of the Idaho border.

“The bear just flat-out charged us,” Sommer said. He said it closed the 30-foot distance in 3 or 4 seconds. His hunting partner deployed his bear spray, which slowed the bear’s charge. Sommer said he grabbed his canister so quickly that he couldn’t release the safety and he couldn’t afford to look down as the bear closed in. He ran around a tree twice and dropped his bear spray in the process.

It still feels too early for deer season. Still, I prefer my deer season cold. However, it’s in these early months that you get a shot at a bigger mature buck. Right now, deer are still feeling relaxed from the no hunting pressure summer and their pre-crop harvest diets . . . Deer hunting season kicks off in Central Texas

WACO, TX (KXXV) – Saturday marked the first day of the White Tail Deer Hunting season in Texas. John Hall of Waco will start his 20th hunting season over the weekend. Just ahead of the start, he waits in anticipation. Hall went hunting for the first time when he moved to Central Texas from London.

“The percussion from the rifle, that first time you [shoot] it’s a bit of a shock to the system,” Hall said.
Hall is a long ways from that first hunt. Joe Bob Whitt, of Waco, and Hall have been hunting buddies for over fifteen years.

The two have what can be described as a hunting hideaway in Valley Mills.

The two men have worked, renovating a home and space where they can spend hunting season. Before the season kicks off the two men prepare. Around October they start checking the movements of deer. Attached to a feeder that distributes corn is a camera that snaps a picture when an animal comes by.

While the feeder pictures offer a bit of help with technology the two still walk the area looking for tracks and droppings to determine where deer may come from. While this may seem like extensive preparation for the season, Whitt maintains, it’s all about getting away to “God’s Country, where you can have a gun in your window.”
Whitt and Hall say there hunting comes with a disclaimer. Both say they are animal lovers, and prefer the term harvesters to hunters.

When I visit Beretta’s new website I feel like I’m stepping into the pages of vintage Vogue and GQ magazines. The brand that’s been around for 500 years continues to hawk guns and clothes suitable for “gentleman’s hunting.” The Beretta site highlights the difference between European and American hunting culture. Here, the urban elite consider hunting a “redneck” pursuit. Over there, hunting is often [rightly] considered an elitist activity. With high end gear and clothes to match. That you can buy! How great is that?

GENTLEMEN HUNT
Our Gentlemen Hunt garments for FW17 are entirely devoted to those who enjoy driven hunts for pheasant and red partridge. They owe their creation to the experience developed at the London Beretta Gallery based in St. James Street; they stand out for the exclusivity of the materials and the traditional style.

Something to make your blood boil. It sure did mine! . . . The NRA’s idea of recreation: Assault rifles, armor-piercing bullets and silencers

Sportsmen are further protected by a “Destruction of Records” provision requiring the government to delete silencer sale and transfer information. For obvious reasons, law-abiding hunters would not want silencer purchases to be logged. Such a paper trail would be an obvious tip-off to game animals, particularly those, such as the white-tailed deer, with access to the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.

Title XVI of the bill, the “Lawful Purpose and Self-Defense Act,” denies the government authority to reclassify bullets as “armor piercing ammunition.” It’s okay if the ammunition pierces body armor, as long as the manufacturer claims the ammo is meant to be used for sport and not for killing people wearing body armor. This provision is particularly timely because a growing percentage of Western grizzlies have been seen in recent years wearing Kevlar vests when they attack schools in Wyoming.

But seriously folks, it took the NPS two years to figure out that hunting bison was the answer to the bison damage problem. I guess the anti-hunters’ couldn’t get an “adopt a bison” programme off the ground .  . . Good with a gun? National Park Service wants your help thinning Grand Canyon bison herd

About 600 of the animals now live in the region, and biologists say the bison numbers could hit 1,500 within 10 years if left uncontrolled.

The Grand Canyon is still working out details of the volunteer effort, but it’s taking cues from national parks in Colorado, the Dakotas and Wyoming that have used shooters to cut overabundant or diseased populations of elk. The Park Service gave final approval to the bison reduction plan this month.

Sandy Bahr of the Sierra Club says she’s hopeful Grand Canyon will focus mostly on non-lethal removal.