Fair Chase Spring 2017 by Boone and Crockett Club

SPRING 2017 | $9.95

DALLAS SAFARI CLUB

with

SPORTS AFIELD

JANUARY 4 -7, 2018

Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center

650 South Griffin Street Thur/Fri/Sat 9am-5:30pm, Sun 9am-3pm

Omni Dallas Hotel

555 South Lamar - Evening Banquets, Auctions, Ladies’ Luncheon & Life Member Breakfast

WEDNESDAY Welcome Party & Auction Gilley’s Dallas 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm

FRIDAY Ladies’ Luncheon & Auction 10:30 am - 3:00 pm

Outfitter of the Year Award

Evening Banquet & Auction 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Artist of the Year Award

Colin Caruthers Young Hunter Award

Weatherby Award Banquet & Auction - Omni Hotel Cocktails & Silent Auction 5:30 pm Dinner & Live Auction 7:00 pm

Educator of the Year Award SATURDAY Life Member Breakfast & Auction 8:00 am - 10:00 am

THURSDAY Evening Banquet & Auction 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Evening Banquet & Auction 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Conklin Award Dave Baxter Literary Award

(Cocktails from 5:30 pm - 6:00 pm each night)

Dixie Yeatts Award of Excellence

Outstanding Hunter Achievement Award Peter H. Capstick Hunting Heritage Award

F O R M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N & B A N Q U E T R E S E RVAT I O N S

800.9GO.HUNT | info@biggame.org | www.biggame.org | 972.980.9800

The Greatest Hunters’ Convention on the Planet 2

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THE OFFICI A L PUBLICATION OF THE BOONE A ND CROCK ETT CLUB

Volume 33

Number 1

Spring 2017

TABLE OF CONTENTS 6

FROM THE EDITOR

FROM THE PRESIDENT | Meet the New B&C President

CAPITOL COMMENTS | What It’s Like to Transition to Washington, DC

ACCURATE HUNTER | Stand Up and Shoot

RIFLES FROM THE OLD COUNTRY

18. Rifles from the Old Country

Doug Painter

B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr.

28. Predators and the Future of Conservation

Steven Williams

Craig Boddington

Wayne van Zwoll

PREDATORS AND THE FUTURE OF CONSERVATION Melissa Reynolds-Hogland 28

“GAME REFUGE” DENALI CELEBRATES 100 YEARS

ALONE AT THE TOP

SCIENCE BLASTS | Managing Whitetail Deer in the 21st Century:

Keith Balfourd

Justin E. Spring

Can We Adapt to the Challenge?

John F. Organ 56 EDUCATING THE NEXT GENERATION OF CONSERVATION LEADERS Boone and Crockett University Programs

40. Alone at the Top 36. “Game Refuge” Denali Celebrates 100 Year

58. Chronic Wasting Disease | Part Two 66. Hunting for Sustainability

CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE | PART TWO

INTO THE STORM | 1887

HUNTING FOR SUSTAINABILITY

BEYOND THE SCORE | Dark Windows and Bologna Sandwiches

TROPHY TALK | Trophy Entry Procedures

GENERATION NEXT | 30th Awards Youth Trophy List

RECENTLY ACCEPTED TROPHIES AND TROPHY PHOTO GALLERY 30 th Awards Program Entries | Sponsored by Realtree Xtra Green

Looking Hard-Hardly Looking: Detecting Chronic Wasting Disease Michael W. Miller and John R. Fischer

Excerpt from The Legendary Hunts of Theodore Roosevelt John Seerey-Lester

COVER Free-range wild whitetail buck in Oklahoma. © Tim Carr/ Images On The Wildside

@BooneAndCrockettClub #BooneAndCrockettClub

Jim Giese

Timothy J. Beck

Jack Reneau

94 THE ETHICS OF FAIR CHASE | Do More Hunting Stuff this Year Daniel A. Pedrotti, Jr.

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ABOUT THE BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB MISSION STATEMENT

It is the mission of the Boone and Crockett Club to promote the conservation and management of wildlife, especially big game, and its habitat, to preserve and encourage hunting and to maintain the highest ethical standards of fair chase and sportsmanship in North America. VISIONS FOR THE CLUB n

We envision a future in which the Boone and Crockett Club continues to be an internationally-recognized leader in conservation, especially in research, education, and the demonstration of sustainable conservation practices. A future in which the Club continues its legacy as a key leader in national conservation policy. A future in which the Club continues to be North America’s leader in big game records keeping as a conservation tool. A future in which the Club’s members continue to be respected and commended for their individual and collective contributions to conservation. A future in which the Club’s leadership and management continue as examples of excellence, and programs remain balanced with financial capability. A future in which the Club’s activities continue to be highly-focused and effective, and as a result, natural resources sharing, wildlife populations, habitats, and recreational hunting opportunities continue to improve through, and beyond the 21st century.

VISIONS FOR WILDLIFE AND CONSERVATION n

We envision a future in which wildlife and its habitat, in all their natural diversity, are managed and conserved throughout North America. A future in which hunting continues to be enjoyed under rules of fair chase, sportsmanship, and ethical respect for the land. A future in which all users of natural resources respect the rights of others in the spirit of sharing. A future in which the value and conservation of private land habitat is respected and supported. A future in which North Americans are committed to the principle that their use of resources must be sustainable both for themselves and future generations. A future in which hunting opportunities exist for all desiring to participate.

Club President – B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Secretary – Mary Webster Treasurer – Marshall J. Collins, Jr. Executive Vice President – Administration James F. Arnold Executive Vice President – Conservation Timothy C. Brady Vice President of Administration James L. Cummins Vice President of Big Game Records Eldon L. “Buck” Buckner Vice President of Conservation Tom L. Lewis Vice President of Communications CJ Buck Foundation President – R. Terrell McCombs Class of 2017 Anthony J. Caligiuri Class of 2018 Paul V. Phillips Class of 2019 A.C. Smid

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Editor-in-Chief – Doug Painter Managing Editor – Karlie Slayer Conservation and History Editor Steven Williams Research and Education Editors John F. Organ William F. Porter Hunting and Ethics Editor Mark Streissguth Assistant Editors Keith Balfourd Jim Bequette CJ Buck Kendall Hoxsey Marc Mondavi Jack Reneau Tony A. Schoonen Julie L. Tripp Editorial Contributors Keith Balfourd Timothy J. Beck Craig Boddington John R. Fischer Jim Giese B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Michael W. Miller John F. Organ Doug Painter Daniel A. Pedrotti, Jr. Jack Reneau Melissa Reynolds-Hogland John Seerey-Lester Justin E. Spring Steven Williams Wayne van Zwoll Photographic Contributors Tony Bynum Tim Carr Donald M. Jones Fair Chase is published quarterly by the Boone and Crockett Club and distributed to its Members and Associates. Material in this magazine may be freely quoted and/or reprinted in other publications and media, so long as proper credit is given to Fair Chase. The only exception applies to articles that are reprinted in Fair Chase from other magazines, in which case, the Club does not hold the reprint rights. The opinions expressed by the contributors of articles are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Boone and Crockett Club. Fair Chase (ISSN 1077-3274) is published for $35 per year by the Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801. Periodical postage is paid in Missoula, Montana, and additional mailing offices.

BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOUNDED IN 1887 BY THEODORE ROOSEVELT CLUB

FAIR CHASE PRODUCTION STAFF

FOUNDATION

Foundation President – R. Terrell McCombs Secretary – John P. Schreiner Treasurer – C. Martin Wood III Vice President – John P. Evans Vice President – Paul M. Zelisko Class of 2017 Remo R. Pizzagalli Edward B. Rasmuson James J. Shinners John A. Tomke Leonard J. Vallender Class of 2018 Gary W. Dietrich B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Ned S. Holmes Tom L. Lewis Paul M. Zelisko Class of 2019 John P. Evans Steve J. Hageman R. Terrell McCombs John P. Schreiner C. Martin Wood III

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Fair Chase, Boone and Crockett Club, 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801 Phone: (406) 542-1888 Fax: (406) 542-0784

NATIONAL ADVERTISING Tom Perrier TPerrier@boone-crockett.org Phone: (605)348-4652

B&C STAFF

Chief of Staff – Tony A. Schoonen Director of Big Game Records – Justin Spring Director of Publications – Julie L. Tripp Director of Marketing – Keith Balfourd Director of Sales – Tom Perrier Director Emeritus – Jack Reneau Office Manager – Sandy Poston Controller – Abra Loran Assistant Controller – Debbie Kochel Records Dept. Data Specialist – Kyle M. Lehr Development Program Manager – Jodi Bishop Digital Strategies Manager – Mark Mesenko Creative Services Manager – Karlie Slayer TRM Ranch Manager – Mike Briggs Conservation Education Programs Manager – Luke Coccoli Shipping and Administrative Support Specialist – Amy Hutchison Customer Service/Receptionist – TJ Gould

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FROM THE EDITOR In a time when there are a slew of “news” sources to match just about every opinion, it is, perhaps, not surprising that we have become a more polarized society. Geez, there’s even a category these days for “fake” news! Not only are many of us not singing from the same hymnal; I’m not sure we’re all even in the same church anymore. Along with Joe DiMaggio, where have you gone, Walter Cronkite? I recently attended a local sportsmen’s fundraising banquet, and walking through the parking lot on my way in, I noticed what had to be a darn near brand-new Range Rover in one of the parking spots. Its jet black paint seemed to glimmer even in the evening light. What really caught my eye, however, was the pickup truck parked next to this English beauty. This truck was no boulevard queen, the kind that had rarely seen a dirt track. To the contrary, this old-timer looked as if it had spent most of its years off-, not on-road. If a truck can be

“rode hard and put up wet”, this was it. The banquet hall was already crowded when I arrived. The organizers had told me the dinner was a sellout, always a positive sign for our cause. Most of the individuals there were men, but I noticed more women than in years past. Age-wise, I’d say most folks were 50 and up. There was a smattering of 20- and 30-year-olds, but not as many as I would like to see. Some of the guests wore tweeds and ties or scarves with sporting motifs. Others wore jeans or khakis and a favorite hunting shirt. You would think it would be easy to guess who might own the Range Rover and who might own the old truck, but with this crowd, the obvious guess might be dead wrong. One of the unique aspects of hunting in our country is that American hunters come from all walks of life and from every corner of our great land. Some may be rich, but many are working Joes and Janes trying to make do the best they can. Some live in

fancy high-rise apartments, others in farmhouses passed from one generation to the next. Some are millionaires but drive ratty, old trucks. As diverse and as different we may be, I believe what brings us together—our passion for the hunt and a love for our outdoor heritage—is far greater than what might set us apart. In an increasingly divided nation, there continues to be a strong bond and a very real connection among the millions of men and women in our country who call themselves hunters. Sure, there are those in the hunting community who have disagreements, even some that sound a sour note or two. Nonetheless, I don’t think I’ve ever met a sportsman or sportswoman who doesn’t think values such as good judgment, personal responsibility, and perseverance are not important. I don’t think I’ve ever met a sportsman or sportswoman who doesn’t believe we have a responsibility to be good stewards of our natural resources and to ensure that our wildlife

Doug Painter EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

policies are based on the principles of scientific wildlife management. And I don’t believe I’ve ever met a sportsman or sportswoman who doesn’t believe in fair chase and who also understands the importance of introducing newcomers to our tradition. If you’re not a current subscriber to Fair Chase, I hope you’ll use the enclosed card to sign up for our magazine. We’d love to have you on board and to affirm to you all the good things that help bring all of us together. There is value in singing from the same hymnal. So, I hope you’ll join the choir. Time and again, it’s been proven that our collective voice is our common strength. Hope to see you down the trail. n

As diverse and as different we may be, I believe what brings us together—our passion for the hunt and a love for our outdoor heritage—is far greater than what might set us apart. In an increasingly divided nation, there continues to be a strong bond and a very real connection among the millions of men and women in our country who call themselves hunters.

Shane Mahoney addressed the crowd at B&C’s 29th Big Game Awards Program last summer in Springfield, Missouri. 6

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MEET THE NEW B&C PRESIDENT Growing up in Arlington, Texas, I was fortunate to have a childhood that opened my mind and heart to the outdoors. My father was not a hunter, but he was an avid angler who introduced me to fishing from an early age. I can still taste the delicate, delicious trout expertly prepared by my mother on our family fishing trips to the Red River, New Mexico. When I was 13, I bought my first gun—a Stevens boltaction .410 gauge shotgun— at the local hardware store. It was a life-changing moment that opened the world of hunting and fair chase. Although a busy high school football schedule made it difficult to find hunting time, I went afield whenever I could, deepening the roots of my outdoor heritage. My first exposure to the Boone and Crockett Club came through the Records

program, after which I became an Associate member and reader of Fair Chase. The concept of fair chase resonated with me immediately because as a hunter-conservationist, I strongly believe in ethical, sportsmanlike, lawful hunting. Through service in the Club in various capacities and hunts throughout North America for sheep, whitetail deer, mule deer, elk, pronghorn, moose, and bear, my commitment to fair chase remains strong. As my presidency begins, I am grateful for the experiences that prepared me to lead the Club. As a student athlete at Rice University, I learned how to overcome adversity and balance academics and athletics, developing leadership skills as quarterback of the football team that prepared me for the business world. I was fortunate to direct two Fortune 500 companies and serve on the Rice University Board of

B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr., harvested this desert sheep, scoring 175-6/8 points, in 2008 while hunting in Nye County, Nevada.

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FROM THE PRESIDENT

Trustees, learning valuable lessons in organizational leadership and financial management that will be useful during my presidency, as they were during my tenure in the Club Foundation’s management group and various committees (development, membership, nominating, budget and finance, and associates). One of the greatest lessons I have learned in my years with the Club is the importance of mentorship. I have benefited from wonderful mentors such as F.R. Daily, Gary Dietrich, and others who have invested remarkable time and energy to impart valuable wisdom and advice. As entire generations of Club members and wildlife professionals approach retirement, now is the time to train and mentor future members of our Club and the profession it supports. Likewise, it is critical to mentor the next generation of hunters. Every year my son-in-law and I take my three grandchildren, all of whom can age deer on the hoof, on a hunting trip to a Texas ranch. By introducing my grandchildren to hunting, firearm safety, and wildlife management, I form important bonds with them that make mentorship an incredibly rewarding experience. As a passionate hunter-conservationist, it is a great honor for me to be a Club member, much less president. I have never been involved in an organization in which members spend more time and treasure than in the Club. Our members are oneof-a-kind. Alongside an excellent staff and devoted

B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. PRESIDENT

membership, I will address diverse issues during my presidency. A time of transition in Washington could represent an unprecedented opportunity to advance conservation in our nation and abroad. In the coming months, the Club will establish a new endowed professorship at the University of Georgia and raise funds to create a full-fledged professorship at Texas A&M University. We also welcome new leaders in a host of positions throughout the Club and look forward to continually strong leadership in the management group. I will oversee development of new position statements and work to address various threats to wildlife, including invasive species, water scarcity, and disease. In addition, I look forward to the “Hunt Right, Hunt Hard” program, an outreach initiative intended to strengthen the image of North American hunters. As we work to maintain our fundamental values and adapt to a future marked by political and financial uncertainty, this program will reaffirm our Club identity and deliver the important message that hunting is indeed conservation. As president, I look forward to working with you and giving back to the Club that has given me so much. n

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WHAT IT’S LIKE TO TRANSITION TO WASHINGTON, DC When a new presidential administration comes to Washington, D.C., the place becomes a flurry of activity, rumor, and anticipation. This is especially true when control of the White House shifts from one political party to the other. So what is it like to enter this politically charged atmosphere as an outsider? The transition of power is well defined, cooperative, and truly an incredible experience. It is, however, anything but easy. Although much attention is paid to the occupant of the White House, the day-to-day leadership of our government is placed in the hands of more than 4,000 political appointees, with almost 1,200 or more that face Senate confirmation. Unlike cabinet secretaries, most of these appointees are and will remain unknown to the American public. However, they have significant power to change the culture and operation of the federal government. It is an exciting and intoxicating time for those that venture to D.C. and assume positions in department and agency leadership. Having gone through that experience, I wanted to take this opportunity to reflect on my personal thoughts about how the transition occurs. Over the past few weeks I have talked to a number of individuals who, either on their own or at the urgings of others, have contemplated making a move from their current job to one in D.C. I remember receiving a call from the White House Office of Presidential Personnel in 2001 inviting me to come to D.C. to interview. I was 10 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

honored and excited to be considered. My advice to any who answer that call is to be honest in your interview answers and job expectations. I approached the interview with a clear set of goals that I had in mind and a number of controversial issues for which I had strong opinions. Each of us has beliefs and values that drive us professionally and personally. Some of these values are sacrosanct and not open to challenge. Leading a federal agency is hard work and if it does not conform to personal principles, it will not only be hard but unsatisfying. The reality is that you are expected to serve the secretary of Interior and the president first, not necessarily the nation. During the transition period, potential nominees undergo extensive background checks by the FBI, finger printing, and signing a document that essentially eliminates any personal privacy that might be assured by the Constitution. It was not an exercise to be taken lightly. I spent days traipsing through Senate office buildings to meet with senators and their staff in order to introduce myself and opine on questions posed by those individuals. Senators sent questions to be answered on the record for future recall during confirmation hearings and congressional testimony. Fortunately, my confirmation hearing went well, but it was months before the Senate approved my nomination, leaving me in limbo between my job in Kansas and my new job in D.C. Finding an affordable home in the D.C.- area was no easy task. We settled for a very small rental property in a

highly developed neighborhood just 20 minutes from downtown D.C., but over a thousand miles from my rural Kansas home. The good thing about our house was the entire house could be vacuumed without unplugging the cord—let’s just say, it was small. Two people in the kitchen were manageable, three, impossible. Meanwhile at work, the transition process involved endless briefings from staff about dozens of programs, budgets, personnel, regulations, and legal issues. Piled on top of one another, the briefing books were no less than a foot high. Career staff were excellent at sharing their knowledge and provided any and all information necessary to be successful. The pace of decision-making and issue resolution was unlike anything I had experienced previously. The distinction between serving as a state agency director and a federal agency director was sharp and complicated. As a state director, I knew the ins and outs of legislators, geography, issues, and constituents. My regulatory decisions had real-world impacts on individuals that I knew quite well and communities where I worked and recreated. As the director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, I could never make those types of personal connections on a national scale. I never forgot those hunters, anglers, landowners, farmers, and ranchers that were instrumental for conservation; yet, regulatory decisions at the federal level have wide-ranging impact, many driven by court rulings that seemed to have no regard for common

CAPITOL COMMENTS

Steven Williams, Ph.D. B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER PRESIDENT Wildlife Management Institute

sense or practical impact. My experience serving as the director of the Fish and Wildlife Service was absolutely incredible. Traveling and meeting dedicated staff at installations that stretched from the Florida Keys to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Kaktovik, Alaska, was a privilege like no other. However, those experiences were sandwiched between days of endless meetings (8-10 per day) with constituents and lobbyists, trips to Capitol Hill, receptions, speeches, legal discussions, and bureaucracy like I had never experienced, all of which provided a daily grind that, at times, was suffocating. Working in the federal government in our nation’s capital was thrilling and satisfying. It also provided a roller coaster of emotions. Some people are born to live in that fast-paced, big-city, and bright-lights environment. Although I thoroughly enjoyed my time there, I realized I am not cut out for that life. Others thrive there, and they have my utmost respect. I wish all those who serve our nation in Washington, D.C., professional success and personal fulfillment. Today I sit in my office in rural Pennsylvania looking at forests and fields; for me; I found a better place to be. n

T O

C H A S E

A L L

O F

Y O U R

D R E A M S.

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ÂŠ DONALD M. JONES

Both science and practical experience confirm that a hands-off approach to predators will not be in the best interest of these species and may, in fact, be detrimental to multiple species and ecosystems.

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Predator numbers will either be scientifically managed in concert with their ecosystems, in balance with their prey, and to a level that people who live with them will tolerate, or we will lose them. - SHANE MAHONEY

Knowledge is Power. How about we give all this data to our youth and let them use critical thinking skills to determine if grizzly bears in Yellowstone are ready for delisting, based on the data? Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s exactly what Bear Trust has done as part of our grizzly bear delisting lesson. pg .28. PREDATORS AND THE FUTURE OF CONSERVATION

By Dr. Melissa Reynolds-Hogland

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CRAIG BODDINGTON PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Photos Courtesy of Author

ACCURATE HUNTER STAND UP AND SHOOT

Sometimes thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just no option but to stand and shoot. Range is much more limited from an unsupported standing position, but with a bit of practice most shooters should be able to handle such a shot.

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Working out with a Browning reproduction of a ’73 Winchester and mild .38 Special loads. It isn’t necessary to take a lot of recoil while practicing standup shooting…but at some point you must become absolutely familiar with the trigger of your hunting rifle.

The wounded buck had led us into tall CRP grass. We’d jumped him a couple of times, but that stuff is thick and tall, no possible shot. The last time was near the edge, and the buck ran across a mowed strip and paused near the edge of the trees. Coolly and calmly, Hornady’s Neal Emery raised his rifle and flattened him. I should have paced the shot, probably 150 yards. Standing, unsupported, it was an awesome shot. I don’t know how many times out of ten he could pull it off. I didn’t ask, because I have no idea how many times I could! For sure that was no shot to take on an unwounded animal, but we were down to the court of last resort—and that’s where there is sometimes no option but to stand up and shoot. The unsupported standing position, formerly called “offhand,” is by far the least steady and least accurate of all shooting positions. As such, it is to be avoided—like the plague—if any steadier option exists. My old friend and mentor, the late John Wootters, once commented that he wished hunting rifles had a “cutoff switch” that would render them inoperable unless steadily rested. For sure there would be a lot fewer wounded animals if such a system existed, but this is one of (few) of Wootters’ ideas that I don’t agree with. Standing unsupported is definitely the poorest choice for shooting at game, but it has its places. When following a wounded animal all bets are off. The goal is to prevent the animal’s escape and potential loss, and if the animal jumps the shot will probably be fast, and must often be taken from a standing position. There is also the chance encounter at close range, which can occur in almost any area with any game animal, despite one’s best plans and expectations.

Many close encounters are a bit like this, fast and tense. Finding a steady rest or assuming a steadier position requires movement and time. As we’ve seen in this column, both kneeling and the bent-knee sitting positions are very fast to drop into. However, both require motion, which may spook an animal encountered at close range; and in either case low vegetation may block a shot. So I believe standing and shooting remains a valid option in certain situations. Further, since it is by far the most difficult and least accurate position, it is probably one that should be practiced at least as much as any other shooting position. You always hope that standing unsupported is an option you don’t have to use, but you should be prepared for those (hopefully rare) situations where there is no other option. Unlike prone, sitting, or kneeling, the formal target-standing position is quite different from the standing position most likely to be used in the field. In the formal position, feet are about shoulder-width apart with the supporting-side toes pointed toward the target, the shooting-side foot pointed away at a 90-degree angle. The shooting-side hand and arm pull the rifle into the shoulder, the shooting elbow about horizontal for more leverage. The supporting side hip is thrust outward toward the target, with the supporting elbow resting on the hip. In some competition disciplines, palm rests are used, and in military competition, the magazine of an M14- or M16-series rifle serves nicely as a palm rest. FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 15

There have been a couple of times when vegetation precluded any other sound option and I’ve actually used the formal standing position in the field—but such situations are rare. More likely is a fast-breaking situation where you must simply mount the rifle and take the shot. In practice, this is actually a lot more like shotgunning than precision rifle shooting, and although that single bullet must still be placed as precisely as possible, this is often done at shotgun ranges. As with shotgunning, body position is important; you must take an extra half-second to plant your feet. About shoulder-width apart remains ideal, and the supporting-side toes continue to point toward the target. But in this hasty (or lazy) standing position, the shooting-side foot is out at about 45-degree angle to the rifle-target line (right for right-handers, left for lefties). For the best support, it’s important to get the supporting arm under the rifle, as near vertical as possible.

The isometric support of a hasty sling—which, with practice, also takes about a half-second to assume—can be really helpful. In really close encounters where speed is more of the essence, this step will probably be omitted, not only to save time but to reduce game-spooking motion. Practice with and without the hasty sling; you’ll see a difference in accuracy. However, understand that standing is never perfectly steady; a wobble is normal. Competitive shooters try to reduce it to a small, consistent “figure 8” wobble—and then complete the trigger squeeze at the same point each time, essentially anticipating when the sights will wobble across the target. That, for instance, was the recommended procedure for 200-meter slow-fire standing on the old Marine Corps qualification course, shooting at a 6-inch bullseye. That level of precision is generally not required for field shooting; surely at 200 meters (or anywhere near that) there must

be a better option than unsupported standing! If there isn’t, then I’d argue there probably isn’t a shot. Realistically, however, with practice, most shooters can achieve pie-plate or paper-plate accuracy offhand to at least 60 yards. This will cover most situations where there is no better solution, and some people can achieve consistency to 100 yards and beyond. Part of all shooting practice is not just improving your skill, but also learning what shots you can do reliably and what shots should not be attempted because the risk is too great. This applies in spades to standing up and shooting. Like most positions, shooting standing can be greatly improved by shooting a .22 or air rifle—a lot. However, since the standing position incorporates some wobble, it is important to become absolutely familiar with the trigger pull of your rifle, so that you know instinctively exactly when it’s going to break. Therefore, “dry-firing” in your basement or den

AH (check chamber and magazine carefully, and keep distance from live ammunition) with your hunting rifle is extremely beneficial. Yes, there’s a wobble. Practice will reduce it, but it’s not going to go away. The trick is to make that wobble consistent, and complete the trigger press just as the sights are coming onto the target. The good news is that big-game animals have large vital zones, at least 8 inches by 8 inches on the smallest deer. So don’t think precision; instead think “pie plate.” With practice, your pie-plate accuracy will improve, and if a quick opportunity arises you’ll know if it’s a shot you should take or not. Always be ready for that fast opportunity, but if there’s any steadier option, always take it! n

LEFT: My friend Darin Narlock takes an offhand-shot with a Browning AB3. Darin’s a Minnesota whitetail hunter, no stranger to fast shots. He looks comfortable and is. MIDDLE: Standing position, right-handed, with a Dakota M76. As a lefty, I’m not nearly as good right-handed as the more familiar left side. Here, foot position is very good, but ideally, the shooting elbow should be more horizontal. RIGHT: Standing position, left-handed, with a left-hand CZ M550. This is pretty good form, with supporting elbow under the rifle and shooting elbow nearly vertical.

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WAYNE C. VAN ZWOLL

Rifles from the B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Photos Courtesy of Author

U.S. riflemen owe much to off-shore inventors. Especially those from the Habsburg realm.

Early on, Rigby became Mauserâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s British agent. This modern Rigby has a Mauser action from Isny.

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Old Country Keening wind sucked away the strike; swirling snow erased the image after recoil. Mechanically I cycled the bolt, again pressing cheek to comb. The elk reappeared, a miniature gray shadow nearly 300 yards distant. Another muted shot. The bull was no longer obscured; he was gone. I scrambled to my feet and wiped the snow-plastered rifle, still snugged to my arm.

Pushing into the blow to find tracks before they filled, I cradled my .30-06, ready. But the elk lay dead, my Core-Lokts having minced its lungs. A rifle is as a rifle does—or as you imagine it doing. Extract history and the attendant romance of heroes gone and times irretrievable, and choosing a rifle becomes merely tool selection. Even the ordinary bolt action I used that day has a fascinating story—not all of it stateside. The most significant bolt-action rifles evolved in Europe during the period that gave America’s frontier its saddle guns. Like John Moses Browning, who designed Winchester’s 1886, 1892 and 1894, Peter Paul Mauser saw his star rise during the 1880s. His brother Wilhelm, who’d worked with him, died young in 1882, a few short years after the Mausers earned a contract from the Wuerttemberg War Ministry for 100,000 Model 1871 single-shot 11mm black-powder rifles to arm Prussian infantry. Fabrique Nationale d’Armes de Guerre (FN) was then established in Liege to build Mauser rifles for Belgium’s government. Mauser’s 1889 rifle, for smokeless loads, followed. The 1895 action became, with improvements, the 1898. Adopted by the German army April 5 of that year, Mauser’s ‘98 military rifles would become the most widely used in history. You’ll find no action that feeds more reliably than an original 1898, largely because Paul Mauser

This elk fell to two Core-Lokts from Wayne’s .30-06 at 280 yards. American-built rifle or European?

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fashioned each box for a specific cartridge. A host of measurements contribute to that smooth, dead-sure feed. The taper of the box relative to case shape and shoulder location, follower height and slope—every variable matters. The follower spring must squirm to center the stack as cartridges strip from either side. After World War II, the Mauser firm was renamed “Werke” (works), replacing “Waffenfabrik” (arms factory). Courting sportsmen, Mauser engaged U.S. agent A.F. Stoeger, Inc., of New York, to sell in the U.S. By the late 1930s, the line comprised 20 rifle configurations in four action lengths. Surplus infantry rifles sold cheap, but commercial Mausers came

dear. In 1939 a Winchester M70 cost $61.25, a Mauser sporter $110 to $250. Custom Mausers were coveted by discriminating riflemen. One of them, evidently, was Lee Sherman Chadwick. Two weeks travel by rail and road in the summer of 1936 put this Cleveland industrialist in central British Columbia, where he headed for sheep country with outfitter Roy Hargreaves, guides Curley Cochrane and Frank Golata, and 13 pack horses. Chadwick’s heavy Mauser in .404 Jeffery was an unlikely sheep rifle. But that mattered not at all during the first days, as they saw little game. Then three rams appeared, far away. The subsequent approach, on the 28th of August, probably went Arguably, every modern turn-bolt rifle has Mauser’s awry, as Chaddoor-latch lockup. This buck fell to a Howa. wick fired from great distance. A low h it wounded the biggest ram. As the story goes, Hargreaves

chased and finished the animal—which has since been widely acknowledged as the finest trophy ever taken in North America—known as the Chadwick Ram. On the continent, Mauser rifles waxed the competition. In 1900 John Rigby & Co. of London became Mauser’s agent. Rigby surely saw profit in Mauser’s 1898 action, with its cock-on-opening bolt, short lock time, third lug and twin gas vents. The 1911 debut of Rigby’s .416 cartridge in Mauser rifles gave hunters a repeater with Nitro Express muscle. Rigby was loath to sell actions to other shops. But that monopoly ended in 1912, and British gunmakers descended on them. W.J. Jeffery used the 98 in its .333s and .404s. Westley Richards barreled Mausers to its .318 and .425. Holland & Holland found the actions readily fed its belted .300 and .375. Magnum Mausers swallowed rounds as big as the .505 Gibbs. Less powerful chamberings caught the eye of

Paul Mauser’s 1898 action was instantly adopted by many armies switching to smokeless powder.

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celebrated hunters like W.D.M. “Karamojo” Bell, who reportedly owned six Rigby Mausers in .275 (7x57) and one in .22 Savage Hi-Power. In India, tiger hunter Jim Corbett favored a .275. It was quicker in hand than a heavy double in the jungle, and, when he trailed the Chowgarh tigress, it surely saved his life. After stooping to pick up two rare bird eggs, Corbett entered a sandy wash, turned and “looked straight into the tigress’s face” eight feet away. He wrote that the eggs in his left hand may have prevented sudden reaction—and a certain charge. Slowly Corbett eased the Mauser across his chest with his right hand. “My arm was now at full stretch and the weight … was beginning to tell.” Fighting the urge to hurry, he completed the arc, firing when the muzzle came to bear. The 7mm bullet shattered the man-eater’s spine and heart. By firm count this tigress had killed 64 people. The commercial Mark X Mauser evolved from the 98

B&C World’s Records B&C’s scoring system depends upon carefully taken measurements of the horns, antlers, etc., to arrive at a numerical final score that provides instant ranking for all trophies of a category. Unlike all other systems, B&C’s system places heavy emphasis on symmetry, penalizing those portions of the measured material that are non-symmetrical. This results in even, well-matched trophies scoring better and placing higher in the rankings than equally developed but mismatched trophies, a result that most people readily accept. Non-typical categories were established for those antlered trophies with unusual amounts of abnormal point material to give them recognition as they would be unduly penalized in the typical categories. The Boone and Crockett Club’s Records Committee, which is the governing body of the Club’s records-keeping activities, created the Special Judges Panel with the express purpose of verifying and announcing potential new World’s Records as they are submitted during any triennial Awards Program. The Boone and Crockett Club Records Program recognizes 38 different categories of North American big game. In order for a trophy to be declared a World’s Record it must be brought before an Awards Judges’ Panel at the end of an Awards Entry Period or a Special Judges Panel. Only these Judges’ Panel can certify a World’s Record and finalize its score.

The Famous Chadwick Ram Namibia’s German roots favor Mauser rifles. Iron sights on this 9.3x62 gave Wayne a fine gemsbok.

The longtime World’s Record Stone’s sheep considered by many to be the best trophy ever taken in North America—is a star attraction of the National Collection of Heads and Horns (NCHH). The ram was donated to the collection right after the hunt. The World’s Record Stone’s sheep is considered by many big game enthusiasts to be North America’s greatest trophy. L.S. Chadwick took this unbelievable specimen while on expedition along the Muskwa River drainage in British Columbia on August 28, 1936.

Learn more about the history of the NCHH in the four part series printed in Fair Chase in the Summer 2015 through Spring 2016 issues.

At a final score of 196-6/8, in 75 years of hunting and records keeping no other Stone’s sheep ram has come close. The #2 all-time B&C ram was taken in 1962 and scores 190, which is also the only other ram on record to score over 190. Why is it that one animal, that now lives only in pictures and on a mounted form, is so celebrated? Perhaps it is that the days of the month-long expedition hunts on horseback, deep into the “never hunted” are long gone. It could be that this particular trophy stands as a testament to these once untouched and unspoiled wildernesses? Maybe it’s because this one trophy represents our long fascination with the biggest and the best.

You’ll find no action that feeds more reliably than an original 1898, largely because Paul Mauser fashioned each box for a specific cartridge.

Chadwick’s heavy Mauser in .404 Jeffery was on display in the National Collection of Heads and Horns, in Cody, Wyoming.

Right horn: 50-1/8 Left horn: 51-5/8. No other mountain sheep on record of any species has recorded both horns over 50-inches.

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action. It appeared in Whitworth big-bores and other affordable rifles. Exquisite 98s machined from scratch by the likes of Granite Mountain Arms followed. Meanwhile Rigby stayed true to Mauser as its action of choice—an unlikely union that survived world war. It continued with Rigby’s revival and the move of Mauser manufacturing to Isny, Germany. A more contemporary Mauser arrived four years ago

after a series of disappointing sequels to the 98. Slim and conservatively profiled, the M12 evolved with hunters in mind. It has a straight-comb stock (walnut or synthetic) and a smooth, six-lug action. The damascened bolt runs full-diameter to its recessed, dual-ejector head, machined away for three pairs of lugs that lock to the barrel. Bolt lift: 60 degrees. The bolt handle is vintage Mauser: simple, elegant, and straight. Mauser

adopted the M70-style three-position safety. The trigger adjusts to a crisp 2 pounds. A brushed steel floorplate caps a flush polymer magazine, which can be loaded in the rifle. The M12 comes in a dozen chamberings, to .338 Winchester. An M12 in .270 accompanied me into Austria’s alps, where fog and snow hid the chamois until a gap in the sky appeared one morning. We scrambled through the murk

There’s no faster bolt rifle than Blaser’s R93 (here) and R8. An expanding collet locks bolt to barrel.

Sauer shares Mauser’s factory site. This handsome new Sauer 404 rifle has interchangeable barrels.

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to take advantage of this window. Prone from 200 yards, I steadied the Leupold’s crosswire. The chamois collapsed at the report, instantly dead. Besides its slick action and fine accuracy, this Mauser had exceptional walnut, and I sorely wished to give it a new home. “Nein,” grinned the man from Mauser. Or was that “Mine”? At Isny, Mauser shares its footprint with Sauer and Blaser. The factories are separate, but a short walk apart. Michael Luke and Thomas Ortmaier control the L&O Group that owns these brands, plus SIG Sauer in northern Germany. Bernhard Knobel, CEO of Isny operations, runs Blaser. Thorsten Mann heads Mauser, Matthias Klotz the Sauer works. Blaser’s straight-pull R93 and its successor, the R8, rank among Europe’s most innovative rifles. Introduced in 1993 and 2008, they feature a radial-head bolt with an expanding collet that locks into the barrel. The bolt telescopes, keeping action length two inches shorter than that of ordinary turn-bolt rifles— none of which match a Blaser’s speed. A flick of your hand cycles the action. But you sacrifice nothing in strength or accuracy. The R8 has endured pressures of 120,000 psi. It has given me half-minute groups. A thumb-switch cocks the R8. “You can safely carry it and the R93 with a loaded chamber,” says Bernard Knobel. Plasma nitriding makes for a hard surface on the interchangeable barrels. Scope rings engage barrel notches so precisely, you can remove the scope and replace it without losing zero. The R8s adjustable trigger is of target quality, tucked in a compact, detachable magazine group easily top-loaded in the rifle. R83s and R8s have downed game for me in Europe and Africa. No hiccups.

BUILT FROM THE BULLET UP. A rifle, born of copper, lead and brass. Backed by a legendary name. And over sixty years of hunting experience. But we don’t make them to tell our story. We do it so you can write your own.

Nosler Rifles.

Built by hand. To see what they’ll do in yours.

Available in standard and Nosler Calibers.

800.285.3701

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Blaser’s superb R8 (here a .338 Lapua) has a telescoping, straight-pull bolt that shrinks overall length.

Available in various grades, the CZ 550 Magnum swallows the biggest dangerous-game cartridges.

Sauer’s 101 is of more traditional bent. My pick of eight versions: the walnut-stocked Forest, an agile carbine with iron sights at scope height on a 20-inch barrel. Like its laminate twin, the Scandic, it’s quick to cheek, with a nose for the target. My current 101, in 9.3x62, punches sub-minute groups. An upgrade, the new Sauer 404, has a six-lug bolt that locks into the barrel, and a cocking switch. The trigger adjusts .3 inch for reach and down to 1.2 pounds in weight. Sauer Universal Mounts hold zero when removed. Interchangeable barrels come in 13 chamberings, to .375. The bolt head is easy to change too. Last fall I snared one of five sub-models of the 404 for a red stag hunt, then zeroed its Leica scope on the steeps of western Scotland. Despite stormy conditions, I rang steel plates to 1,000 yards. The synthetic stock shrugged off afternoon sleet, while the alloy receiver kept the rifle lively in hand as we trod sodden heather. When my stalker spied an aged stag in a hollow far away, we splashed across an icy stream and climbed fast to beat dusk. An

become a subsidiary. Neville Chamberlain’s capitulation in Munich gave the Nazis Sudetenland. At war’s end, Germany relinquished its conquests. Czechoslovakia was, briefly, self-governing. But in 1948 Communists took control. Seven years later the Uhersky Brod operation split from Strakonice. Firearms manufacture in Brno was throttled in 1964; but the Brno name lived on in ZKK, ZKM and 527 rifles—all produced at Uhersky Brod. During the ‘60s this factory grew substantially. It’s still big. Visiting again in 2014, I found Milan Kubelen keen to show me changes. CZ was clearly still his passion. Nearly a mile long, the complex has many buildings pre-dating the war. Their peaked roofs “look residential through a bombsight.” Like most firearms factories in Europe and the U.S., CZ still uses tooling from that era. But banks of modern CNC machines, and an investment casting operation, show the company also embraces the new. In 1991, two years after revolution led by Vaclav Havel jettisoned Communist rule, Czech industries were privatized. In

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angry North Atlantic hurled horizontal rain as I bellied over the last rise. At 90 steps the great stag folded to a Hornady ELD-X bullet. “Hitler’s plans for eastern Europe were clear long before they spanned the Channel,” said Milan Kubelen. He had then just retired after 30 years at CZ, the great Czechoslovakian armsmaker. In 1936 the Czech government moved its arms factory to Uhersky Brod, as far as practical from Berlin. The small city is shadowed by arable hills. In wooded uplands bent men in dark overcoats hunt mushrooms. Silent fog spins the clock back to the Cold War, where unobtrusive people passed intelligence in unobtrusive places. Forebears of CZ rifles hailed from an earlier time. Before World War I, Zbrojovka Brno produced arms on government contract in the central-Czechoslovakian town of Brno. In 1921 the factory became Ceska Zbrojovka, or “Czech Armsmaker.” CZ soon established another plant at Strakonice, where it produced pistols. By the time Hitler blitzed Poland, the Uhersky Brod operation had

’93 the nation became two. The Czech and Slovak republics remain autonomous. Zbrojovka Brno endured these political upheavals, but internal troubles soon followed. A line of shotguns and single-shot rifles helped it recover from a 2004 bankruptcy. The Uhersky Brod plant grew and thrived. It now employs 1,750 people and exports to 80 countries. CZ-USA, established in California in 1997, moved to Kansas City, Kansas, the following year. Alice Poluchova heads CZ’s U.S. operation. The firm’s acquisition of Dan Wesson Firearms brought a line of 1911 pistols to join the M75 autoloader. CZ has since engaged factories in Turkey (Huglu and Akkar) to produce shotguns. CZ catalogs a wide range of rifles, from the 805 Bren A2 selective-fire infantry arm (5.56x45 and 7.62x39) to the 750 Sniper (7.62x51) and 550 High Energy Tactical (.338 Lapua) bolt gun—plus rimfire and centerfire sporters. CZ’s 527 is one of few bolt-actions designed for the .222 and .223. The 550 big game rifle is a refined Mauser. Its forged receiver has an integral recoil lug, the staggered-stack

magazine a hinged floorplate. The twin-lug bolt features a 98 extractor for controlled feed and a strong tug. The 550 is barreled for a host of cartridges, 6.5x55 to .505 Gibbs. Once, as I fired a .505 at the range, a bystander requested “just one shot.” I handed him a cartridge, suggested he fire offhand. At the blast, the 10-pound rifle lifted free to twirl like a baton over his head. The stunned shooter landed ignominiously on his fanny. Soft lawn caught the rifle before I could. “Another?” I asked. The man declined. CZ big-bores are quite comfortable in recoil. But you’re still smart to grip firmly any rifle hurling 3 tons of muzzle energy! The 550 appears in trimmer form, for popular North American cartridges and European favorites. I once took a 550 in 9.3x62 on a British Columbia hunt for moose and mountain goat. True to Teutonic tastes, its trigger was of single-set design (push it ahead to get super-light let-off). After a day’s glassing, we spied a moose antler and approached through thick willows. The bull rose at 40 yards—then dropped instantly to my Norma-loaded softpoint. Later, I

crept toward a mountain goat on an impossible ledge and fired as he quartered away at 200 yards. Goat-like, the billy refused to yield, so the CZ followed up. That hunt not only sold me on the 550, but on the 9.3x62 cartridge. I still use both. A couple of years ago, CZ replaced the 550 in standard chamberings with a push-feed 557 rifle. It boasts the high quality of its forebear, with 19mm dovetails for CZ scope rings machined into the receiver, itself milled from a solid billet. A two-detent safety lets the bolt cycle “on safe.” The trigger (not single-set) adjusts for take-up, weight, over-travel. A hinged floorplate secures the fourshot internal box. Cold-hammer-forged like the 550s, the 20½-inch barrel is lapped too. My first 557 had a pre-production beech stock with conservative lines and a slight grip swell that fit my hand perfectly. Center-weighted balance put the reticle on target naturally. The only amenity lacking: iron sights. As if in response, CZ announced a Carbine version. I bought that one too. Predatory in profile, it leaps to my cheek, sights instantly lined up. Fitting a Zeiss Terra 3-9x42 in steel CZ

rings to check accuracy, I made first adjustments at 35 yards, then moved my target to 100. Hornady 150-grain SSTs edged other loads with a .75 knot; but 155-grain A-Max’s in Black Hills ammo nipped 1-inch triangles. That 557 Carbine remains one of my favorite current-production big game rif les. In a country and a company that have endured much, workmanship remains a point of pride. The solid, gunny, pre-war feel of CZ rifles also brings to mind Uhersky Brod’s wooded hills, where bent men still seek mushrooms. No bolt rifle runs itself. But the slick Mannlicher-Schoenauer action, the first of which appeared in 1900, comes close. The “butter knife” bolt handle of the famous 1903 in 6.5x54 slipped through its split bridge so fluidly that flipping the muzzle down would zip the drawn bolt forward and turn it into battery! It whisked cartridges from a spool magazine. The full-stocked carbine was seductively trim, its curves as artfully fetching as those of a supermodel in evening dress. The series of M-S rifles succeeding the 1903 ended 50 years ago. None were built by Mannlicher or Schoenauer,

Rotary magazines in MannlicherSchoenauers have given way to detachable boxes in modern Steyrs.

The Boone and Crockett Club asks that you please thank our Trailblazers with your patronage. FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 25

Rifles from the Old Country who were designers, not industry tycoons. They applied their genius at the Steyr factory, in the Austrian city of that name. Established in the 13th century at the confluence of the Steyr and Enns Rivers, the town prospered with its small arms trade—and, later, with bicycles and motor vehicles. Leopold Werndl founded the Steyr firm in 1821 for the sole purpose of making gun parts. He died of cholera in 1855, leaving the business to his son Josef. The company began building rifles in the 1860s, after Josef returned from a stint working at Remington and Colt in the U.S. Then, as legend has it, an idea with real promise came to Josef in church. That rifle action, aptly named “tabernacle breech,” appealed to the Austrian Army. Military contracts followed. Soon the Werndls had 10,000 workers on their payroll! Josef proved a talented engineer and manager—and a visionary. In 1883 he brought hydro power to the city, making it the first in Europe with electric lights. Early Steyr rifles fired black-powder cartridges converted to smokeless. Improvements resulted in new rifles at roughly two-year intervals until 1910. Steyr built rifles for other nations on their patterns too, including the Norwegian Krag and ‘98 Mauser. In 1918 Josef died of pneumonia, contracted as he battled one of the town’s periodic floods. He was only 58. After the Great War, Steyr added cartridges to its rifle stable. Steyr-DaimlerPuch resulted from a 1934 merger. It dissolved in 1996, leaving firearms production alone under the Steyr name. Current Steyr rifles differ from the classic M-S line. The

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new, stronger, twin-lug action, with its Mauser-style bridge, is stout enough to withstand the test-firing of a factory load behind a bullet lodged at midpoint in the bore! Accuracy? A Classic Steyr in .270 WSM printed .8-inch groups for me. Another in .338 RCM sent three shots into half an inch. On a hunt in Austria, my 9.3x62 Steyr tumbled three boars in quick succession. Steyr’s newest flagship, the SM 12, borrows from its forebear, the SBS. I carried one of these up an Austrian mountain, where I spied a chamois about to hop off its rock into oblivion 300 yards off. The Kahles optic quartered the tiny animal’s chest. When the .270 barked, the chamois pitched from its perch, tumbled down the slope and lay still. The SM 12’s hammer-forged barrel has a postM-S barbershop twist near the breech. Two pairs of opposing lugs bracket a recessed bolt face. The tang-mounted cocking switch lets you carry an SM 12 loaded. Other firms have adopted this device. But their springs won’t yield as easily to weak or cold-stiff thumbs. At 2 pounds, the SM 12’s trigger helps you shoot well. But a nudge forward sets it for a 12-ounce pull. Both breaks are icicle-crisp. The SM 12 comes in 10 chamberings. Cartridges feed from a staggered-stack detachable box, polymer or stamped steel. I like the polymer; it’s lightweight and quiet. Now, “made in America” still matters to many hunters. Surely, there’s nothing wrong with rifles built stateside—and they outsell imported bolt-actions by huge margins. Indeed, near the bottom of the price scale, European rifles can’t compete at

Mauser’s non-rotating, controlled-feed extractor is still exceedingly popular on dangerous game rifles.

all. But several European firms now bring us well-appointed rifles with conservative lines. They’ve jettisoned the sloping combs a nd hooked grips and fish-scale grip panels that give U.S. hunters the vapors. One thing to mind when considering rifles from central Europe: scope mounts. Some proprietary rings cost as Wayne used a CZ 550 much as a lawnmowin 9.3x62 to down er. Also, studs and/or this British Columbia moose at 40 yards in swivels may not mate dense cover. to your favorite sling. On the upside, iron sights remain a standard feature in Europe. I enjoy design, and in every instance using irons; to my eye they the designers laid an egg.” make even scoped rifles look Jack’s first rifle from gunmakcomplete. I’ve found too that er Al Biesen—a .30-06, with a many European triggers yield Sukalle barrel—was on a 98 lighter, cleaner pulls than Mauser action. Fond of M70 those on comparable U.S.-pro- Winchesters, O’Connor never duced sporters. lost his affinity for Mausers. Europe’s firearms wizRifles fashioned in cenards have had a big impact on tral Europe 130 years ago have American rifles—from the long prowled North American Krag-Jorgensen to, arguably, ga me f ield s. Ma n n l ievery turn-bolt sporter since. cher-Schoenauer carbines A century ago Mauser’s and Czech-built rifles sharing non-rotating extractor and camps with U.S.-made sportstaggered magazine were sig- ers reflecting Old World denature features of the 1903 sign. Truly, painted with wet Springfield—though Jack snow, the .30-06 nosing into O’Connor once wrote of that the storm toward that band classic: “Various departures of elk last November could were made from the Mauser have come from anywhere. n

when you purchase Winchester Deer Season XP Centerfire Rifle Ammunition. For more information visit winchester.com.

One look at the large diameter polymer tip and you’ll see the difference. Deer Season XP by Winchester Ammunition is not a marketing gimmick. The bigger tip delivers bigger impact with rapid expansion, huge wound channels and short blood trails. Manufactured specifically for terminal performance on whitetails, blacktails and mule deer, Deer Season XP was engineered to drop deer where they stand. Deer Season XP is the latest innovation in our 150-year history and another reason we’re known as Winchester, The American Legend.

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 27

PREDATORS

Â©JAMES L. CUMMINS

AND THE FUTURE OF CONSERVATION

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DR. MELISSA REYNOLDS-HOGLAND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF BEAR TRUST INTERNATIONAL B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER

Bring up the topic of predator management

at a coffee house today and you’re bound to get an earful. A question like, “should we use regulated harvest to help keep predator populations in balance?” can incite vehement horn ramming among different groups, which all too often distracts from—and sometimes derails—effective wildlife conservation. So, how do we change this? How do we pave the way for the voting public and other decision makers to tackle tough, controversial issues like predator management in ways that are progressive and beneficial to conservation? One thing we can do is begin changing the focus away from emotion-based arguments and towards evidence-based discussions. We can ground everything in science. And we can focus efforts on our youth. They are our future decision makers and leaders. We need to teach our youth that science and hunting play important roles in effective wildlife conservation under the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. This is exactly what Bear Trust International has been doing for the past five years. In partnership with state wildlife agencies like Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and co-funded by individuals, conservation organizations, and foundations including Wildlife Management Institute, Wild Sheep Foundation, the William H. Donner Foundation, and Safari Club International Foundation, Bear Trust has authored the Student Scientist Series, a suite of conservation-education programs that tackle thorny issues like: Are grizzly bears ready for delisting? Should we hunt wolves to help keep their numbers in balance? Bear Trust’s approach is simple. We ground all of our education programs in science, and we bolster programs with real-world data. We also use a “flipped learning model”—instead of lecturing to our youth (yawn), we provide opportunities for youth to become wildlife scientists who evaluate different conservation issues by looking at the scientific data. WOLVES

For example, what does the scientific data say about gray wolves? The wolf data from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is clear: wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains met delisting criteria in year 2004. However, most of our high school youth don’t know this fact. And this is no surprise when you consider how the wolf issue has played out in the courtroom and in the media. With the highly publicized litigations over delisting, relisting, delisting, relisting again and again, many people forgot to just stop and take a look at the data. Many people forgot that the goal of the Endangered Species Act is to recover listed species to the point that federal protection is no longer needed and management of the species can be returned to state wildlife agencies. The ESA was not designed to keep a species listed indefinitely. Bear Trust believes it is important to teach our youth to press pause, and take a look at the data. We need to teach our kids critical thinking skills so they can distinguish between emotion and evidence-based information, which will reap enormous conservation rewards as our youth transition into the voting public.

The goal of the ESA is to recover a listed species to the point that federal protection is no longer needed and the management of the listed species can be returned to state wildlife agencies. The ESA was not designed to keep a species listed indefinitely.

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 29

As part of Bear Trust’s new wolf education program Gray Wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains: A Conservation Puzzle, high school students take a good, long look at the real-world data. When did gray wolves in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming meet delisting criteria? Look at the data. How many cattle and sheep have been depredated by wolves? Look at the data. Has regulated wolf harvest and incident-response management helped reduce the number of livestock depredations? Look at the data. Have wolves decimated ungulate populations? Look at the data. How widely have wolves expanded their geographic range? Look at the data. Of course, with wolves it’s more complicated than just looking at data. The wolf issue can be so controversial, in part, because there are so many different stakeholders, and each stakeholder holds its own set of values. To ensure our wolf education program is balanced and unbiased, Bear Trust collaborated with a wide range of stakeholder groups to make certain that each stakeholder perspective is

are ready for delisting. We learned that there are three delisting criteria that grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem must meet. We put all data pertinent to the three delisting criteria into easy-to-read tables. We even graphed the data so you can see for yourself when this grizzly bear population met delisting criteria. As an example, check out delisting criterion No. 1. Here’s what it states: Check it out for yourself! All materials are free. Here’s where you can find the introductory video: beartrust.org/gray-wolves-in-the-northern-rockies.

accurately and evenly represented. Bear Trust sat down with anti-wolf groups, prowolf groups and groups in between, including hunters, ranchers, wilderness advocates, Native Americans, wolf-watching ecotourism representatives, and wildlife managers. As a result of the painstaking work to ensure balance and accuracy, all partners (anti-wolf, pro-wolf, and partners in the middle) have endorsed our wolf-education program.

GRIZZLY BEARS

What about grizzly bears? Are grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem ready for delisting? To answer this question, we should look at the data. Admittedly, this is sometimes easier said than done, partly because it can be tough to find the data. So, Bear Trust did the leg work for you. We pored through 30 years of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service annual reports and tracked down the data we need to determine whether grizzly bears

“In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the grizzly bear population must maintain a minimum of 48 adult females with cubs. This number cannot fall below 48 for [two] consecutive years. The total population of grizzly bears must not fall below 500 for two consecutive years.” Therefore, there are two requirements for delisting criterion No. 1: n there needs to be at least 48 female grizzly bears with cubs, n there needs to be at least 500 total bears in the population. Grizzly bear scientists have been collecting data on the Yellowstone grizzly bear

©MT FISH WILDLIFE & PARKS DEPARTMENT

With wolves it’s more complicated than just looking at data. The wolf issue can be so controversial, in part, because there are so many different stakeholders, and each stakeholder holds its own set of values.

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TITLE:

PREDATOR MANAGEMENT REVISED DATE: SEPTEMBER 27, 2016 BEAR TRUST’S EDUCATION PROGRAMS ALIGN WITH B&C’S PREDATOR POSITION STATEMENT

SITUATIONAL OVERVIEW:

Accommodating and maintaining appropriate populations of predator species such as wolves, bears, cougars, and coyotes, is one of the most complex issues in North American wildlife conservation today. These predator species exist near or at the top of ecosystem food chains. They have few natural predators themselves, so their numbers are dictated primarily by available food, suitable habitats, and human-caused mortality. As a result, where their prey exists in abundance, predator populations have potential to attain high numbers that brings them into conflict with humans and management goals for other native wildlife species. Unlike other mammals, predators are efficient killers of a wide range of prey species, including domestic livestock, family pets, and even humans in rare cases. These conflicts are on the rise as predator populations increase in shared habitats. Wolves and grizzly bears are expanding and dispersing into new areas, many of which are occupied by people. Cougars are also recolonizing areas where they have not recently occurred, and the coyote is now found in all of the Lower 48 states, Alaska and throughout Canada. People who live in landscapes with predators often support their existence and tolerate their presence, but want their numbers managed to mitigate impacts on native wildlife populations, their livelihoods, personal safety and the safety of their pets and livestock. Other people strongly feel that predators should be left alone and not managed by humans in any way. These differing views have led some people to use legislative and legal methods to support their positions, such

as seeking indefinite protection for predator species under federal laws like the Endangered Species Act. Many are disregarding or manipulating relevant scientific findings to block state/provincial management of predators, including the elimination of hunting as a proven and reliable form of management. In promoting the conservation of wildlife and its habitats, especially big game, the Boone and Crockett Club is concerned with philosophies or actions that would inhibit the successful conservation and management of large predators and the prey species upon which they rely.

POSITION:

The Boone and Crockett Club supports maintaining viable populations of all wildlife, including predators, where naturally occurring, legally reintroduced, or established through natural range expansion. Management models for predator conservation should take a landscape perspective that embraces wilderness areas where these species can exist with minimal human influence, as well as multiple-use landscapes where interactions with humans will be more common and management of predator numbers will be required. The needs of human communities and enterprise must be conscientiously considered in formulating wildlife policies in shared human-wildlife landscapes. This is not the same as being anti-predator; rather it is a means of finding a way for predators and human communities to co-exist. The Club believes the best conservation outcomes for predatory species will be achieved by following a proven and balanced model of wildlife conservation that is supported by active management of ecosystems and science-informed decisions. This includes sustainable, regulated hunting as an acceptable method for predator management, where and when justified. One example would be where predator numbers are threatening existing conservation programs for other species.

The complex nature of ecosystems, including the behavior and ecological requirements of predator species themselves, necessitates that decisions be informed, wherever possible, by legitimate, peer-reviewed science. Acquiring and applying knowledge through science-based approaches enables professionally-trained conservation practitioners to improve wildlife policies and test their conservation outcomes in ways that popular opinion does not. This is what distinguishes professional wildlife managers—they rely on science to focus on what is good for predators and prey— as well as manage the expectations and needs of the people who live near these species. The Club supports the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA) and encourages the use of preservation and protection methods as tools of conservation where necessary and appropriate to render a species no longer in danger of extinction. The Club opposes misuse of the ESA to achieve indefinite protection and block management of predatory species when strong scientific evidence demonstrates listing is not warranted or population recovery goals have been met. The Club also rejects the argument that an ESA delisting of a predator species will result in excessive or indiscriminate harvest because of the fact professional wildlife management of delisted species will continue and ensure they are not re-listed. In the Club’s view, the most significant factor influencing the conservation and future of predatory species will not come from new laws or court decisions, but from obtaining support from those who are most affected by the existence of predators—namely, those who live closest to them.

READ ALL 17 OF BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB’S POSITION STATEMENTS ONLINE AT WWW.BOONE-CROCKETT.ORG

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population since at least 1983. So, all we have to do is take a look at the data and see if Yellowstone grizzlies met delisting criterion No. 1. Since there are two requirements for the first criterion, we created two graphs using the real-world data. Graph No. 1 shows how many female grizzly bears with cubs there were between 1984 and 2014. At first, there weren’t that many females with cubs, which was why this grizzly bear population was listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. But by year 2000, the number of grizzly bear females with cubs was above 48. The magic number of 48 females with cubs was reached several times after 2000, but it wasn’t until 2007 that the number of females with cubs did not go below 48 for two consecutive years (graph No. 1). The second requirement of delisting criterion No. 1 is reflected in graph 2, which shows the number of grizzly bears in the Yellowstone population between 1990-2014. At first, the number of grizzly bears was low, which was why this population was listed as threatened. However, by year 2007, the grizzly bear population grew to over 500, the magic number. Graph 2 shows that the Yellowstone grizzly bear population met the second requirement of delisting criterion No. 1 in year 2007. The data are clear. The grizzly bear population in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem met requirements of Delisting Criterion #1 in year 2007. If you look at graphs we made for all three of the delisting criteria for the Yellowstone grizzly bear population (beartrust.org/grizzly-bears-in -yellowstone-proposed-delisting-by-usfws), you will find all the data shout the same thing: Yellowstone grizzly bears met all three delisting criteria in year 2007. 32 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

How about we give all this data to our youth and let them use critical thinking skills to determine if grizzly bears in Yellowstone are ready for delisting, based on the data? That’s exactly what Bear Trust has done as part of our grizzly bear delisting lesson. When high school students watch the introductory video, they learn about the three delisting criteria for the grizzly bear population in Yellowstone. After the video, students get their hands on the real-world data, learn how to create graph No. 1 and graph No. 2 (and other graphs), and they interpret the findings. They discover that Yellowstone grizzly bears met all three delisting criteria in year 2007. Ten. Years. Ago. The fact that Yellowstone grizzlies came back from the brink of extinction is a success story we should be celebrating. As a science-based conservation organization, Bear Trust International fully supports the delisting of the grizzly bear population in Yellowstone. Based on the scientific data, it is time to delist the Yellowstone grizzly bear population, return its management back to state wildlife agencies, and sustainably manage this population for present and future generations. EDUCATION IS KEY TO EFFECTIVE, SUSTAINABLE CONSERVATION

It’s true. Education is key to effective, sustainable conservation. That’s why Bear Trust provides important, much-needed conservation education for our youth. Grounded in real-world science, every conservation

Check it out for yourself! All materials are free. Here’s where you can find the introductory video: beartrust.org/grizzly-bear-delisting-stem-lesson.

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lesson in our Student Scientist Series includes real-world data and teaches youth how to use technology like GPS and GIS to tackle timely, often controversial conservation issues. One of our program goals is to help shape the minds of our future voters by teaching them critical thinking skills. Today’s youth will be tomorrow’s decision makers. We need youth to understand the valuable roles that science and science-based hunting play in effective wildlife conservation. Teachers don’t need to know anything about wildlife research to use these lessons. Just turn on the introductory video and begin. For ease of use in the classroom, all of our data-rich STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) lessons are aligned with Next Generation Science Standards. Teachers can check off standards as their students work through the conservation education lessons. All education materials are provided free to educators,

youth and the public thanks to the generosity of conservation-minded individuals, organizations and businesses. WHO IS BEAR TRUST INTERNATIONAL?

Founded in 1999 by B&C Regular Member A.C. Smid, Bear Trust International is a nonprofit organization with a mission to help conserve the world’s eight bear species, other wildlife, and habitat. We do this by focusing on science-based education, bear research and management, habitat protection, restoration and enhancement, and conservation policy. Bear Trust believes that hunting is part of the world’s natural heritage and should be used as one of many tools for effective wildlife conservation. Bear Trust values the critical role that science plays in conservation and believes that we have a responsibility to conserve bear populations and their habitats for present and future generations.

Bear Trust is governed by 11 directors on its board, including several B&C Regular and Professional Members: A.C. Smid, Gray Thornton, Marc Mondavi, Tony Caligiuri, James Cummins, Linda Demmer, Denis Dale, John Chaney, Gilbert Adams, Mike Evans, and Jeff Watkins. A FEW PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

Bear Trust has successfully authored nine innovative, science-based conservation education programs as part of its signature Student Scientist Series, which have been used by more than 50,000 youth. In terms of habitat conservation, we’ve worked collaboratively with the Mississippi River Trust, Mississippi Land Trust, and the Lower Mississippi River Conservation Committee to restore, enhance, and protect 53,000 acres of habitat for black bears and other wildlife. Our research on black bears was recently published in the Journal of Applied

Ecology and our PhD student recently presented research findings at the Ecological Society of America conference, the International Association of Bear Research and Management conference, and at a TED Talk. In Montana, Wisconsin, Virginia, and New Jersey, we’ve worked to minimize human-bear conflicts through education outreach and by helping communities become bear-resistant. Internationally, we are doing research on sloth bears and working to save lives of humans and sloth bears in Gujarat, India, working to help conserve sun bears in Sumatra, and helping to minimize human-brown bear conflicts in Abruzzo, Italy. Finally, Bear Trust’s founder and board chairman, A.C. Smid, was recognized for his outstanding contribution to conservation by being selected as one of six finalists for the prestigious 2016 Beretta and Safari Club International Foundation Conservation Leadership Award. n

Today’s youth will be tomorrow’s decision makers. We need youth to understand the valuable roles that science and sciencebased hunting play in effective wildlife conservation.

Want to learn more about our programs or find out how you can participate? Visit us at beartrust.org, email info@beartrust.org, or call us at (406) 523-7779.

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©JAMES L. CUMMINS

Check out one of our introductory videos at: beartrust.org/student-scientist-series.

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KEITH BALFOURD B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER B&C Director of Marketing

As we pass another milestone in the conservation movement

with speeches, ribbon cutting, and photo ops, such commemorations honoring places and people always seems to have a layer that gets lost over time. Men’s names are mentioned, of course. After all, it takes champions—individuals who took it upon themselves to secure places special to them for the rest of us. In fact, there is not a national park or monument that exists today that did not have its champions, and many of these special places bear their names. Denali had its champions. The layer that likely won’t get much mention in our era of correctness is the fact that these champions were hunters, and most were members of a coalition bonded together for one purpose: to save wildlife.

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They’re called national parks, but it may be surprising to many to learn who had the vision to secure these special places for all people. Was “America’s best idea” the work of sportsmen?

The Boone and Crockett Club has a rich history with the concept of game refuges and national parks, including Denali in Alaska. If your sole purpose in forming was to save what was left of dwindling big game populations, setting aside critical habitats to secure a future for wildlife is one route you would take. This path would lead to wherever the work needed to be done, and by the late 1800s that path lead to Alaska. The Club’s engagements in Alaska took place long before Denali was designated as a national park on February 26, 1917. The rich game fields of Alaska were being drained. The same Manifest Destiny that had swept across the Great Plains had reached the Last Frontier. Game was being slaughtered, mostly by commercial market hunters under the guise of subsistence, and the need to feed hungry gold miners, railroad workers, etc. In 1902 the Club secured passage of the Alaska Game Law—a first that would become a model law for other states

in the Lower 48. It prohibited the slaughter of wildlife for commercial purposes, established hunting seasons, prohibited the hunting of endangered species, and required export permits for the shipment of meat, hides, and horns. The Club’s Executive Committee urged congressional passage of this bill based on intimate knowledge of the Alaskan environment provided by Club members who had participated in scientific and exploratory expeditions throughout Alaska during the mid 1870s. Key Club members campaigned diligently for the law, educating congressional leaders on its rationale. One of these members was Charles Sheldon. A New Englander by birth, a Yale-educated engineer by vocation, and a hunter by choice, Sheldon was on a short list of those who were not drawn to Alaska by the sirens of precious metal. Sheldon was deeply interested in the scientific research of wild sheep. He retired from the business world in 1903 at

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Charles Sheldon feeds a gray jay near his cabin in Alaska.

DENALI’S CHAMPIONS Charles Sheldon, B&C Member and Chairman, Game Preservation Committee of the Boone and Crockett Club Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States, Founder and first President of the Boone and Crockett Club George Bird Grinnell, co-founder and fourth President of the Boone and Crockett Club Madison Grant, fifth President of the Boone and Crockett Club Steven T. Mather, first Director of the National Park Service, B&C Member Edward W. Nelson, Chief of the U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey, B&C Member Belmore Browne, Camp Fire Club of America John B. Burnham, president of the American Game Protective Association, B&C Member James Wickersham, U.S. Delegate of the Alaska Territory Key Pittman, Senator from Nevada Franklin K. Lane, Secretary of the Interior in the cabinet of Woodrow Wilson Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States

the age of 36 and set off in sporting and scientific pursuit of wild sheep. His searches carried him from the deserts of Mexico to the icy mountains of interior Alaska. Sheldon was truly a pioneer. He studied an animal at the time about which little was known, and he explored regions that seldom, if ever, had been visited by modern man. In 1903, while planning a hunting trip to Alaska, Sheldon became acquainted with and friends of Edward W. Nelson, chief of the U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey (and a Boone and Crockett Club member). Sheldon and Nelson found in each other kindred spirits. They were individuals for whom hunting and natural history were life’s breath. Through Nelson, Sheldon soon became a Boone and Crockett Club member, one whom Theodore Roosevelt came to regard as the very best kind, a hunter/naturalist like him whose knowledge, convictions, and initiative would reap great rewards for wildlife, hunting, and conservation. Sheldon’s 1906 travels up the Tanana River, toward the majestic peaks of the Alaska Range, were one of the first expeditions into that region. Approaching Mt. McKinley, Sheldon was awestruck by the towering, snow-clad mountain. Equally as stunning to Sheldon as the area’s natural

beauty were its game populations, especially its white sheep—the Dall’s, named in honor of an earlier Alaskan explorer, William H. Dall. From July 1907 to June 1908, Sheldon stayed to hunt, explore, collect, and live an extreme adventure. When he left Alaska in 1908, Sheldon took not only the idea for a national park, but maps delineating boundaries around a proposed park area of more than 2,000 square miles he felt best suited as a game refuge. His fellow Boone and Crockett Club members were very excited about the project, but nearly a decade would pass before Sheldon’s brainchild would gain the attention and political momentum necessary for congressional consideration. In the years immediately following 1908, Alaska experienced steady development. Population centers such as Fairbanks were soon springing up within 100 miles of Denali. Explorers, prospectors, adventurers, and (in 1915) the Alaska Railway began to penetrate the area that Sheldon hoped would someday be a park. Just as with Yellowstone, it was the approach of the railroad toward Denali that spurred the Boone and Crockett Club to action. Its Game Preservation Committee, chaired by Sheldon, and the Club’s Executive

CHANGING NAMES

Denali, formally known as Mt. McKinley is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of 20,310 feet above sea level. In 1896, a gold prospector named it “Mount McKinley” in support of then-presidential candidate William McKinley; that name was the official name recognized by the United States government from 1917 until 2015. In August 2015, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced the change of the official name of the mountain to Denali. Prior to this, most Alaskans already referred to the mountain as Denali.

REFERENCES:

A History of the Boone and Crockett Club, Milestones in Wildlife Conservation, by William G. Sheldon Grant, Madison. Histories of Glacier and McKinley Parks, Hunting and Conservation (Boone and Crockett), Yale University Press, 1925.

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Charles Sheldon’s cabin after a blizzard in March, 1908.

Committee strongly endorsed the idea of a national park in the Mt. McKinley area. On the very day that Sheldon became a member of the Club, Stephen T. Mather, also a Club member and the first superintendent of the National Park Service wrote to him, enthusiastically inviting him to visit Mather and his colleagues to discuss Sheldon’s proposal for a new national park. Consequently, and soon thereafter, Mather became involved in the campaign, using his position and influence to bring into the drama other notable conservation figures who could effectively work for the park’s creation. These included Belmore Browne of the Camp Fire Club of America and John B. Burnham, president of the American Game Protective Association (also a Boone and Crockett Club member). In order to retain and coordinate all these favorable influences, Sheldon called, at his home in New York, a meeting of the Game Preservation Committee of the Boone and Crockett Club, which was attended by a committee from the Camp Fire Club and one from the American Game Protective Association. At this meeting it was determined that the campaign in Congress be entrusted to the American Game Protective Association, with Burnham assuming the active leadership and the various clubs and individuals supporting the measure agreeing to act under his direction. In drafting legislation to create the park, Sheldon suggested that the park be known as Denali National Park (Denali was the local Native American name for the mountain, signifying ‘’The Great High One.”) This suggestion was shelved in favor of

McKinley, in honor of assassinated U.S. President William McKinley, an event which made Theodore Roosevelt the nation’s 26th president. Otherwise, the bill was almost entirely based on Sheldon’s vision, mapping and knowledge of the area. The Club also found a legislative champion in James Wickersham, U.S. delegate of the Alaska Territory who introduced the bill in April 1916 into the House of Representatives. Within days, Senator Key Pittman of Nevada sponsored its version in the Senate. Immediately after the introduction of these bills in Congress, a widespread campaign was started to accelerate their passage. George Bird Grinnell, then president of the Boone and Crockett Club, took an active part, backed by a number of clubs, associations, and influential individuals. Hearings were held before the Committee on Public Lands in the House, and of Territories, in the Senate. The Club hosted a banquet in Washington to give advocates of the bill an opportunity to explain to members of Congress the bill’s importance to the country. The Club also publish and distributed a timely defense of Mt. McKinley National Park. Effective work in Washington and elsewhere was also done by individual Club members and, above all, by Mr. Burnham. Once the bills were introduced, the Boone and Crockett Club moved to consolidate favorable public and political opinion and more interested organizations and individuals were enlisted. Edward Nelson of the Biological Survey, Sheldon’s mentor, supported the proposal, as did Stephen T. Mather and Thomas Higgs, Jr., later governor of Alaska, but at that time in

When he left Alaska in 1908, Sheldon took not only the idea for a national park, but maps delineating boundaries around a proposed park area of more than 2,000 square miles he felt best suited as a game refuge. charge of the Alaskan boundary survey. Despite some political maneuvering and skirmishing, the bill was passed by both the House and Senate in February 1917. Charles Sheldon himself took the legislation to the White House and watched as President Wilson signed it into law. It was appropriate that the man who had lived with Denali and had conceived its preservation as a national park, should be present when the mere motion of a pen culminated what for him had been a dream, a cause, and a gift for perpetuity. The journey for Denali took eleven years and included a long list of champions and political maneuvering. The swing vote, however, was

the American people, who had been awakened to the plight of wildlife from the preceding decades of unregulated take. Once the bill was on the table, public sentiment was swift and kept piling up in favor of immediate action in order to save its wildlife while there was still time. Surprisingly, sportsmen rallying to save the wildlife they cherished didn’t raise too many eyebrows back then. The North American hunter was viewed as a champion of wildlife in his own right. Somehow this story (or maybe this image) has been lost. Either way, the history of the conservation movement is just that, a matter for historical record, and this, yet another chapter, written by sportsmen. n

Band of sheep (ovis dalli), mostly young or middle-aged, in the Alaska Range near Denali, July 22, 1926. FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 39

JUSTIN E. SPRING B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Director, Big Game Records

ALONE

AT THE

TOP

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Montana Public Land Typical American Elk Score: 430 Montana State Record Fourth Largest B&C Bull Potential P&Y World’s Record

As with probably 99 percent

of the hunters in North America, Steve Felix is a hardworking 9-to5 type of guy. He works hard both on the job and in the hills. For years he and his friends explored the state, found elk, and then faced the reality of hunting pressure on public land in terms of people and quality. Through all the days hunted and miles walked, they never wavered in their quest for the ultimate public-land elk hunting experience to which they could retreat from the realities of everyday life, if only for a few weeks each fall. For Steve and his hunting partners, it served as their reinvigorating sanctuary to pull them through the rest of the year. It was high in the public lands of eastern Montana they found what they desired—relatively low pressure with big, open-country bulls. When the area burned a few years previous, the habitat and areas they knew became an elk magnet. Having held the tags previously, they knew right where they wanted to be when elk season rolled around. When Steve found out he had to have shoulder-replacement surgery in May 2015 that he had been putting off, he was concerned his ability to hunt these mountains with a bow may be taken from him forever. Not willing to give up that easily and with no guarantees of a full recovery, as soon as the physical therapist told him he could start shooting again, he began the long, arduous process of rebuilding his shoulder strength. The 2015 season was a disappointment as he wasn’t able to really shoot at all, let alone have the ability to make a lethal shot should a bull present an opportunity. His range and accuracy wasn’t near the level of before the surgery, but slowly and surely it started to come back. When Montana’s draw deadline approached in March of 2016, he still wasn’t sure of his ability to archery hunt, so he and his hunting partner elected to put in for the rifle tags as a party (the state allows you to hunt the archery and rifle season if you draw the

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permit in this particular unit). When the results became available in the spring of 2016 and Steve saw that he was successful, his shooting regimen continued with even greater vigor. Hundreds of arrows refined his accuracy, but he knew that he could not take a shot over 60 yards. While the equipment had the ability, he simply did not have the muscle strength or stamina to ensure a precise shot beyond that. As the season neared, Steve’s anticipation grew. When the first weekend rolled around, his longtime hunting partner needed some help on his cabin, and the weather was just too hot to hunt. Opening weekend found the two hunters together, but not in the elk woods as they would have preferred. The next weekend Steve was able to hunt, but his partner was not, and he wasn’t going to let two weeks slip by. In the midst of all this, the

relationship with his girlfriend hit a rough point and she left him the week preceding the season. So what does a hunter do at a major low point in his life? Loads up the truck and heads east to elk camp alone. As Steve set up camp, he knew this would be a good year. The area had received above-normal rainfall and the normally brown to off-white grass of most Septembers greeted him with high green walls waving in the ever-present breezes of the mountains of eastern Montana. As with most hunters, the night prior was restless wondering where the elk would be, and he tossed with anticipation. Before daylight he was up and readying himself for the morning’s solo hunt. It was well before the first rays of light illuminated the skies that Steve stood near his truck listening intently for a bull to reveal his location. He knew

of a good glassing point he intended to reach at first light and checked his watch knowing he needed to get a move on. Just as he headed out, the first bugle of the day broke the predawn silence. As the sun warmed the eastern skies, Steve slowly worked his way along, glassing the broken timber and openings looking for elk. He could hear bulls bugling as he made his way to his desired outlook. Once there he sat down to grab a sandwich and a quick drink. Before he could take his first bite, bugles from just below him alerted him to the presence of some bulls. The morning snack quickly became an afterthought as he began cautiously working down the ridge. The bugles continued, and he didn’t have to go far before he spotted a tremendous bull in some low brush raking a tree. Steve glassed the bull and instantly knew it was a shooter, but he really

Not 100 yards from where the arrow struck the bull, the magnificent wapiti lay still. He knew it was big. Steve’s emotions kicked in hard, but so did the reality of the fact that early archery season generally has higher-than-ideal temperatures. The thermometer already read over 70°F, and Steve knew this bull would take some time to process and pack out, especially by himself.

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didn’t take the time to analyze the rack enough to realize this was what he was here for. He and his hunting partner had agreed that with the tags they had in their pocket, they would not settle for bulls any smaller than they had already taken, so the benchmark was set at a 350-class bull. This particular bull easily met the criteria—and then some—so the hunt was on. Steve had a strong wind in his face and even though he had his elk call at the ready, the bull was in a good spot for a stalk, so alerting him to his presence with an attempt to emulate another elk did not seem the prudent choice. He dropped into some light cover and tried to close the distance to the bull. A small rise covered his approach while he crept to the concealing ridgeline and peeked over, not certain what to expect. When he found the spot the bull had been, it was vacant, so he just stayed put and waited to see what would happen. Soon the big bull and a smaller bull came into view. A small bench above them concealed from him a harem of cows that a bull of that caliber is known to have. The second, smaller bull let out a bugle, which prompted the big boy to come to full attention and he began working toward the sound of the intruder’s challenge. Steve watched the posturing and body language of the big bull as he chased the intruder off to a comfortable distance but still within Steve’s view. While he had no certainty that it would happen, a feeling told Steve the big bull would return to his tree, which he obviously had taken a strong inkling toward destroying. Soon the bull began working back down towards the brush Steve had originally spotted him in. He ranged the bull 90…80…70… 64 yards, then 61. He was at Steve’s threshold. He thought long

MONTANA STATE RECORDS FRED C . MERCER’S 1958 MONTANA WAPITI – 419-4/8

Fred Mercer’s bull elk, taken in Madison County, Montana, in 1958, still ranks No. 10 in the All-time records for typical American elk. The state of Montana lists more than 130 bulls netting over the 375 All-time minimum entry score, and Mercer’s is one of only six Montana bulls scoring over 400 inches. The September-October 2012 issue of Montana Outdoors included the following comments about Mercer’s elk. In 1958, Fred Mercer was working on his uncle’s dairy ranch just south of Twin Bridges, Montana. In late October, the two took a week off to hunt the upper Ruby River country, just as they had every year since 1946. In an article for Outdoor Life in 1960, Mercer wrote that he’d had a hunch he would find the bull of his dreams in the Gravelly Range, which he described as the ‘rough and roadless country north of camp.’ One morning at first light he took his .270-caliber rifle and headed out solo, walking through a few inches of sugar-soft snow. Soon he came across the biggest set of bull tracks he had ever seen. After following the tracks a while, Mercer figured the herd was an hour or so ahead of him. The bull, which may have sensed the hunter, circled his cows around Mercer. The herd caught his scent and took off running. Mercer wouldn’t let up, however. After trailing the herd for another 12 miles or so, he changed tactics. He decided to cut the elk off when they reached a ridge at the head of an open canyon. Upon reaching the ridge top, he slowly peeked over. Not 50 yards away was the biggest bull he’d ever seen in his life, contentedly grazing broadside. Mercer’s 150-grain soft-point hit the bull in the neck right below the ears. He fired once more and the hunt was over. After dressing the bull out to cool, Mercer made his way back to camp, arriving several hours after dark. For years the Mercer bull was the number two typical elk in the world. Official Measurer’s Note: The strengths of Mercer’s bull’s antlers include an impressive 53-inch inside spread. Main beams of 59-7/8 inches for the right antler, and 60-1/8 inches for the left, are tremendous and nearly perfectly symmetrical. Lastly, Mercer’s trophy is the third largest “clean” (no non-typical points) 7x7-point frame bull in the B&C records.

More Elk from the Boone and Crockett Club AN AMERICAN ELK RETROSPECTIVE VINTAGE PHOTOS AND MEMORABILIA FROM THE BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB

A fascinating, comprehensive look at the story of elk hunting in America from the nation’s premiere big game hunting historians. After nearly a century of Records Keeping, the Boone and Crockett Club has dug deep into its records archive and produced the ultimate history book for elk hunting enthusiasts.

Steve remembers as a kid reading the story of the Mercer bull in an outdoor magazine. This bull held the top Montana spot since it was killed in 1958. Who would have dreamed that nearly 60 years later a hunter would still have the opportunity to take a bull in Montana exceeding that size?

Hardcover with dust jacket 8 x 10 inches 272 pages Over 250 B&W photographs BPAER | $34.95 B&C ASSOCIATES PAY ONLY $27.95

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and hard about his practice, his max range, all the previous weeks’ emotions building, the fact he was alone in camp and miles from the truck. He drew. The bull’s head was down and he was quartered away. The wind had dropped from a steady push to a light breeze. It had enough force to keep his scent at bay but not enough to affect arrow trajectory. It was now or never—10 more yards and the bull would be out of his shooting window. He drew in a deep breath, steadied his peep around his pin, found a spot on the bull and squeezed his release. The sound of the arrow striking the bull reached Steve’s ear just as the bull bolted away. It sounded hollow, and from Steve’s experience, this sound meant the arrow had entered the chest cavity and pierced the lungs. His mind, on the other hand, questioned this initial assessment. Doubt started to enter that maybe the shot was a little high. After the shot, he had found the bull in his binoculars and could see the arrow penetration had been nearly complete with the majority of the arrow protruding out the other side of the bull, but it looked a bit high. The bull paused momentarily and looked back, as he turned to go Steve thought he might have stumbled, but he could not be sure. The bull disappeared, and he thought he heard a crash, but again wasn’t positive. When the smaller bull bolted across the ridge right where Steve’s bull had disappeared, doubt continued to seep in. Perhaps the crash was the other bull leaving his bed or just being startled by the bull Steve had arrowed. He sat down and collected himself to wait a while before pursuing. It was now that everything started to become scrambled—the troubles at home, the surgery, the fact he had an arrow in a bull 44 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

Taking a field photo proves to be difficult on a solo hunt. Steve attempted a selfie with the bull, though the rack was too large to get its entirety in the picture.

but wasn’t positive of the trueness of the shot. When he couldn’t take it any longer, he started tracking. Fortunately, it was a short endeavor and not 100 yards from where the arrow struck the bull the magnificent wapiti lay still. Steve’s emotions kicked in harder, but so did the reality of the fact that early archery season generally has higher-than-ideal temperatures. The thermometer already read over 70°F, and Steve knew this bull would take some time to process and pack out, especially by himself. He knew it was big, but with the current and oncoming heat, he tagged the bull, snapped a few photos— even attempting a selfie of himself and the bull, though the rack was too large to get its entirety in the picture. Panic began to set in about the meat spoilage in these hot temperatures, so he decided the quality photos would have to wait until the bull was processed and safely in a fridge or cooler. As he broke the bull down and handled the antlers, he told me he should have realized their size in relation to how high up he was holding

them as the skull lay on the ground, but still the worry of the meat spoiling kept him working quickly. He took most the day to skin, quarter and hang the bull in trees in a draw where he hoped the air circulation and cooler temperature would keep the meat from spoiling. He placed a quarter of the bull into his pack once this task was complete and headed for the truck. It was around 4 p.m. by the time he got back to his truck, and after loading the first quarter, he knew he needed ice and coolers. He jumped into his pickup and made a run to the nearest town where he bought additional coolers, ice and a few extra caping knives, just in case. He got back to camp around 7 that night, but by this point he was completely spent. He got a few hours of restless sleep and roused himself at 2:30 the next morning knowing he still had quite the task ahead of him. He got back to the bull by headlamp and was relieved that the temperature in the ravine hovered around 40 degrees. Knowing the meat was cooling well in nearly ideal temps, he caped

out the head from the skull and removed the antlers as it had become readily apparent the previous day he wasn’t getting the head and hide out in one pack. Nearly the entire day was spent packing and boning out meat and getting it into the coolers. The following day he got the bull to a taxidermist and the two finally got around to putting a rough score on the bull. As they tallied numbers, the taxidermist suggested to Steve that a local Boone and Crockett measurer be contacted as the totals he was getting were far higher than anything he had ever seen. After the green score and official score were completed by the same measurer, the taxidermist had been correct. While the bull will be panel scored by the Pope and Young Club at their Judge’s Panel in February 2017 to ascertain the potential World’s Record score it will be entered at, it will most likely hold that No. 1 spot. The current Pope and Young archery World’s Record falls about 17 inches below Steve’s bull’s entry score. The 430-point net score of this

MEMBERS OF THE WILDERNESS WARRIOR SOCIETY The Wilderness Warrior Society is the Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s premier major gifts society. It is named after Doug Brinkleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s historic book about Theodore Roosevelt and his Crusade for America and was launched in 2011 to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Boone and Crockett Club. With your gift of $125,000 or more, you will be honored by being named a member of the Wilderness Warrior Society. You will be presented with your own numbered limited edition bronze of Theodore Roosevelt on horseback, a custom Hickey Freeman Blazer, as well as other gifts to recognize and honor you for your contribution. The $125,000 donation can be paid with a $25,000 current contribution and the balance payable over a maximum of 4 years. Funds raised from Wilderness Warrior contributions are placed in the Boone and Crockett Club Foundation endowment where the principal remains intact, and the annual interest income generated provides permanent funding for vital conservation programs. There are now twenty-five members of the Society. This translates to more than $3 million for the endowment and has been a major portion of the growth of these funds. It has been a huge success by any measure. Please join us in this grand effort. Contact the Boone and Crockett Club today to find out how you can become a member of the Wilderness Warrior Society.

Trevor L. Ahlberg James F. Arnold Rene R. Barrientos Marshall J. Collins Jr. William A. Demmer Gary W. Dietrich John P. Evans Steve J. Hageman B.B. Hollingsworth Jr. Ned S. Holmes Tom L. Lewis Jimmy John Liautaud R. Terrell McCombs Jack S. Parker* Paul V. Phillips Remo R. Pizzagalli Thomas D. Price Edward B. Rasmuson T. Garrick Steele Morrison Stevens Sr. Ben B. Wallace Mary L. Webster C. Martin Wood III Leonard H. Wurman M.D. Paul M. Zelisko * Deceased

Contact Terrell McCombs at 210/818-8363 for more details. Boone and Crockett Club www.boone-crockett.org 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801 406/542-1888

2016 Annual Meeting, Tucson, Arizona

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 45

Steve Felix with Official Measurer Fred King, who confirmed the final score of the bull. The bull will be panel scored by the Pope and Young Club at their Judge’s Panel in February 2017 to ascertain the potential World’s Record score it will be entered at, it will most likely hold that No. 1 spot. Far Right: Steve and his state record bull made headlines in the B&C headquarters hometown of Missoula, Montana. Steve visited the headquarters to be interviewed by Justin Spring for this story.

bull currently places it No. 4 in Boone and Crockett’s All-time records for typical elk. It is the largest typical bull we have seen that has been killed since 1968, and the largest typical or non-typical elk ever killed in the state on Montana. While Steve’s bull made the rounds and reached nearly 1.25 million people from B&C’s Facebook post, he was adamant that we keep the location as secret as we could. Some speculated that was because something was suspicious, but in actuality there was still another tag to be filled. They had put in as a party and Steve’s hunting companion still had the archery and rifle season to fill his tag. It was important to Steve that his longtime hunting partner had an opportunity as he did, before worrying about telling his story. While this story and bull is of epic proportions and usually would be found on the front page of one of the more popular hunting magazines, Steve knows the conservation side of hunting just as much as, if not more than, the trophy hunting side. As he relayed this story to me, Steve told me of growing up in Minnesota and reading the story of the Mercer bull in an outdoor magazine. This bull held the top Montana spot since it was 46 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

killed in 1958. Who would have dreamed that nearly 60 years later a hunter would still have the opportunity to take a bull in Montana exceeding that size? The opportunity to see and hunt wildlife such as this still exists, thanks to the wildlife conservation efforts of such organizations as the Boone and Crockett Club, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and the Pope and Young Club. And because Steve had the opportunity to archery hunt such a tremendous bull, Steve decided all three organizations would get the rights to the story in hopes of spreading the message of the work done for wildlife on behalf of all hunters. Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is planning a story to run in Bugle magazine’s special archery issue in July/August 2017. Pope and Young will be featuring the bull and the story at their biennial convention in St. Louis, Missouri, April 5-8, 2017. And while most of us are hunters ourselves, I couldn’t be happier that someone like Steve Felix got the opportunity to be the one smiling behind this bull at the conclusion of a hunt, even if it was only part of the rack in the picture as the bull was just too dang big to be in the selfie. n

POPE & YOUNG CLUB: ETHICS AND WILDLIFE STEWARDSHIP Founded in 1961, the Pope and Young Club was established as club with which bowhunters could identify themselves. The founder was a long time admirer of sportsman-conservationist Teddy Roosevelt, knew of the role played by the former President in founding the Boone and Crockett Club and the respected position that club held in the eyes of the hunting community. Today the Boone and Crockett Club and Pope and Young Club work together to conserve our wildlife and habitat, protect hunting’s heritage, and create a better image for the sport through the use of high standards and a fair-chase hunting philosophy Few sporting traditions can match the challenge and reward found in bowhunting big game, especially for native deer and elk species. These elusive, wary ungulates provide high levels of adventure to the committed archer who appreciates their environment and honors their existence. True success comes to the hunter who not only harvests the animal cleanly, but pursues the trophy using the highest means of ethical, sportsmanlike conduct. The Pope and Young Club (P&Y) is committed to such principles, as well as helping in the preservation of bowhunting and wildlife, so that every generation may experience a chance to enjoy this amazing privilege. Every time a big buck or bull is harvested, it represents a milestone achievement for both the hunter and the sport. Recording this event is paramount. This is where the Pope and Young Club’s records book is vital. Records keeping does create excitement and friendly competition among hunters, but the real essence is found in honoring the animal’s exceptional size and collecting data that assists in effective game management. Each listing becomes a part of bowhunting history by retaining trophy size, harvest date, time, animals sighted, and various other important data points that can be utilized to track certain health and hunting trends. This can later be used for research, comparison, and decision making. Join every conservation-minded bowhunter out there who wants to make a difference and give back to the sport. Become a member and supporter of the Pope and Young Club today. TO LEARN MORE, VISIT POPE-YOUNG.ORG

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WILD GOURMET

NATURALLY HEALTHY GAME, FISH AND FOWL RECIPES FOR EVERYDAY CHEFS Looking for new ways to prepare the wild game you harvested this season? Do you want recipes that produce unique and delicious results? Do you need tips for processing your venison that will all but guarantee top-notch flavor?

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Nearly half of the book is dedicated to processing... Illustrated with full-color photos and Wild Gourmet is the first book I’ve seen that has such step-by-step, hands-on photos taking game, fowl, and fish from hanging meat to bone. DAVID DRAPER

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Wild Gourmet is much more than just a cookbook— improve the flavor of your game with real-world processing tips. Learn to butcher your own harvest with step-by-step, illustrated instructions covering: rabbit, duck, squirrel, turkey, elk, and salmon. Wild Gourmet makes it easy for anyone to tame wild meat in the kitchen! Learn the unique characteristics and best uses of each cut of venison with this 24x36-inch color poster, included with every copy of Wild Gourmet!

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Many of the dishes, like Braised Venison with Tomatillo and Poblano Peppers pictured here, were tested by B&C staff before they went in the book!

Boone and Crockett Books and Clothing

HOW TO SCORE NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME B&C’S OFFICIAL MEASURERS MANUAL Watching the last trickles of daylight slink away over a distant ridge, hoping a mature animal presents itself in time for an ethical shot. Stalking open grassland into a stiff north wind, every sense on high alert, as the cold air stings the cheeks and nose. The heart beating wildly at the sound of a predawn tromp through fallen leaves, foretelling the possibility of approaching game. For those who count the days until their next trip afield, the true measure of a successful hunt will always be the vivid memories of time spent in wild places. While the definition of a successful hunt is left to its participants, the Boone and Crockett Club scoring system remains the benchmark for identifying mature big-game animals and healthy big-game populations. In the Club’s newly revised edition of How to Score North American Big Game, the definitive Boone and Crockett scoring system is explained in detail using simple, straightforward language and more than 100 new color illustrations and diagrams by noted wildlife artist and B&C Official Measurer Chris Lacey. This new edition is spiral bound for durability providing easy, lay-flat reading with a pocket integrated into the back cover for safe keeping of score charts and notes.

This handy reference guide is a must-have for any sportsman’s hunting camp! A must-have addition to the library of any hunter-conservationist, the latest edition of How to Score North American Big Game offers the most up-to-date scoring techniques with easy-to-follow instructions for scoring all 38 categories of North American big-game animals recognized by the Boone and Crockett Club with detailed explanations of the Club’s records-keeping policies and procedures. In addition the book delivers chapters on the Club’s history and its records-keeping program. The new edition also includes an expanded chapter on category boundaries enhanced with detailed, full-color maps from onXmaps. Spiral bound, paperback Over 125 drawings and photographs n 9 x 11.4 inches n 224 pages n n

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FAIR CHASE | WI N T E R 2 0 1 6 51

Â© TONY BYNUM

52 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

In a civilized and cultivated country wild animals only continue to exist at all when preserved by sportsmen. The excellent people who protest against all hunting, and consider sportsmen as enemies of wild life, are ignorant of the fact that in reality the genuine sportsman is by all odds the most important factor in keeping the larger and more valuable wild creatures from total extermination. - THEODORE ROOSEVELT, 1905

As the sun warmed the eastern skies, Steve slowly worked his way along, glassing the broken timber and openings looking for elk. He could hear bulls bugling as he made his way to his desired outlook. Once there he sat down to grab a sandwich and a quick drink. Before he could take his first bite, bugles from just below him alerted him to the presence of some bulls. The morning snack quickly became an afterthought as he began cautiously working down the ridge. The bugles continued, and he didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to go far before he spotted a tremendous bull in some low brush raking a tree. pg 40 ALONE AT THE TOP By Justin E. Spring

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 53

MANAGING WHITETAIL DEER IN THE 21ST CENTURY: CAN WE ADAPT TO THE CHALLENGE? Whitetail deer management in eastern North America has had its share of controversy since restoration programs began more than a century ago. Protected deer populations quickly responded to the regenerating forest conditions that followed abandonment of eastern farms during westward expansion. The reduction and elimination of major deer predators helped fuel deer population growth as well. Meanwhile, the science of managing deer, policy development, communications, and public understanding of the dynamic that was unfolding lagged in response. Within a couple of decades after deer population restoration began, clarion calls were sounded for better science-based deer management. Today, if you ask any wildlife biologist in the U.S., “What wildlife species has had the most scientific publications directed towards it?” the overwhelming odds are the answer would be “whitetail deer.” The newly emerging vocation of wildlife management in the mid-20th century, funded largely through Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration funds, focused on developing the science needed to inventory and manage deer and the habitats they needed. Deer population estimation models and procedures were developed, habitats were improved, and hunting seasons a nd bag l im its were

54 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

established to achieve the deer numbers desired by stakeholders. In the early years, primary stakeholders were hunters who invariably desired more deer, and landowners (mainly, but not exclusively farmers and foresters) who in many cases wanted less deer because of their impacts to crops and forest regeneration. Elected officials, agency leaders, and wildlife managers, with a fresh memory of how we nearly lost deer on the landscape during the 19th century, conservatively focused on the sustained management and recovery of this key species as well as protecting the legacy of deer hunting. The deer management roller-coaster ride was launched! Throughout the last 50 years, little has changed in the deer management decision-making process. Deer numbers are estimated using deer population modeling, which prompts a season and bag limit framework fixed through a democratic process that uses hunters to remove deer from the landscape and provides public recreational opportunities to achieve a deer density with a balanced sex and age structure that is at (or below) a defined carrying capacity. Carrying capacity traditionally has been thought of in biological terms—the number of animals of a species a given unit of land can sustainably support. In the 1980s, deer biologists Mark Ellingwood and the late Jim Spignesi, who worked

SCIENCE BLASTS

JOHN F. ORGAN B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER

for the Connecticut Division of Fish and Wildlife, coined the term “cultural carrying capacity” to represent the threshold number of animals (deer) in a given area that the public can tolerate. When deer-vehicle collisions, ornamental, crop and forest damage, and zoonotic disease such as Lyme become intolerable, that threshold has been exceeded. The challenge to deer managers is that deer numbers do not necessarily correlate to human tolerance, and tolerance within a given population of humans (e.g., community) may vary greatly; therefore, managing by deer numbers might not work well. Most controversy about deer management, however, revolves around hunter dissatisfaction with deer numbers. In part, this is because the most common deer management goal still focuses on number (density) and composition of deer populations. Few management agencies give

Director of the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units

explicit consideration to assessing habitat conditions. For example, in the northeastern U.S. (Maine to Virginia) only Pennsylvania has explicitly incorporated habitat conditions into their deer harvest recommendations. Because whitetail deer have the potential to affect the functioning of forest ecosystems—and hence, their own biological carrying capacity, it is critical that not only deer populations, but also habitat conditions and values of all stakeholder groups are considered in deer management decisions. Deer population modeling, as applied by management agencies in eastern North America, has changed little over the past 40 years.

The challenge to deer managers is that deer numbers do not necessarily correlate to human tolerance, and tolerance within a given population of humans (e.g., community) may vary greatly; therefore, managing by deer numbers might not work well.

My colleague Dr. Duane Diefenbach of the Pennsylvania Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit (see Fair Chase Winter 2015, “The Whitetail Rut in Pennsylvania”) believes there are reasons for the lack of advancement. 1. Whitetail deer in eastern North America inhabit a forested ecosystem where the methods used to estimate deer numbers, based on observation counts, are fraught with biases or are impossible to implement. 2. Harvest data are readily available and methods based on using those data (sexage-kill or reconstruction methods) are easily implemented. 3. Advanced estimation methods require more data and more sophisticated analyses. 4. And, state agencies are limited by funding, staff, and data analysis capabilities. Diefenbach and his colleagues from eastern state wildlife management agencies have interest in reviewing the status of whitetail deer management programs of state wildlife agencies to learn the stateof-the-science with regard to deer population monitoring and why managing exclusively for deer numbers may be a failed

approach. They would explore the challenges and advantages of explicitly incorporating habitat conditions into deer management decisions. Such an approach has the potential to shift the management focus (and political discussion!) from deer numbers to deer habitat as well as explicitly address scientific controversies about the relative importance of deer herbivory and other factors on forested ecosystems and the values of a broad community of stakeholders. In some suburban areas, people refer to deer as “rats with hooves.” I hope that is the exception, because denigration of an animal as magnificent and culturally important as the whitetail deer is unacceptable. Ideally, such a shift in our approach to managing eastern deer populations as suggested by Diefenbach and his colleagues would engender broader public support for, and tolerance of, healthy deer populations, and recognition of the important role of hunters in the ecosystem. n

Read the entire article “The Whitetail Rut in Pennsylvania,” as well as all of John Organ’s “Science Blast” columns online in the B&C Associates community. You also have access to 23 years of archived Fair Chase articles. NOT ALREADY AN ASSOCIATE? JOIN TODAY!

Each issue of Fair Chase contains news about B&C activities in conservation, education, hunting advocacy, conservation policy, and wildlife research efforts, as well as insights from experts outside of the Club. Conservation and biological features cover areas of concern to hunters and game managers, as well as success stories from across North America. Each issue also contains stories from the field, as well as listings and photos of recently accepted Boone and Crockett trophies. AS AN ASSOCIATE YOU WILL RECEIVE

Four issues of Fair Chase magazine (print and digital) n Associates card n Boone and Crockett window decal n Access to the on-line Associates community: Searchable field photos from the B&C Records database. Individual scoring database where you can score your trophies on-line. Electronic archives of past Fair Chase feature articles. n A 20% discount on select Club publications and B&C branded merchandise. n

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 55

EDUCATING THE

B&C UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS

NEXT GENERATION OF

CONSERVATION LEADERS The Boone and Crockett Club University Program is designed to provide science-based knowledge from seasoned wildlife professionals and educators to college graduates in the wildlife field to better prepare the graduates for the responsible and wise management of wildlife in the future.

B&C UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS Michigan State University Mississippi State University Oregon State University Texas A&M University Texas A&M at Kingsville University of Georgia* University of Montana University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point *INCIPIENT PROGRAM

UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS - YEAR IN REVIEW

FELLOWS

7 Schools

UNDERGRADUATES*

AWARDS for EXCELLENCE

MASTERS PHD

POSTDOCTORAL

*Interns participating in research activities

SCHOLARLY PUBLICATIONS

INVITED PRESENTATIONS

POPULAR PUBLICATIONS

43 3

RESEARCH PRESENTATIONS

ENDOWED PROFESSORS IN PLACE

4 GRADUATES

COURSES TAUGHT FROM BOONE AND CROCKETT UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS

56 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

These metrics reflect the maturing programs Dr. Bill Porter and Ms. Jordan Burroughs have established at Michigan State University, as well as new professorship programs in early stages of development by Dr. Perry Barboza and Dr. Josh Millspaugh at Texas A&M and the University of Montana. A new professorship is anticipated at the University of Georgia. Fellowship programs for one or two students each are active at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, Texas A&M-Kingsville and Mississippi State University.

$6,000,000+ Total funding for research activities obtained from sources other than Boone and Crockett endowments

Where There’s a Will... “Making the decision to include the Boone and Crockett Club in our will was easy for my wife Cindy and me. We strongly believe in the Club’s multi-tiered mission of conservation leadership for North America, the support of science based conservation education, the fair chase hunting tradition, and maintaining the most respected record book scoring system in the world. Meeting this mission in the future will be much more challenging than it is today. Leaving a portion of your will to the Club is a positive way you can help. I think it is one of the greatest legacies one could leave. Please join me in the Roughriders Society. Together, we can ensure that the Boone and Crockett Club will have the ability to fulfill its vital mission far into the future.” - Terrell McCombs

Terrell McCombs with his B&C interior grizzly, scoring 24-6/16 points.

The Boone and Crockett Club Foundation can help with your plan. Call today: Winton C. Smith, J.D. 1-800-727-1040

Regular Member Boone and Crockett Club Foundation President (210) 818-8363 ersembac@icloud.com

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 57

PART 2 This is the second of two Fair Chase articles on chronic wasting disease (CWD). The articles are excerpted (and updated) from the complete paper to be published in the “Transactions of the 81st Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference” (Transactions). It was presented in the special session titled “Science-based Management Strategies for Fish and Wildlife Diseases” in March 2016. The complete “Transactions” will be available through the website of the Wildlife Management Institute (wildlifemanagementinstitute.org).

This series will give our readers a closer look at chronic wasting disease. It will touch on the various challenges posed by this disease and begin to update you and all hunters about the status of CWD and what science can tell us about it today.

58 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

LOOKING HARDHARDLY LOOKING: DETECTING CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE decades of experience with chronic wasting disease (CWD) is that detecting CWD in captive and wild settings remains difficult despite the considerable effort expended. Most states and provinces have, at least for a time since the early 2000s, engaged in extensive, if not intensive, surveillance to identify affected wild herds. Although these efforts were well-intentioned, many were too flawed or too short-lived to reliably indicate the absence of disease. We briefly review common shortcomings of CWD surveillance as widely practiced to provide a basis for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of future efforts.

MICHAEL W. MILLER SENIOR WILDLIFE VETERINARIAN, COLORADO DIVISION OF PARKS AND WILDLIFE FORT COLLINS, COLORADO JOHN R. FISCHER B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER DIRECTOR AND PROFESSOR, SOUTHEASTERN COOPERATIVE WILDLIFE DISEASE STUDY, UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA ATHENS, GEORGIA

Â©MARK MESENKO

Another lesson learned from our first five

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 59

Preferred approaches for detecting CWD in new locations (termed “surveillance” here) differ from approaches for following epidemic trends over time in affected populations (“monitoring”). We recommend that CWD surveillance of wild cervids be an ongoing activity in areas where it has not been detected previously. Monitoring may be more episodic (e.g., at multi-year intervals) when resources are limited because infection rates in wild herds tend to change slowly. Regardless of the purpose, CWD surveillance and monitoring should be undertaken at a meaningful scale, and any conclusions should reflect the highly patchy distribution of CWD in wild cervids. In our experience, statements indicating that examination of a few hundred (or even a few thousand) harvested animals has proven a state’s freedom from CWD rarely are supported by the data in hand. In CWD-endemic areas, it has been demonstrated that animals falling into certain categories are more

likely to test positive. These animals may have clinical signs of CWD (emaciation and abnormal behavior), may have been killed by a vehicle or predator, or may be older-age male deer. Consequently, it may be more cost-effective to concentrate testing on animals with a higher probability of infection when surveillance is conducted to detect CWD in new locations than testing large numbers of apparently healthy, hunter-harvested animals. The effectiveness of this ty pe of surveillance assumes relatively even sampling effort over a geographic area, but it does have limitations. For example, clinical disease may not be observed in remote areas, vehicle-killed animals do not occur in roadless areas, and animals killed by predators may be consumed before sampling can occur. In addition to clinical targeting, spatial targeting via risk-based assessments, such as proximity to affected wild populations or captive cervids, also may enhance the effectiveness of CWD surveillance.

For monitoring, random sampling (e.g., from harvested animals) provides relatively unbiased estimates of infection rates. Comparisons over time or between locations should be based on a common denominator (e.g., harvested males aged 2 years or older) to assure that conclusions are reliable. Even though affected areas emerge and grow slowly, infection rates may be remarkably high on first detection when jurisdictions rely on random sampling for surveillance and have not tested adequate numbers of animals at a particular location. Chronic wasting disease tends to be unevenly distributed in the wild. The notion that a survey sample of 300 assures 95 percent probability of detecting at least one case where prevalence is greater than or equal to 1 percent assumes infection is evenly distributed at that rate throughout the entire target population. However, CWD distribution typically is highly uneven within an affected population, and the target

population itself often is distributed unevenly across the area being assessed. TOWARD A SUSTAINED AND SUSTAINABLE EFFORT TO CONTROL CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE

Eradicating CWD from North America appears infeasible given its extensive distribution and other epidemiological attributes as well as the limited number of available tools. With few exceptions—the detection of two positive deer in New York in 2005 and one positive deer in southeastern Minnesota in 2011 (although CWD has been found in several wild deer in 2016-17 in an adjacent county)—CWD in free-ranging cervids has persisted in affected areas in the face of widely varied control attempts. Faced with dim prospects for eradication, some affected jurisdictions now seem to have abandoned any further consideration of disease management and some have effectively dismantled surveillance and monitoring. In light of numerous

One of the mistaken perceptions about chronic wasting disease is that infected deer (and elk and moose) are all emaciated, drooling, and stumbling. This leads to the illusion that the disease is rare because many casual observers never see an end-stage animal. They tend to disappear pretty quickly in most wildland settings once clinical signs become this obvious. The vast majority of infected animals harvested by hunters appear to be healthy.

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Regardless of the purpose, CWD surveillance and monitoring should be undertaken at a sufficient level, and any conclusions should reflect the highly patchy distribution of CWD in wild cervids. In our experience, statements indicating that examination of a few hundred (or even a few thousand) harvested animals has proven a state’s freedom from CWD rarely is supported by the data in hand.

wildlife conservation needs and ever-dwindling resources, we appreciate the allure but believe this approach should be reconsidered, and we strongly encourage wildlife managers to redouble efforts to collectively develop sustained approaches for CWD surveillance, monitoring, and control. In contrast to the apparent success in eliminating New York’s small free-ranging focus (two wild deer with CWD were detected in 2005 in the vicinity of an affected captive herd), well-publicized early attempts to control CWD in Colorado and Wisconsin yielded little evidence of progress and thus gave initial appearances of failure. In recent years, however, evidence from some control attempts suggests that combinations of intensive deer removal around case clusters,

as well as more sustained reduction of the affected population, may offer some measure of disease suppression. A sustained, localized culling program underway since 2003 has stabilized prevalence in northern Illinois whitetails as compared to the increasing trends in southern Wisconsin where disease control largely was suspended in 2007. Similar divergence in prevalence between deer harvested in Alberta and Saskatchewan may reflect the relative effectiveness of disease suppression efforts in Alberta, but also could be an artifact of more recent CWD emergence there. In northcentral Colorado, a combination of focal culling and broader, hunter-harvest population reduction (approximately 25 percent) in the early 2000s appears likely to have contributed to reduced

prevalence, whereas estimated prevalence in other Colorado mule deer herds has increased since 2002. One of the most common flaws in CWD control efforts to date has been initial underestimation of the affected area (often based on inadequate surveillance and erroneous assumptions about how long CWD has been present). The outcome then gave the appearance that the control attempt had failed when in fact the approach was biologically sound but the application was either too small (spatially) or too short-lived. It follows that acquiring reliable distribution and prevalence data in the planning and early implementation stages may improve the efficacy of future CWD control efforts. Consequently we encourage wildlife managers to set realistic disease-control objectives and to

use an adaptive management approach that incorporates future field data to refine objectives and strategies. In addition to adopting and adaptively assessing approaches for stabilizing or suppressing CWD outbreaks, we encourage wildlife managers to consider how recent trends in cervid management may be contributing to disease establishment. Modeling suggests harvest-based control of CWD may be most effective when focused on male deer, perhaps because infection rates among adult male deer tend to be higher than among adult females. Conversely, then, harvest strategies intended to increase male to female ratios or adult male age structure could inadvertently facilitate CWD persistence. This may explain why the dramatic increases in prevalence observed since 2002 in Colorado in several affected mule deer herds coincide with changes in harvest strategies intended to reduce buck harvest and increase buck to doe ratios over the same period. Given the potential for unintended consequences, we encourage critical assessment of how this and other harvest strategies (e.g., season timing, baiting and/or feeding, “quality deer management”) may be affecting CWD dynamics. Control efforts undoubtedly will be more difficult to champion and garner support for in sociopolitical FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 61

climates ranging from apathetic to combative, particularly when control prescriptions impinge upon or conflict with commercial cervid enclosures and/or hunting by the general public. The human dimensions of managing wildlife diseases in general—and CWD in particular—present a substantial challenge for those determining the management objectives and actions. For example, surveys of hunters and landowners in Wisconsin identified several factors that contributed to hunter opposition to the state’s CWD management plan including: opposition to deer

population goals (initially zero); conflicts with traditions; uncertainty about the likelihood of success; questions about agency credibility; and no sense of urgency. We believe there are two important motivations for responsible wildlife managers to make progress toward sustainable containment and control strategies for CWD in the coming decades. First, data from several sources suggest that an affected whitetail population will not thrive in the longterm. For example, researchers studying of an affected whitetailed-deer population

in Wyoming recently found that CWD-positive deer were 4½ times more likely to die annually than CWD-negative deer, while bucks were 1.7 times more likely to die than does. The researchers concluded that “the strong population-level effects of CWD suggest affected populations are not sustainable at high disease prevalence under current harvest levels.” Second, we believe that existing data on CWD prions and experience with other animal prion diseases suggest minimizing human exposure to these agents would be prudent. The final overarching

lessons learned over the past five decades relate to how wildlife and animal health professionals should (and probably should not) approach the control of CWD. In contrast to advances in our understanding of CWD biology and ecology, the science informing effective management and control strategies remains relatively incomplete. However, recent insights and modest strides seem to offer a path forward, and adaptive approaches for containing CWD within limited geographic areas and for reducing infection and transmission rates deserve further attention. n

The first part of this series was featured in the Winter 2016 issue of Fair Chase. CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE: PART 1 REVISITED:

Chronic wasting disease, an infectious prion disease of at least five cervid species, has run the gamut from minor scientific curiosity to national crisis since the syndrome’s first recognition in the late 1960s. Moving forward, we believe this wildlife disease merits attention somewhere between those extremes. Collective experiences and observations made over the last five decades can serve—for better or worse—as a solid foundation for wildlife and animal health professionals to build upon in addressing anticipated challenges posed by CWD in the decades to come. Many facets of CWD biology and ecology that were mysteries even into the early 2000s now are well understood. For example, notable advances have been made in diagnostics and in our understanding of transmission routes and host factors modulating disease progression that have application in CWD detection and control.

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CWD BY THE MAP

Current known distribution of chronic wasting disease (CWD). In addition to North America, cases have been reported in South Korea (captive only) and Norway (free-ranging only). North America map from U.S. Geological Survey (2017). This map has been updated since the original production n the Winter 2016 issue of Fair Chase.

CWD THROUGH THE YEARS YEAR

EVENTS

1967

Wasting syndrome observed in captive mule deer at a Colorado wildlife research facility

1975−81

Wasting syndrome observed in Toronto Zoo mule deer that came from the Denver Zoo

1978

“Chronic wasting disease” (CWD) diagnosed as transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE)

1979

Recognized in captive mule deer at Wyoming wildlife research facility

1981

Detected in wild elk in Colorado

1985

Detected in wild mule deer in Colorado and Wyoming

1996

Detected in a captive elk farm in Saskatchewan; 38 other linked farms eventually found positive

1997

Detected in captive elk facilities in South Dakota

1998

n n

Detected in captive elk facilities in Montana and Oklahoma Model Program for Surveillance, Control, and Eradication of CWD in Domestic Elk presented at US Animal Health Association to establish monitoring and control standards

1999

World Health Organization indicates no evidence CWD is transmissible to humans, but advises that exposure should be avoided nonetheless

2000

Detected in wild mule deer in Nebraska and Saskatchewan Research: molecular studies compare host ranges for CWD, scrapie, and bovine spongiform encephalopathy prions; environmental contamination and subclinical infection contribute to transmission; prevalence estimates in wild populations in Colorado and Wyoming

2001

n n n n

2002

n n n n n n

2003

n n n n

2004

Detected in captive elk in Kansas Detected in captive elk in South Korea imported from Saskatchewan Detected in wild white-tailed deer in South Dakota USDA declares CWD emergency in captive elk; funds available for disease control Detected in captive elk in Minnesota, captive white-tailed deer in Alberta, and wild and captive white-tailed deer in Wisconsin Detected in wild white-tailed deer in Illinois, mule deer in New Mexico, and elk in South Dakota Joint CWD Task Force of USDA/DOI/States/Universities develops Plan for Assisting States, Federal Agencies, and Tribes in Managing CWD in Wild and Captive Cervids (National CWD Plan) Colorado establishes guidelines to minimize transport of high risk carcass materials 1st International CWD Symposium (Denver, Colorado) Research: tonsil biopsy as a live animal test; improved high-throughput diagnostics Detected in wild mule deer in Utah APHIS funds available for CWD work in captive and wild cervids (through 2011) USDA publishes Proposed Rule for CWD herd certification and interstate shipping program (HCP) to eradicate CWD from captive whitetailed deer and elk Research: horizontal transmission of CWD likely important in CWD epidemiology

Detected in wild elk in New Mexico National CWD Plan progress report published and new priorities discussed Research: environmental sources, decomposed carcasses can contribute to transmission

2005

Detected in captive and wild white-tailed deer in New York, wild mule deer in Alberta, moose in Colorado, and white-tailed deer in West Virginia

2006

n n

Detected in captive white-tailed deer in Minnesota and wild white-tailed deer in Kansas USDA publishes CWD HCP Final Rule – never implemented Research: prions in muscles of infected deer; transmitted in saliva and blood

2007

Research: prions in environment more infective in particular (clay) soil types

2008

Detected in captive white-tailed deer in Michigan, wild elk in Saskatchewan, and moose in Wyoming Research: CWD may be a plausible explanation for local deer population declines in Colorado

n n

APHIS plans to withdraw 2006 CWD Final Rule, issue a new rule based on 2006 rule and 2009 proposed rule Research: prions shed in feces from deer in early stages of CWD; prions in urine and saliva

2010

Detected in captive white-tailed deer in Missouri and wild white-tailed deer in North Dakota and Virginia

2011

Detected in wild white-tailed deer in Maryland and Minnesota Severe reduction of USDA funds for CWD work

2009

2012

Detected in captive white-tailed deer in Iowa and Pennsylvania, wild white-tailed deer in Missouri, and wild mule deer in west Texas APHIS Interim Final Rule for CWD Herd Certification and Interstate Movement and CWD Program Standards published Research: possible link between scrapie and CWD

2013

Detected in wild white-tailed deer in Pennsylvania

2014

Detected in captive white-tailed deer in Ohio CWD Program Standards revised APHIS CWD Final Rule implemented Research: plants may play role in CWD transmission and environmental maintenance; experimental aerosol transmission in white-tailed deer

n n

n n n

2015

n n

2016

n n

Detected in wild white-tailed deer in Michigan and captive white-tailed deer in Texas Research: plants can bind prions superficially and uptake prions from contaminated soil Detected in wild elk and white-tailed deer in Arkansas Detected in wild moose and reindeer in Norway. FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 63

An excerpt from, The Legendary Hunts of Theodore Roosevelt by John Seerey-Lester. Special B&C Edition now available. www.boone-crockett.org/TRhunts

INTO THE STORM 18 87

Theodore Roosevelt and his companion had been camped several miles down the Little Missouri River from his Elkhorn Ranch in the Badlands of the Dakota Territories. Late in 1887 TR had completed a successful weeklong deer hunt. He and his ranch hand, Wilmot Dow, had bagged eight deer for their winter stock of meat at the ranch. Their little wagon was heavily loaded, and TR knew that traveling would be slow on their return journey. TR estimated it would take two days to get back, and they might be lucky enough to bag some wild sheep along the way. It was a beautiful, mild morning for that time of year when they broke camp and headed out. They had traveled more than an hour when the sky became overcast, and the wind, coming in from the north, began to pick up. The wind began to blow harder and soon the sky had become ominously dark. TR was still not accustomed to how fast the weather could change in the West. Although it was midday, it began to look like night. The wind grew stronger and stronger. One savage gust nearly swept TR out of his saddle and Dow from his seat on the wagon. Then came the blizzard. The two men grabbed their big fur coats from the wagon and huddled against the biting wind and snow. They drove on southward, luckily with the gale at their backs. The ride was hard and soon the over-weighted wagon

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broke down. They were stranded in the middle of the prairie where the wind was blowing stronger and stronger. The men knew the winter storm would last for many hours, if not several days. They also knew they were miles away from any kind of shelter. The ferocious blizzard prevented them from making a fire or setting up camp. TR decided to leave the wagon behind, so they unharnessed the two horses. Dow, who had been the driver, rode one of the team and led another. TR mounted his horse and the two men struck for home. The horses were tough, accustomed to extreme weather. TR was unsure of their location and Dow was unable to help. But they knew the general direction of the ranch and pushed on. As night approached, the blizzard grew worse; the wind kept shifting, whirling around the men as they pushed onward. The severe cold turned the snowflakes into vicious little shards of ice mixed with prairie dust that sliced into their faces. So intense was the storm that both TR and Dow could hardly open their eyes. The roar of the blizzard drowned their voices and they were unable to hear each other, even though they were only a few feet apart. Mile after mile they rode on through the freezing storm. Eventually the wind slackened and once again came from their backs, but the heavy snow continued. Still difficult to see where they

were going, they would occasionally ride up to an impassable cliff or canyon and have to retrace their tracks. Then, with the same speed with which it had come, the blizzard eased, the clouds cleared, and the storm was gone. A bright moon led them back to the ranch. TR decided to leave the wagon for a day or two and collect it later. Meanwhile, he would make the most of the first good snow of the season and head into the hills to track some wild sheep he’d heard about. Next morning fresh snow lay everywhere and the cold was so intense that every window inside the ranch house was iced up. TR went to get a fresh horse and pack for a possible overnight only to find that even his supplies and tack were frozen solid. Soon, TR and Dow were heading out into the winter wonderland in search of bighorn sheep. To ease the burden on the young horse he was riding, TR had gone without his heavy fur coat and in short order the cold was chilling him to his marrow. At times they had to dismount and walk their ponies through the deep snow as they climbed up and down the white-clad hills. TR knew that he was getting frostbite in his ears and fingers, but the hard work was keeping his body warm. They had walked and rode until late afternoon when suddenly three bighorn rams sprang into view and galloped across a snowy plateau in

front of them. The rams’ brown bodies stood out in stark contrast to the sea of white as they plunged through the powdery snow. As the sheep bounded up a ridge, TR fired twice at the lead ram, but missed. At the top, the ram suddenly stopped and looked back at the men. He was some 350 yards distant when TR fired his third shot, which appeared to go through the ram’s lungs. Surprisingly, the bighorn ran over the hill as if unharmed, but when TR followed it, he found it dead about 150 yards farther on. His shot would stand as one of the best he would ever make on a wild animal. Despite the intense cold, TR walked back and paced off the distance of the shot and was particularly pleased with what he’d achieved. But he admitted there might have been more luck involved than skill. It was nighttime when the men reached the horses and started back. The moon cast an eerie light on the frozen land and everything was covered in frost. Although they went at a slow pace, the men were white from head to toe and icicles hung from TR’s mustache. They had ridden and worked all day without food or rest. Both men were numb from the cold when they finally saw the welcoming lamplight at Elkhorn Ranch. The thermometer at the ranch read -26 degrees. But the horns of the magnificent ram made it all worthwhile. n

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JIM GIESE

HUNTING FOR SUSTAINABILITY 678hvk876

college students learn hunting skills to bring game from the field to the plate

Occasionally the bear lifted his head, revealing the telltale indented dish of his face, scanning the area around him before going back to being a bear. The cattle were doing what they needed to do to survive as well—at ease, heads angled low, munching on remnants of green grass scattered among a sea of brown as fall relented to the pending winter. A few of the cattle were bedded down, chewing their cud, seeming to enjoy the warmth of the sun on an otherwise cool day. The cattle knew the grizzly was there, as the grizzly knew the cattle were there.

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HUNTING FOR SUSTAINABILITY COORDINATOR Photos Courtesy of Author

Seeing the grizzly was an

unplanned surprise; most sightings usually are. Luke Coccoli, Boone and Crockett’s conservation programs manager for the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch (TRMR), took a chance that the grizzly would be in the same area that he had been seeing it for the past month or so. He didn’t exactly promise that it would be there, but his confidence was palpable as he led the two vehicles up the winding road to an overlook above a pasture that had been holding the grizzly. The students were excited as well, but it was difficult to gauge their belief that the grizzly would be there. Mutterings of various forms of really, what are the chances filled the vehicle.

Standing on the overlook, students gazed through binoculars, spotting scopes, and cameras, making it easy to see the large grizzly about a mile away. The bear stood on the outskirts of a large herd of Angus cattle, just inside the pasture fence. On the other side of the fence the flowing waters of Dupuyer Creek were hidden by yellowing willows and aspens. To the west stood the abruptness of the Rocky Mountain Front. Even from that distance it was easy to tell the bear was doing what he needed to do to survive. The grizzly’s long claws dug deep into the earth, effortlessly turning the sod, likely unearthing sustenance critical for the bear to endure the coming winter. Occasionally he lifted his head, revealing the telltale indented dish of his face, scanning the area around him before going back to being a bear. The cattle were doing what they needed to do to survive as well—at ease, heads angled low, munching on remnants of green grass scattered among a sea of brown as fall relented to the pending winter. A few of the cattle were bedded down, chewing their cud, seeming to enjoy the warmth of the sun on an otherwise cool day. The cattle knew the grizzly was there, as the grizzly knew the cattle were there. We were on our way to the rifle range that Sunday when Luke sidetracked our group to seek out the grizzly. It was the final day of an inaugural program that brought University of Montana (UM) students and numerous

volunteer speakers to the TRM Ranch situated along the Rocky Mountain Front outside of Dupuyer, Montana. Thanks to generous support from the Phil Tawney Hunters Conservation Endowment as well as support from the Montana Wildlife Federation (MWF); Backcountry Hunters and Anglers; Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation; Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (FWP); and the Boone and Crockett Club, the pilot program— Hunting for Sustainability— took place at the TRMR during the weekend of September 2325, 2016. The goal of the weekend was to introduce hunting to young adults who had limited exposure to the sport earlier in their lives. The program grew out of a grant proposal I drafted during a graduate seminar at the University of Montana. I was familiar with a comparable program in Wisconsin that has had great success on various campuses throughout that state. After numerous emails between myself and Keith Warnke, hunting and shooting sports coordinator for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, I thought it would be beneficial to start a similar program in Montana, particularly on a campus where the sustainable food movement has a strong foothold, and in a state where the tradition of hunting has such deep roots. Although the focus of the program was to present hunting as a means of

The goal of the weekend was to introduce hunting to young adults who had limited exposure to the sport earlier in their lives.

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Luke, pictured at right holding a shotgun, walked students through the field-dressing portion, allowing two of the students to experience the process for the first time.

acquiring a local, sustainable protein, the underlying objectives for the program included those that are found in most hunter education courses. Regardless of the age of the participant, basic skills need to be introduced before one considers stepping foot outside in pursuit of their own meat. “Hunting can mean so many things to so many different people, but no matter what, you must first understand the facts and the science behind it all. Ethics, population control, local food sourcing, state laws, proper care of harvested meat are all fundamental to becoming an educated, responsible, and sustainable hunter,” said Luke. This is where volunteers—staff from MWF; Montana FWP; the University of Montana; and local residents—really stepped in and took the time (particularly impressive as it was late September in Montana, when most hunting seasons are underway) to share their wisdom and experience as hunters. As someone who did not start hunting until my mid-20s, I could relate to some of the challenges one may face when considering hunting. I look back at my foray into hunting as similar to on-thejob training. I took to the fields and woods of Wisconsin with 68 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

friends who had hunting experience, and I learned via informal exposure as the hours and days afield began to stack up. I made mistakes. I got frustrated. I took shots I shouldn’t have. But, eventually I learned enough to where I was comfortable calling myself a hunter. Through the years I also discovered that what initially drew me to hunting was the camaraderie of friends. As those friends started careers and families and moved to various spots throughout the country, I found myself going solo on more hunts. I enjoyed the challenges of solo hunting but missed that connection to friends. As I reached the end of my thirties I found that I had stopped killing animals. I did not stop hunting; I just stopped pulling the trigger. I found myself, at least subconsciously, in a seven-year search for another connection as to why I hunt. As a former restaurant owner, food has always played a role in my life. But it would take that hiatus from killing game to help me truly realize the connection to food that hunting afforded. For most seasoned hunters it is simple to make the connection between hunting and food, and I would guess that for most of those hunters that connection to food most likely developed after they started to hunt. But recent trends in the local food movement are pulling college-aged adults into the world of hunting and numerous state agencies and conservation nonprofits are utilizing the relationship between hunting and food as a way to connect new adult hunters to hunting. When the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released the results from its 2011 survey of hunter participation, many mass media outlets and hunting-related media were surprised to find that there had been a nine percent increase

in the number of licensed hunters in the U.S. since 2006. This growth was the first time in decades that the number of licensed hunters showed an increase. It is, however, vital to keep in mind that the longterm trend of decreasing hunter participation still continues. Specifically, the participation rate of hunting (the percentage of the U.S. population who purchased hunting licenses) in 1955 was at 10 percent versus just under 4.5 percent in 2011. A number of media outlets associated the rising number of hunters with the increasing trend of “locavore” hunters. There may be some truth to this. Thanks in part to a handful of bestselling books such as Omnivore’s Dilemma, The Mindful Carnivore, and Righteous Porkchop, and numerous articles in mainstream media that have reported an increased interest in urbanites learning to hunt, many people are reexamining the ecological and ethical means of how they obtain meat. In one of our early conversations about a Montana program, Warnke agreed that the movement to eat locally produced food is helping to drive interest in hunting within the college-aged population, stating, “These folks missed the natural path into hunting through parents, but they certainly have a strong conservation ethic, a strong environmental orientation, and a realization that hunting is a really sustainable way to obtain your protein.” Hunting as a sustainable use of a renewable source of meat may be a perfect fit for an increasingly conservation-oriented world. In particular, today’s young adults have demonstrated strong interest in lower-impact living, food co-ops, farmers’ markets, sustainable agriculture, and ‘slow’ food. Hunting may be

seen as a natural extension of this movement. But taking the step from avoiding factory-raised meat to that of becoming a hunter involves dealing with not only the ecological and ethical ramifications of a hurried, industrialized society, but also with personal beliefs and coming to terms with doing your own killing—there is a deep emotional distinction between hunting and shopping that should not be taken lightly. And killing was one of the challenges the program organizers faced so that we would have an animal that would allow the hands-on presentation of field dressing, butchering, and finally, a freshly cooked venison meal. Thoughts ranged from trying to procure a road-killed animal to bringing in slaughtered domestic livestock just in case. In the end, we agreed that the most realistic solution was to take a chance that a deer would be harvested during the program. As it is in hunting, there was the possibility that we would not have a deer available. As happens from time to time in hunting, things do fall in place to make the adventure a bit more successful. Jason Asselstine, a local pastor, was kind enough to use his antlerless deer permit to kill a deer for this portion of the program. In addition, having a freshly killed deer was a great opportunity for students to get exposure to following a fresh blood trail. Luke walked students through the field-dressing portion, allowing the students to experience the process for the first time. Donning arm-length gloves, two of the students worked their way through the steps, asking questions as they opened up the belly of the deer and removed the entrails.

FROM THE DESK OF

Dr. Joshua Millspaugh B&C Professor at the University of Montana

Much has been said and written lately about challenges facing wildlife management. Ensuring future generations understand the relevance of hunting to wildlife management and society is a primary concern. While strategies have been developed to address this issue, I was excited to participate in this Hunting for Sustainability program because it was directed toward university students. University students are a logical fit for such a program given their openness to new experiences, challenges, and opportunities. Further, understanding their motivations for participation in such programs may help with the relevance issue. As students of the program discussed their interests, some appropriately felt that as non-hunters they needed to better understand hunting culture and heritage to be effective in their professional wildlife careers. For others, I was impressed by their desire to harvest and process their own food as they described how they viewed harvested game as a local, sustainable, and natural food source. One student said, “I just never had the chance and want to see what hunting is about.” I see similar responses from students in my courses when we discuss wildlife harvest management. Non-hunting students want to learn about the role of hunting in wildlife management, strategies for managing the harvest, and are generally curious about hunting—many just never had a chance to hunt. By combining the “how to” part of hunting, processing, and cooking game with discussions that place hunting in a broader conservation and societal context, this learn-to-hunt program fills an important niche to an eager audience. Offering such programs to university students, from all majors, provides an appropriate opportunity to share the relevance of hunting to those entrusted with conservation in the future.

Read More Fair Chase Learn more about B&C’s Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Ranch in the Fall 2014 issue of Fair Chase. See how Michigan State University’s Learn to Hunt program is teaching students to hunt in the Summer 2016 of Fair Chase.

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 69

After watching the experienced butchers skin the deer and then remove a front and rear quarter, students took turns removing cuts from the hanging carcass. With quarters and primal cuts on a table, the father and son showed how to further break down quarters to produce various cuts, how to grind meat, and proper techniques for wrapping and storage of meat.

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Following field dressing, Bob and Nick Hjelm, a father and son from Conrad, led the demonstration on how to butcher the deer. Bob, the elder, is an avid hunter, and his son is the meat department manager at the Conrad Gary and Leo’s supermarket. After watching the experienced butchers skin the deer and then remove a front and rear quarter, students took turns removing cuts from the hanging carcass. With quarters and primal cuts on a table, the father and son showed how to further break down quarters to produce various cuts, how to grind meat, and proper techniques for wrapping and storage of meat. With the focus on hunting for one’s food in the program, the remainder of Saturday afternoon was dedicated to preparing a meal using the venison that the students helped butcher earlier that day. Local cook Katie Lethenstrom planned a menu, complete with sides and dessert, and prepared the meal under the watchful eyes of the students. The tenderloins and back straps were cut into filets, simply seasoned and readied for the grill. Ground venison was formed into patties. The heart was trimmed, cleaned, cut into strips, and pan-fried—a first for most of the students and some of the speakers. We enjoyed the meal in the Rasmuson Wildlife Conservation Center (RWCC) with the evening light filtering into the room. The conversation, during the meal as well as after, leaned heavily toward the experiences of processing, butchering, and cooking the deer. After dinner I was standing with a student at the bank of windows looking west as the sun set over the Front. He was looking through a spotting scope at deer as they browsed the meadows. He paused, and then mentioned

his realization that the deer that we ate was possibly walking the same fields earlier that day. I didn’t sense regret in his comment, but rather an acceptance and understanding of the process it took to bring the deer from the field to our plates. A couple of months after the program I asked Luke why the ranch was the ideal location for the Hunting for Sustainability program. Among his responses were the impressive backdrop of the Rocky Mountain Front, the abundance of wildlife, the community of local volunteers, and the availability of the rifle and shotgun range. He ended his comment by reiterating the importance of relationships, not only in hunting but in all aspects of our lives: “If following a blood trail leading to a harvested deer wasn’t enough, I believe seeing a grizzly in the middle of a hayfield surrounded by black angus cows certainly showed everyone that wildlife, livestock, and human impacts are in this world to stay, and it is up to all of us to act responsibly while hunting in order to maintain a sustainable future for us all.” The increasing sustainable-food movements and, conceivably, the innovative catch phrases that they have spurred—free-range, grassfed, natural, and locally grown, to name a few—may be playing a role in a resurging interest in hunting. Regardless of the adjectives one chooses to explain their reason to learn to hunt (or rediscover it), many people are making the decision to kill their own animals for meat— and many are doing so through hunting. Only time will tell if this is a passing fad, or a new lifestyle for ecologically and environmentally concerned adults. n

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DARK WINDOWS AND BOLOGNA SANDWICHES

BEYOND THE SCORE

Timothy J. Beck AWARD-WINNING TROPHY OWNER 29TH BIG GAME AWARDS PROGRAM

“You shot my deer!” I heard a voice exclaim as I sat in my tree stand watching the steam rising from the nostrils of my freshly downed buck. I looked to my left and saw a large, moose of a man in camouflage. He crossed from “his” cornfield behind me into “mine” and was heading toward the magnificent buck I had shot only a few minutes earlier.

I had heard the stories of hunters squabbling in the field over disputed kills, though I had never been witness to such an incident. As with all things in life, there is a first time for everything. For a brief instant, I contemplated the probable outcome of my engaging in a physical altercation with a man twice my size. Fortunately, my story has a happy ending. And perhaps semi-fortunate for you, gentle reader, is that you get to hear it. So gather ‘round, children! November 17, 2012, was the first day of gun season in Indiana. The land I hunt is somewhat centrally located in an area of farmland and 72 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

small woods. Because of this, I consider my spot somewhat inferior since other hunters on adjacent properties theoretically have first crack at deer moving through. From my stand I can sometimes see two, three, even up to twelve hunters at any given time, not counting me. On this day I believe there were at least eight of us in the area. For almost 20 years, my plan of attack has been to take two weeks’ vacation from work to hunt deer. Indiana’s gun season is generally 16 days in November—two full weeks encompassing three weekends. I try to hunt all day from morning until dark, maximizing my time in the stand. My thinking is: “You can’t shoot if you ain’t there!” And, if another hunter leaving at midday or entering before dusk

kicks a deer my way, so much the better! T he r e a r e downsides to my plan of attack, however. It takes incredible mental stamina to look at the same damned soybean stubble or corn stalks 10 hours a day for 16 days straight and not go mad from the monotony. Happily, the occasional crow, cardinal, squirrel, barn cat, lost dog, low-flying airplane, or whatever shows up to provide welcome diversions. Hunger must also be considered. Before I began deer hunting, I could take or leave a bologna sandwich— usually leave. Alas, during deer season, bologna sandwiches are now my staple. I

This column is dedicated to the system that supports the public hunting of public wildlife for all fair chase sportsmen, and the stories and trophies that are the result. Theodore Roosevelt strongly believed that self-reliance and pursuing the strenuous activities of hunting and wilderness exploration was the best way to keep man connected to nature. We score trophies, but every hunt is to some extent a way of measuring ourselves.

TROPHY INFO B&C SCORE: 303 7/8 HUNTER: Timothy J. Beck LENGTHS OF MAIN BEAMS (R) 30 (L) 29 1 / 8 POINTS (R) 16 (L) 19 INSIDE SPREAD 23 4 / 8 LOCATION Huntington Co., Indiana – 2012

INDIANA STATE RECORD!

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Opening day, I, in turn, had to watch the dark windows of his empty home for the first time. In previous seasons, the lights in the windows telegraphed what was happening at the house. Eating breakfast. Went to the garage. In the laundry room. Watching television. Now, all the windows told me the same thing: He is not here. A sense of melancholy seeped into my usual opening day enthusiasm. always have a few in my pack to help ward off hunger on my day-long vigils. Unhappily, no filet mignons magically appear in my pack to provide respite, so by about day eight I am sick and tired of bologna. Consequently, I have found that I can’t eat cold cuts at all during the rest of the year. It’s a tradeoff I have been willing to make. On this day, as I had done for years, I arrived at the property in the early morning and parked my Chevrolet Silverado four-wheel-drive pickup. My AWD quad ATV was safely loaded in the truck bed ready to be used if needed to haul out a buck. I always walk to the stand, so I slung my much-beloved Remington 12-gauge autoloader over my shoulder, careful not to bump my sweet Leupold scope. The Winchester slugs nestled peacefully in my pockets, ready for action. I checked the time on my watch and adjusted my ear warmers around my 74 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

orange hunting hat. Then I began my walk to my stand. My walk was a little over a half mile through an already picked and tilled cornfield. Mercifully, the farmer who farms the landowner’s ground leaves a path for me from the road to the woods untilled. It has to be at least a small aggravation for him to leave a truckwidth half-mile strip in the middle of the field. I have always appreciated it. There is no way to tell my story without anonymously mentioning the man who had owned the land on which I was hunting. His relationship to me can probably best be described as pseudo-stepdad. He passed away August 2012. In his time, he was a sportsman who took many trophy game animals and fish from all over the world. He and I were able to go fishing several times, once with a charter captain who at the time had a television show. This 2012 deer season

was the first he was not there to watch me from his window as I sat in my tree stand. In a season several years earlier, he watched me shoot a nice 12-pointer. From his window he gave play-by-play announcements to my mother over the phone. “The buck is coming. It is coming. It looks like an elk! He is going to shoot. He shot. He shot! The buck is running to the woods!” The old man eventually drove my truck back and watched me gut the incredibly large-bodied buck. “His heart looks like a frigging beef heart!” he exclaimed. I think he was happier than I was. Over the years when I field-dressed deer, I harvested the tongues for him, which he considered a delicacy. Sadly, there was no tongue bag in my pack for the 2012 season. Opening day, I, in turn, had to watch the dark windows of his empty home for the first time. In previous seasons, the lights in the windows telegraphed what was happening at the house. Eating breakfast. Went to the garage. In the laundry room. Watching television. Now, all the windows told me the same thing: He is not here. A sense of melancholy seeped into my usual opening day enthusiasm. I had not eaten breakfast. By 9 a.m. I had consumed two sandwiches to quiet my stomach. Seasoned hunters know that a whitetail deer can hear a rumbling belly from a quarter mile away. I cursed myself for not bringing a half dozen of the succulent, delectable treats. I checked my pockets for granola bars. I found one. Expiration date— 2007. I held it in reserve. This day I was in a ladder tree stand with a padded shooting rail covered with camo blind material. I had hung a few deer scents in the branches around me, including the scent drag I had used on my walk in. My hunting pack (sans sandwiches) was on

the floor of the stand behind me. Around 9:30 a.m., I was checking the weather radar on my smartphone. I had placed my gun on the floor in front of me with the barrel resting in the right-hand corner of the shooting rail, pointing up. To my left I saw a doe cross into the field I was hunting. An antlered buck was walking right behind her with love in his eye. They had been traveling from behind me. The doe walked out in front of me, turned, and angled back heading toward my stand with the buck bringing up the rear. I waited until the doe turned her head to look back at the buck and then picked up my gun. I put the gun on the shooting rail and shouldered it. The buck seemed oblivious to anything except the doe and continued to follow her toward me with his head down, his wide rack obscuring much of his body as I viewed it through my scope. The doe stopped and appeared nervous. I think she spotted me. The buck continued to her, quartering toward me. At about 50 yards out from me the buck stopped and raised his head. I put the cross hairs on the right-hand side of his chest and fired. I hit him. The buck stomped around and did not run. The doe did not run. The buck stood still for a few seconds and then began walking to my right giving me a broadside opportunity. I fired a second time; he pivoted and went down. It appeared that his antlers held his head off of the ground. The doe traveled away to my right, exiting my field. I heard a shot. I learned later a hunter on the neighboring property took her. The buck was still. I prepared to watch him for a time just in case. On previous hunts I had taken photos of my

ON E OF F I V E W H I T ETA I L DEER T H AT SCOR ES OV ER 300 POIN TS! B&C Vice President of Big Game Records, Eldon L. “Buck” Buckner, verifies the measurements on Beck’s non-typical whitetail deer. The rack has 35 scorable points making it an extremely complicated deer to score. B&C Official Measurers use different colors of tape to mark the typical and non-typical points during the scoring process. All the points marked with red tape are abnormal points.

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WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN B&C’s ALL-TIME BOOK AND THE AWARDS BOOK? The All-time book, Records of North American Big Game, is published every six years and includes all trophy listings that meet the All-time minimum scores. The Awards books— such as our newest records book, Boone and Crockett Club’s 29th Big Game Awards 20132015—are published every three years and have listings of trophies accepted during a three-year Awards period. The Awards books are considered supplements to the prior editions of the All-time books. Another major difference between the two books is the inclusion of hunting stories about the award-winning trophies recognized during that Awards Period, like Timothy Beck’s account of his non-typical whitetail deer.

Less than 600 copies of our new records book remain. Call toll-free 888-840-4868 or visit boone-crockett.org to order your copy today. Hardcover with dust jacket Includes all B&C trophy entries accepted between 2013– 2015 n Over 500 B&W photographs and 60 color photographs n 7 x 9 inches, 736 pages n n

Sign up as a B&C Associates today and buy for only $43.95! The regular price for this book is $54.95. It is only available from B&C and is not sold in book stores. Once the book is sold out, no more will be printed.

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deer from my stand when practical. That was my plan for this buck as well—waiting and photographing. As it turned out, I never took any photos from the stand. “You shot my deer!” I heard from the mooseman who was following the same path as the buck had taken. Mooseman crossed into my field and turned to speak with me. For a split second, I did not recognize him. Fortune smiled on me when I realized he was a fellow hunter from the property adjacent to me. I had met him a few times over the years during deer season and we had exchanged information such as “Which way did they go?” (West.); “Did you see anyone messing with my deer stands?” (I had.); “Do you have any extra bologna sandwiches?” (He did not.) The mooseman asked for permission to go look at my buck, which I granted. He marched to the buck and I descended and joined him. “Ay Chihuahua!” I thought, when I saw the antlers up close. We counted 36 points. Boone and Crockett later counted 35. Even later, a Buckmasters scorer counted 38. (If anyone knows of a Safari Club International scorer who can count 40, please let me know.) As it turned out, the buck and doe had passed right in front of my mooseman acquaintance on their way toward me. Indiana has a onebuck rule. He had already taken a buck during bow season and did not try for the doe because he wanted to watch the giant-racked deer. He had witnessed my harvest and congratulated me on a clean, quick kill. An interesting fact we discovered about my buck was that he had an older wound from an arrow in his right rear hip. The buck was not limping and appeared to be walking normally as he trailed the doe. We ogled the antlers

and chatted a bit. He took some photos and then returned to his property to continue hunting. The official Boone and Crockett photo was one he took with my phone. My usual practice upon getting a deer is to send a text message with photo to my good friend, Bubba Joe, who usually texts something back like “good job” or whatever. I dutifully selected a photo and sent a message about a thirty-something-point buck to Bubba Joe. Almost immediately my phone rang and Bubba Joe exclaimed, “I am coming to see!” I then explained where I was and requested that he unload my ATV and drive it to me to save me a walk. I gathered my gear and field dressed the buck. I tagged him with my homemade deer tag. I have an Indiana Lifetime Comprehensive Hunting and Fishing License (no longer offered), which I had purchased in 1996. It covers all possible Indiana hunting and fishing licenses such as deer firearm, archery, muzzleloader, antlerless deer, trout, gamebird, etc. From a cost standpoint, I broke even long ago. A minor inconvenience is that I have no official temporary tags and have to craft my own. Over the years, I have used scraps of paper, wrappers, keychain tags (work great!) and notecards, to name a few items. Lately, the Indiana DNR website has offered a printable temporary tag. I now use that and handwrite “Lifetime” for license type. Eventually Bubba Joe arrived on my ATV, and I rigged the buck for transport. I had not mentioned bringing my deer cart as well (he did not bring it), but I did have a plastic deer drag sled already at my stand. The plastic sled is similar to a child’s snow sled, which, no doubt, an enterprising company colored olive drab and sold for ten times the

price. I had used it successfully in the past with other deer. Unfortunately, the buck’s rack proved too cumbersome for the narrow sled to handle. We unloaded the buck from the sled and tied it to the ATV with a tow rope. Bubba Joe pointed to my truck in the distance and noted that a crowd was gathering. Sure enough, word had already spread. I marveled at modern communication technology. I noticed other trucks with hunters milling about waiting for my buck and me to make an appearance. I climbed aboard the ATV and started again. I had to drag out the buck slowly and arrived at my truck with no further issues. I enjoyed getting to talk to several of the hunters who had gathered to see the buck and offer me congratulations. I believe that more than once I saw the same vehicle leave and return with even more spectators. I allowed photos to be taken by anyone who asked. Some of these photos later showed up on various hunting websites much to my delight and amusement. I read comments such as: “That deer will never score 300. Nice buck, though!” The official B&C score for my buck is 3037/8, which puts it in the top 5 All-time and makes it the new Indiana state record. After about an hour, I decided to call an end to my one-man deer show. I thanked everyone for coming and asked them to please drive safely going home. Bubba Joe took charge in loading my buck onto my hitch rack—a rack he had fabricated and recently given to me. He was as proud of the hitch rack as I was of the buck’s rack. Perhaps even more so. As I drove away, I glanced in my rearview mirror at the house and the dark windows. I think the old man would have been proud. n

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TROPHY ENTRY PROCEDURES If you’re like me, you’re usually either hunting or planning for the next hunting season. At the moment, most hunters are recalling and reliving their experiences during this past hunting season by telling their stories and sharing field photos with fellow hunters, friends, and family. Some experiences were good; others weren’t. Now that most seasons are over and the 60-day drying periods are up for many animals tagged during July through November, many hunters are presently navigating, perhaps stumbling, their way through the process of finding out how to score their trophies with high hopes of their bigger ones making the Boone and Crockett records book. Here at B&C, I can assure you that we are looking forward to receiving a significant influx of incredible entries during the next few

months as hunters take the time to have their animals evaluated. Who knows what new entries we’ll be receiving in the months ahead? New B&C entries are always exciting, and we’re looking forward to receiving score charts and photos. I would like to take this opportunity to discuss something in Trophy Talk that I haven’t covered for years. I would like to use this space to review and capsulize trophy entry procedures and requirements, and examine the tools available. The internet is making this task much simpler than it was back in 1971 when a friend of mine took an exceptional deer with a rack we wanted to score. That was five years before I went to work for B&C and/or even had a clue about how to score a trophy. Personal computers hadn’t yet been introduced, let alone the invention of the internet, so we couldn’t “Google” B&C.

TROPHY TALK

Instead, I went to the public library and checked out a copy of B&C’s 1964 edition of Records of North American Big Game that included copies of the score charts so we could score his trophy. We had no clue how to contact a B&C Official Measurer or B&C’s records office. We couldn’t figure out where it was located at that time. In fact, I’m not sure today where it was located back then. When we were done, we were really excited. Our calculations told us he had taken a new World’s Record. That excitement was shortlived, however, when we quickly realized we had made a basic scoring error. And, while it was still a nice trophy, it definitely wasn’t a new World’s Record. B&C’S WEBSITE

All you need to do today to evaluate an animal is use one of the many search engines to find Boone and Crockett Club’s

Score charts are available for download online at www.Boone-Crockett.org

Official Measurers in 1973 used the same scoring system as they do today.

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JACK RENEAU B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Director Emeritus

website, boone-crockett.org. Once there, you’ll find answers to everything you need to know about how to score and enter a trophy in B&C’s records book. The “Big Game Records” section will provide you with hours upon hours of entertainment, and importantly all sorts of information about B&C’s records program. If you have a trophy you want to score you can find printable pdfs of the score chart you need. There is a complete list of B&C’s 17 score charts used to record measurements and calculate scores for all 38 categories of North American big game recognized by the Club. Once you have the score chart you need, you can score your own trophy with a few basic tools you probably already have in your own

Official Measurers are volunteers who help provide a service to the Club.

You can score your own trophy with a few basic tools you probably already have in your own toolbox just by following the limited instructions on the front of the score chart. Tools include a roll of masking tape, pencil, quarter-inch-wide flexible steel measuring tape, carpenter’s level, and a folding carpenter’s ruler or some other straight edge.

MINIMUM ENTRY SCORES NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME CATEGORY

toolbox just by following the limited instructions on the front of the score chart. Tools include a roll of masking tape, pencil, quarter-inch-wide flexible steel measuring tape, carpenter’s level, and a folding carpenter’s ruler or some other straight edge. If you don’t have all these tools, you can probably improvise. The idea is to arrive at an approximate score for your trophy to see if you should pursue the matter further and contact a B&C Official Measurer. If you don’t have the tools, our resource is listed at the bottom of this article. Once you have finished scoring your trophy, you can add it up on our website calculator. We have calculators for each species you need. Step by step instructions are provided. If your final score is near or above the minimum score for the category, you should be ready to proceed to the next step, which is contact a qualified B&C Official Measurer near you. Before it can be officially scored, however, your trophy needs to air dry at a habitable ambient room temperature for 60 days after it has been completely cleaned of all adherent flesh. Additionally, if it has been submerged in a liquid or frozen, it has to dry 60 days after it is removed from the liquid or freezer. Contrary to popular belief, a trophy cannot be officially scored 60 days after it was harvested unless it was completely cleaned the day it was taken. It’s a 60-day drying period.

CONTACTING A B&C OFFICIAL MEASURER

After the 60-day drying period is complete, it is time to contact an official measurer. Our website provides a complete stateby-state list. Once you have the list of Official Measurers for your state or province, contact the one nearest to you (possibly in an adjoining state/province) to arrange a time and place of mutual convenience to have your trophy officially scored. Since Official Measurers are volunteers, the hunter needs to plan on taking the trophy to the measurer. There are rare exceptions to this policy. For example, I would be willing to travel to a trophy owner’s home if he/she has a life-size mount or a pedestal mount that would be too cumbersome to transport. In such instances, it is acceptable practice for the trophy owner to reimburse the measurer for out-of-pocket expenses, such as mileage, meals, lodging, etc. SHOPPING FOR SCORES POLICY

It is important to remember that all Official Measurers are equally qualified, and only one can score your horns, antlers, skull, or tusks. B&C has a policy against having an animal scored by more than one Official Measurer. Also, be sure to keep your appointment and be on time. Official Measurers are volunteers and cannot be paid to score trophies, though they can be reimbursed for incidental expenses as mentioned above.

AWARDS ALL-TIME

black bear grizzly bear Alaska brown bear polar bear**

20 23 26 27

21 24 28 27

jaguar** 14 8/16 14 8/16 cougar 14 8/16 15 Atlantic walrus** Pacific walrus**

95 100

American elk (typical) American elk (non-typical) Roosevelt’s elk tule elk

360 385 275 270

375 385 290 285

mule deer (typical) mule deer (non-typical) Columbia blacktail deer (typical) Columbia blacktail deer (non-typical) Sitka blacktail deer (typical) Sitka blacktail deer (non-typical)

180 215 125 155 100 118

190 230 135 155 108 118

whitetail deer (typical) whitetail deer (non-typical) Coues’ whitetail deer (typical) Coues’ whitetail deer (non-typical)

160 185 100 105

170 195 110 120

Canada moose Alaska-Yukon moose Shiras’ moose

185 210 140

195 224 155

mountain caribou woodland caribou barren ground caribou Central Canada barren ground caribou Quebec-Labrador caribou

360 265 375 345 365

390 295 400 360 375

pronghorn bison Rocky Mountain goat musk ox

80 82 115 115 47 50 105 105

bighorn sheep

175

180

desert sheep Dall’s sheep Stone’s sheep

165 160 160

168 170 170

* Minimum entry scores are current as of January 1, 2010. However, they are subject to change without notice. Check www.booneandcrockettclub.com for the most current listing. ** Must be taken and/or possessed in full compliance with the Marine Mammals Act, Endangered Species Act and/or other federal and state game laws.

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TROPHY TALK If your Official Measurer comes up with a score that equals or exceeds a B&C minimum score, let me be the first one (after the scorer) to congratulate you. Only a handful of animals attain the singularly unique distinction of being called a “B&C trophy” or “Booner” each year. ENTRY PROCEDURE AND REQUIREMENTS

At this point in the process, the Official Measurer should provide you with a complete list of entry requirements and assist you with entering your trophy in B&C records. If you need additional entry information it is all available on the Big Game Records section of our website. There are many other interesting features you will find on B&C’s website, but I’ll mention only a couple of them. If you need any scoring tools, which I mentioned earlier, they are all available online. You can get masking tape and pencils almost anywhere, but so far as I know, B&C is the only place you can find a quarter-inch-wide flexible steel measuring tape, especially the ring-end variety, of this quality in North America anymore, except for perhaps the Pope and Young Club. They just don’t sell these “Lufkin-style” tapes like this anywhere else. There is one other tool you need that I haven’t mentioned until now—a copy of How to Score North American Big Game—Boone and Crockett Club’s Official Measurers Manual. In addition to copies of each of the copyrighted score charts, this manual includes complete and 80 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

B&C AWARD MEDALLION MEASURING TAPE

detailed scoring drawings by renowned wildlife artist and Official Measurer Chris Lacy along with complete and highly detailed scoring instructions for scoring all 38 categories of native North American Big Game accepted by the Club. In addition, there are chapters on general procedures and policies of the Boone and Crockett Club and another chapter on the scoring differences between Boone and Crockett Club and Pope and Young Club. There is one other item that many hunters find indispensable for planning all future hunts and possibly taking that B&C trophy of a lifetime—Trophy Search. For the price of an All-time records book, you can obtain access to B&C’s list of 47,730 accepted trophies with new ones being added nearly every week. Once you’re into the database, you can search for counties, states, provinces, geographic areas, etc., that have produced top-ranking trophies in all 38 categories, since the Club began records-keeping in 1950. Or, you can search for top trophy producing areas for the last 10 years, 5 years, etc. Your options are nearly unlimited. If you have any questions at any time while going through this process and/or checking out B&C’s website and store, please don’t hesitate to call Boone and Crockett Club at (406) 542-1888 and ask for the records department or the sales department. n

Our classic, 1/4-inch wide, flexible steel tape is available in two different styles–ringend for measuring circumferences and clip-end for measuring lengths. Shipping and handling included. RING-END TAPE ITEM CODE: MTBC | $9.95 CLIP-END TAPE ITEM CODE: MTBCC | $9.95

HOW TO SCORE NORTH AMERICAN BIG GAME, 4TH EDITION

In addition to easy-to-follow instructions for scoring all 38 categories of North American big-game animals recognized by the Boone and Crockett Club the book delivers chapters on the Club’s history and its records-keeping program. The new edition also includes an expanded chapter on category boundaries enhanced with detailed, full-color maps from onXmaps. Spiral bound, paperback Over 125 drawings and photographs n 9 x 11.4 inches n 224 pages n n

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B&C’S ON-LINE TROPHY SEARCH

Trophy Search gives you complete Internet access to the Boone and Crockett Club’s trophy records database. Every trophy entered and accepted into the Club’s Records of North American Big Game from 1830 to present are available through this searchable database. Search by species, score, rank, location, date, range of dates, specific measurements, hunters name— this list of query questions is endless. Also includes links to hundreds of B&C field photographs as well as portrait photos of top scoring trophies for each category. ITEM CODE: TDBS | $50 ASSOCIATES ONLY $40

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JACK STEELE PARKER

GENERATION

NEXT BLACK BEAR

The Boone and Crockett Club would like to celebrate young hunters who have embraced the outdoor way of life and embody the spirit of fair chase hunting. The following is a list of the most recent big game trophies accepted into Boone and Crockett Club’s 30th Big Game Awards Program, 2016-2018, that have been taken by a youth hunter (16 years or younger). All of the field photos in this section are from entries that are listed in this issue and are shown in bold orange text.

21 9/16 20 10/16 20 3/16

This listing represents only those trophies accepted since the Winter 2016 issue of Fair Chase was published.

FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

Craven Co., NC Bland Co., VA Gem Co., ID

Robert F. Grady, Jr. Savannah G. Stilwell Kate R. Crosby

DATE MEASURER 2015 2015 2016

R. Norville B. Trumbo R. Addison

GRIZZLY BEAR 25 24 8/16 24 1/16 23 11/16

Wood River, AK Mosquito Pass, AK Ungalik River, AK Ungalik River, AK

Bo Z. Turner Ethan Kelso Catherine L. DeBlasio James F. DeBlasio

2016 2015 2016 2016

A. Jubenville B. Novosad R. Addison R. Addison

Kate R. Crosby

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER 173 2/8 186 6/8 170 172 7/8

Jefferson Co., AR Marion Co., KS

Kristian A. Vargas Cody A. Murrell

2015 2015

B. Sanford C. Curtis

NON-TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER 192 1/8 200 4/8

Pontotoc Co., OK

Fisher L. Fulton

2013

T. Cartwright

TYPICAL COUES’ WHITETAIL 103 6/8 105 6/8

Pima Co., AZ

John N. Bessett, Jr.

1971

E. Buckner

PRONGHORN 80 6/8

81 3/8

Mora Co., NM

Beau B. Turner

2015

T. Adams

MUSK OX 105 4/8 106 3/8 White Haylen O’Connor 2015 C. Brent Mountain, AK

Catherine L. DeBlasio James F. DeBlasio

Colin M. Cahill 82 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

JACK STEELE PARKER GENERATION NEXT YOUTH BANQUET

Cody A. Murrell Haylen O’Connor

At the 27th Big Game Awards in 2010, the Club launched its Generation Next Awards to honor young men and women 16 and under from across North America who entered a trophy into Boone and Crockett Club’s Awards Programs. Over the next three years, young hunters entered 152 Boone and Crockett-qualifying trophies. At the 28th Big Game Awards Program, the Generation Next Awards proved to be one of the event’s most popular and inspirational highlights. This last summer the 29th Big Game Awards were held at the Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World store in Springfield, Missouri. The Jack Steele Parker Generation Next banquet, sponsored by the Wild Sheep Foundation with youth travel assistance provided by Kimber Manufacturing, proved to be one of the weekend’s most popular and inspirational highlights.

“At our big game awards banquets we typically honor the animals, but this one is different,” said Justin Spring, the Club’s Director of Big Game Records. In total, between 2013 and 2015, 168 youth hunters entered their trophies into the conservation records. Forty of these trophies were on public display at the Bass Pro Shops store and 42 young hunters and their families were able to be there to be honored at the banquet.

Ethan Kelso

“This was really special to be a part of this wonderful evening and event. Parents were beaming, of course, but everyone was moved by the words and sentiments and maturity of these young people—the next generation of hunter-conservationists. It’s obvious to all who attended that we’re leaving conservation in very good hands,” said Wild Sheep Foundation President and CEO Gray N. Thornton. “The power of that event reminded us all why sportsmen lead the conservation movement; so that those generations unborn would have the same opportunity we have to hear an elk bugle and see a majestic, wild ram stand over his domain.”

Congratulations to the young sportsmen and sportswomen present at the Jack Steele Parker Generation Next Youth Banquet, July 15, 2016. FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 83

RECENTLY ACCEPTED TROPHIES The following pages list the most recent big game trophies accepted into Boone and Crockett Club’s 30th Big Game Awards Program, 2016-2018, which includes entries received between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2018. All of the field photos in this section are from entries that are listed in this issue and are shown in bold green text.

30 BIG GAME AWARDS TH

LISTING AND PHOTO GALLERY B&C Associate Thomas J. Niederer took this Alaska brown bear, scoring 29-8/16 points, on a hunt near Stepovak Bay, Alaska, in 2016.

This listing represents only those trophies accepted since the Winter 2016 issue of Fair Chase was published. SPONSORED BY

“After two previous unsuccessful hunts for brown bear and 25 days in pretty harsh conditions, this magnificent bear will always be the pinnacle of my hunting passion. Being able to document this in the B&C records books is truly an honor. Thank you.”

84 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

TOP TO BOTTOM

While on a 2016 archery hunt in Pima County, Arizona, Wesley K. Stark took this black bear, scoring 21-2/16 points.

BEAR & COUGAR FINAL SCORE

LOCATION

BLACK BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 23-10/16 22 5/16 22 2/16 22 1/16 21 14/16 21 11/16 21 6/16 21 6/16 21 6/16 21 5/16 21 5/16 21 4/16 21 4/16 21 3/16 21 3/16 21 3/16 21 3/16 21 2/16 21 2/16 21 2/16 21 2/16 21 20 15/16 20 12/16 20 12/16 20 10/16 20 9/16 20 9/16 20 9/16 20 7/16 20 7/16 20 7/16 20 7/16 20 6/16 20 6/16 20 6/16 20 5/16 20 5/16 20 4/16 20 2/16 20 1/16 20 20

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

Centre Co., PA Chad A. Seeger 2015 Franklin Co., PA Dustin J. Foust 2015 Pike Co., PA Brad D. Losito 2015 Pike Co., PA W. John Gilpin 2015 Hyde Co., NC Darryl G. Cleary 2015 Gila Co., AZ Danny L. Houston 2016 Polk Co., WI Nathaniel L. Freer 2015 Centre Co., PA Gary C. Walker 2013 Barron Co., WI Ryan M. North 2014 Westmoreland Robert L. Stoll 2014 Co., PA Hyde Co., NC David M. Honeycutt 2014 Sullivan Co., PA Keith O. Quigel 2015 Giles Co., VA Jeffery L. Tickle 2015 Idaho Co., ID Steve E. Fogleman 2016 Mille Lacs Co., MN Jerald L. Zurn 2015 Tioga Co., PA Kevin D. Root 2015 Dickinson Co., MI Michael L. Green 2015 Madison Co., FL Tanner A. Greene 2015 Pima Co., AZ Wesley K. Stark 2016 Taylor Co., WI Tonya S. Crass 2014 Douglas Co., CO James A. Bills 2015 Indiana Co., PA Laura E. Lightner 2013 Taylor Co., WI Joseph T. Svejda 2015 Venango Co., PA Robert E. Daugherty 2011 Indiana Co., PA Matthew R. DeMarines 2015 Sawyer Co., WI Sabra J. Emole 2010 Sullivan Co., NY Gus A. Congemi 2015 Warren Co., NJ Stanley J. Patiro, Jr. 2014 Clearwater Co., MN Timothy L. Skuse 2015 El Dorado Co., CA David M. Yehle 2015 Forest Co., PA Chad A. Mead 2015 Searchmont, ON Dennis L. Frelich 2016 Lac Harding, QC Johnathan V. Jewell 2016 Pike Co., PA James R. Weisbrod 2015 Presque Isle Co., MI Grant R. Dix 2015 Albany Co., WY Tammera J. Kennedy 2016 Cook Co., MN Charles J. Mayer 2015 Buckingham Co., VA Norman K. Stephens 2015 Steen River, AB Scott P. Yaschuk 2016 Wollaston Lake, SK Jared T. Sommers 2016 Barbour Co., WV James C. Morris 2015 Gila Co., AZ Alfred E. Baldwin 2015

J. Kubalak J. Seitz D. Lynch P. Sussenbach H. Atkinson R. Stayner J. Lunde M. Blazosky* J. Hjort J. Medeiros

This non-typical American elk, scoring 399-4/8 points, was taken by Callie Jo Keller in Kittitas County, Washington, in 2015. She was shooting a .300 Winchester Short Mag. In 2015, Shealtiel L. Hart harvested this 15-point cougar while on a hunt in Sanders County, Montana.

H. Atkinson R. Kingsley W. Knox M. Schlegel D. Ohman R. Kingsley M. Heeg S. Johns E. Buckner P. Jensen R. Rockwell A. Brunst P. Jensen J. Smith D. Razza L. Zimmerman S. Cook D. Chanda K. Lehr R. Tupen D. Bastow S. Zirbel D. Bastow D. Lynch M. Heeg W. Hepworth C. Pierce J. Hanks D. Coupland J. Bogucki R. Silvester R. Gubler

GRIZZLY BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 27-13/16 25 12/16 25 6/16 25 1/16 25 25 24 14/16 24 12/16 24 10/16 24 7/16 24 1/16 23 3/16

Golsovia River, AK Shellabarger Pass, AK Brooks Range, AK Salcha River, AK Ungalik River, AK Bings Creek, YT Dore River, BC Takotna River, AK Charley River, AK Noatak River, AK Tolstoi Point, AK

Mike A. Powell Jason J. Walkush

2015 G. Adkisson 2016 D. Rippeto

Harold Star, Jr. Timothy J. Campbell Stephen D. Reisner Joshua S. Fischer Daniel R. Norton Jim James Jesse R. West Tim D. Hiner Ernesto M. Santana

1970 2016 2016 2015 2015 1992 2004 2016 2015

G. Villnow A. Jubenville L. Zimmerman T. Grabowski R. Berreth S. Bayless M. Nilsen C. Brent S. Kleinsmith

ALASKA BROWN BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 30-12/16 29 15/16 29 8/16 29 8/16 29 2/16 29 2/16 29 28 12/16 28 9/16 28 2/16 28

Aliulik Pen., AK North Creek, AK Stepovak Bay, AK Afognak Island, AK Deer Creek, AK Portage Bay, AK Island Bay, AK Belkofski Bay, AK Sand Point, AK Kamishak Bay, AK

Robert G. Spencer Larry G. Pulliam Thomas J. Niederer John L. Sturgeon Mark A. Chronister Justin B. Wick Carl J. Pennella, Jr. Robert L. Hudman Nathan A. Hawkaluk Craig C. Helgeson

2016 2016 2016 2015 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016

G. Moore S. Damron J. Ohmer C. Cook R. Brugler W. Hepworth D. Chanda D. Kelsey S. Bayless S. Grabow

* Accepted in the 29th Awards Program.

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30 TH BIG GAME AWARDS

ALASKA BROWN BEAR CONTINUED 27 15/16 27 11/16 27 8/16 27 8/16 27 7/16 27 6/16 27 26 11/16 26 3/16 26

Sturgeon River, AK Traders Mt., AK Bruin Bay, AK Dog Salmon River, AK Kodiak Island, AK Mount Veniaminof, AK Bishop Creek, AK Uyak Bay, AK Uyak Bay, AK Unimak Island, AK

Shelly D. Sayer James J. Graham Charles J. Bates, Jr. David R. Hankins

2016 2016 2016 2016

R. Atwood W. Rodd R. Johndrow G. Howard

Jon Cicone George E. Bierman

1984 G. Villnow 2016 D. Aumen

James G. Shosh Arthur E. Goodrich George A. Goodrich George Pappas

2016 2014 2014 2015

F. Poirier W. Rodd W. Rodd L. Lewis

COUGAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 16-4/16 15 9/16 15 6/16 15 1/16 15 14 12/16 14 11/16 14 10/16 14 8/16 14 8/16

Union Co., OR Unknown Lardeau River, BC Sanders Co., MT Carbon Co., WY Coconino Co., AZ Lake Co., MT Mesa Co., CO Washoe Co., NV

Cody E. Vavra Unknown Grayson Hunt Shealtiel L. Hart Shelly R. Vossler Jeffrey D. Schuchard Jared A. Hockaday Robert G. Griffith Edwin K. Wass

2016 2016 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2016 2016

E. Buckner R. Spaulding L. Hill B. Zundel B. Davies D. Eider F. King D. Razza J. Capurro

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

ELK & MULE DEER FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

TYPICAL AMERICAN ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 442-5/8 430 448 400 7/8 407 5/8 392 5/8 398 7/8 392 2/8 404 5/8 390 3/8 401 3/8 386 2/8 390 3/8 382 5/8 405 3/8 379 2/8 407 3/8 378 401 4/8 377 6/8 385 376 7/8 385 6/8 375 4/8 392 1/8 371 7/8 383 2/8 370 7/8 376 4/8 366 2/8 375 2/8 364 2/8 370 361 7/8 375 1/8

Powder Stephan F. Felix River Co., MT Millard Co., UT Cole G. Medlin Sweetwater Co., WY Clay J. Evans Unknown Dr. Fitzgerald Blaine Co., MT Eric R. Drake Elko Co., NV Sean D. Lamb Columbia Co., WA Kevin T. Klumper Gila Co., AZ Kevin T. Klumper Kittitas Co., WA Harvey D. Huisingh Lemhi Co., ID Vance Forepaugh Park Co., CO Paul J. Gernat Catron Co., NM John J. Riffle Daggett Co., UT Clay J. Evans Petroleum Co., MT Allen M. Bell Lincoln Co., NV W. James Azevedo Millard Co., UT Dewey R. Pratt Madison Co., MT Louis A. Fisher

2016 F. King 2014 2015 1950 2016 2015 2012 2012 2015 1977 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2013 1972

D. Twyman B. Wilkes D. Boland J. Brown D. Biggs R. Mayton R. Mayton D. Cook R. Newman M. Thomson J. Mraz B. Wilkes L. Buhmann J. Fischer W. Phifer F. King

NON-TYPICAL AMERICAN ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 478-5/8 428 4/8 437 7/8 Catron Co., NM 417 2/8 430 5/8 King Co., WA 413 3/8 429 Catron Co., NM 408 6/8 414 7/8 Fergus Co., MT 399 4/8 409 3/8 Kittitas Co., WA 395 3/8 416 1/8 Big Horn Co., WY 389 2/8 398 1/8 Fergus Co., MT

Drew A. Coker Joshua E. Doyle Anthony J. Martinez, Jr. Tobin J. Finucane Callie Jo Keller Picked Up Thomas M. Kircher

2015 J. Aldrich 2015 R. Spaulding 2015 C. Lacey 2015 2015 2016 2015

B. Zundel S. Wilkins D. Hart B. Milliron

ROOSEVELT’S ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 404-6/8

TOP TO BOTTOM:

B&C Associate W. James Azevedo was on a hunt in Lincoln County, Nevada, when he harvested this typical American elk, scoring 366-2/8 points. He was shooting a .30-378 Weatherby. This non-typical mule deer, scoring 250-4/8 points, was taken by Ralph Cockrell in Winkle County, Texas, in 2015. He was shooting a .308 Winchester. Christopher T. Pascua took this Columbia blacktail deer, scoring 1504/8 points, in 2015 while archery hunting in Washington County, Oregon.

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348 2/8 337 6/8 328 2/8 327 5/8 314 1/8 295 4/8 292 3/8

359 3/8 347 5/8 333 7/8 333 5/8 324 4/8 305 1/8 299

Douglas Co., OR Adams River, BC Humboldt Co., CA Columbia Co., OR Muchalat Lake, BC Humboldt Co., CA Del Norte Co., CA

Darrell B. Lowe Simon A. Floris Richard A. Leighty Thomas A. Loosen Bill R. Pastorek Craig C. Casey Ernesto M. Santana

2016 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015

G. Childers F. Pringle H. Wilson T. Rozewski L. Hill G. Hooper G. Hooper

TYPICAL MULE DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 226-4/8 209 6/8 201 2/8 198 4/8 193 6/8 191 6/8 191 4/8

214 204 3/8 217 215 4/8 195 4/8 193 7/8

Saguache Co., CO Rio Arriba Co., NM Saguache Co., CO Unknown Goshen Co., WY Mesa Co., CO

Picked Up Steven W. Berhow Rodney E. Maez Unknown Thomas L. Scott Terry L. Wilson

2015 2015 2015 1980 2015 2015

K. Travnicek T. Watts L. Gatlin D. Boland D. Hart D. Sanford

TYPICAL MULE DEER CONTINUED 190 6/8 190 3/8 189 187 5/8 187 4/8 186 3/8 185 183 6/8 183 182 5/8 182 2/8 182 1/8 181 4/8 181 2/8 181 1/8 180 4/8

193 6/8 197 7/8 201 1/8 191 6/8 214 6/8 198 203 1/8 187 1/8 202 2/8 200 4/8 187 185 5/8 216 3/8 201 2/8 193 5/8 183 5/8

Iron Co., UT Tooele Co., UT Rio Arriba Co., NM Eagle Co., CO Box Elder Co., UT Ravalli Co., MT Elbert Co., CO Yuma Co., CO Garfield Co., CO Ravalli Co., MT Sonora, MX San Juan Co., NM Sonora, MX Summit Co., UT Douglas Co., CO Garfield Co., CO

Gregory A. Kemp 2015 Jason C. Smart 2015 Aric R. DeJesus 2015 Kerry K. Ellis 2015 Raymond S. Moulding 2016 Ross A. Lemons 2016 Kenneth E. Gunkel 2015 Thomas J. Dockter 2015 Michael H. Fannaly 2014 Richard B. Peacock 2015 Steven Bruggeman 2016 Jamie L. Shockey 2016 Kenneth H. Jones 2016 Ed V. Hoffenbeck 1976 Louis A. Holman 2015 Michael E. Orndorff 2012

I. Mcarthur D. Nielsen K. Tator G. Dennis J. Wall K. Lehr R. Smith B. Davies G. Wilson K. Lehr S. Ashley S. Hill D. Shirley J. Wall D. Boland B. Long

TOP TO BOTTOM:

This typical Sitka blacktail deer, scoring 111-1/8 points, was taken by Joshua E. Cooper, near Klawock, Alaska, in 2015. B&C Associate Brenda J. Cook was on an hunt in Pima County, Arizona, when she took this typical Coues’ whitetail deer, scoring 124-7/8 points, in 2015. While on a hunt in Taylor County, Iowa, Jason D. White took this typical whitetail deer, scoring 190-2/8 points, in 2015. He was shooting a 20-gauge shotgun.

NON-TYPICAL MULE DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 355-2/8 251 5/8 250 4/8 241 3/8 235 2/8 222 2/8 221 4/8 220 4/8 220 2/8 219 1/8 216 6/8 216 6/8

256 4/8 261 3/8 248 240 2/8 227 1/8 228 3/8 225 223 2/8 224 2/8 222 2/8 221 5/8

Rio Blanco Co., CO Winkler Co., TX Coconino Co., AZ Plumas Co., CA Cassia Co., ID Moffat Co., CO Delta Co., CO Grand Co., CO Summit Co., UT Caribou Co., ID Garfield Co., CO

David M. Bennett Ralph Cockrell Unknown Leonard M. Smith Jeffrey S. Razee Mark H. Perkins Howard D. Ripley Richard J. McAbee Ed V. Hoffenbeck Marvin K. Prescott Rachel M. Orndorff

2015 2015 1960 2015 2015 2015 1978 2015 1968 1970 2015

S. Wilkins O. Carpenter R. Grace R. Tupen R. Hall D. Morris V. Howard D. Perrien J. Wall R. Hall B. Long

TYPICAL COLUMBIA BLACKTAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 182-2/8 150 4/8 153 6/8 Washington Co., OR Christopher T. Pascua 2015 T. Rozewski 136 1/8 139 Pierce Co., WA Jason J. Sherwood 2015 G. Childers

NON-TYPICAL COLUMBIA BLACKTAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 208 -1/8 156 7/8 161 2/8 Shasta Co., CA

Mark W. Lathrop

2013 S. Boero

TYPICAL SITKA BLACKTAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 133 111 1/8 124 Klawock, AK Joshua E. Cooper 2015 K. Sipes 109 2/8 111 2/8 Horn Cliffs, AK Jesse R. West 2016 M. Nilsen 109 119 5/8 Kosciusko Island, AK Robert G. Ameen 2016 D. Widby

WHITETAIL DEER FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 213-5/8 190 2/8 195 5/8 Taylor Co., IA Jason D. White 2015 T. Korth 187 6/8 199 1/8 Scott Co., IL Christian T. Fletcher 2015 D. Good 182 3/8 190 Fairfield Co., OH Joel R. Harrold 2015 J. Jordan 179 1/8 184 7/8 Dallas Co., IA Terry D. Danielson 2015 K. Herring 178 4/8 182 7/8 McPherson Co., SD Matthew C. Hofman 2015 D. Ohman 178 1/8 188 5/8 Shelby Co., MO Dennis J. Perrigo 2015 D. Ream 177 6/8 200 4/8 Maverick Co., TX T.J. duPerier 2015 J. Stein 177 186 3/8 Adams Co., MS Cheri’ A. Hillebrandt 2015 R. Dillard 176 6/8 187 Ogle Co., IL Todd M. Anderson 2015 D. Hollingsworth 175 6/8 205 3/8 Pike Co., MO Picked Up 2008 R. Cantu 174 4/8 187 2/8 Cherokee Co., TX Jimmy W. Isaacs 2015 C. Muller 174 3/8 183 Maverick Co., TX Lee M. Cardwell 2015 E. Fuchs 174 2/8 179 7/8 Buffalo Co., WI Jason W. Kuehn 2015 S. Godfrey 174 2/8 187 4/8 Morgan Co., OH Raymond Buriak, Jr. 2016 L. Polillo 174 183 1/8 Bayfield Co., WI Greg A. Ogren 2015 J. Senske 173 4/8 176 1/8 Vernon Co., WI Logan W. Baitinger 2015 S. Zirbel 173 1/8 182 2/8 Phillips Co., AR Jonathan D. 2016 B. Sanford Gschwend 173 182 Mitchell Co., KS Larry J. Winkel 2015 B. Rueschhoff

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30 TH BIG GAME AWARDS

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER CONTINUED 172 7/8 196 6/8 172 5/8 179 172 3/8 177 4/8 172 3/8 185 5/8 172 3/8 176 2/8 172 3/8 178 1/8 172 176 7/8 171 2/8 173 7/8 171 2/8 184 171 2/8 180 3/8 171 175 5/8 170 7/8 176 170 6/8 182 3/8 170 6/8 178 5/8 170 4/8 176 7/8 170 4/8 181 6/8 170 3/8 187 170 3/8 176 1/8 170 2/8 187 6/8 170 2/8 173 5/8 170 2/8 174 1/8 170 2/8 174 6/8 170 1/8 176 3/8 170 172 7/8 169 4/8 174 1/8 169 1/8 173 4/8 168 7/8 174 2/8 168 2/8 176 3/8 168 1/8 172 4/8

Oregon Co., MO Daniel J. Hatterman Polk Co., WI Dennis E. Larson Gallia Co., OH Joe A. Cook Hemphill Co., TX Frank J. Krehbiel Kanawha Co., WV Brandon D. Church Webb Co., TX John B. Gilpin II Lac qui Steven J. Tucholke Parle Co., MN Marathon Co., WI Larry S. Heise Meigs Co., OH Andres E. Moya Taylor Co., WI John W. Burzynski Moosomin Lake, SK Jamie R. O’Connor Davis Co., IA Richard V. Johnson Perry Co., OH Nicklas B. Leckrone Worth Co., MO Timothy Clyde Jefferson Co., NY Robert K. Law Jones Co., IA Scott J. Moeller Hutchinson Co., TX William L. Britain Kinney Co., TX McKenzie R. Brittain Jefferson Co., KS Picked Up Madison Co., IA David F. Mitchell North Matthew T. Primrose Saskatchewan River, AB Pottawattamie John W. Clevenger Co., IA Ottawa Co., KS Jase C. Merry Aitkin Co., MN Brent S. Ruschmeier Delaware Co., OH Curtis A. McMillen Morgan Co., WV Frederick M. Stotler Stark Co., OH Bradley S. Bourne Marquette Co., WI Mark J. Hillmer Yuma Co., CO Kenneth J. Boulter

2015 2003 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015

L. Lindeman J. Lunde D. Haynes D. McLanahan E. Richmond J. Newport T. Kalsbeck

2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 1970 2015 2015

T. Heil J. Satterfield J. Hjort R. Macdonald R. McPherren J. Jordan R. Newton J. Dowd C. Pierce E. Fuchs D. McGowan T. Warner K. Fredrickson D. Bromberger

2013 S. Grabow 2013 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015

D. Boland M. Harrison E. Robinson C. Teets R. Stephen J. Ramsey P. Allen

Matthew W. Schmidt took this non-typical whitetail deer, scoring 214-3/8 points, on a hunt in Mercer County, Missouri, in 2015. He is pictured with his daughter, Ainslea, and father, Terry.

TOP TO BOTTOM:

Robert G. Ameen took this typical Coues’ whitetail deer, scoring 110-6/8 points, in 2015 while hunting in Pima County, Arizona. This typical whitetail deer, scoring 165 points, was taken by Michael J. Jensen in Monroe County, Wisconsin, in 2015. B&C Associate Clay J. Evans was on an archery hunt near St. Marys, Alaska, in 2015, when he harvested this Alaska-Yukon moose, scoring 229-5/8 points.

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TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER CONTINUED

30 TH BIG GAME AWARDS

167 7/8 181 Lafayette Co., WI Evan A. Nelson 2015 B. Ihlenfeldt 167 7/8 174 7/8 Mason Co., WV John S. Cochran 2015 D. Haynes 167 5/8 185 2/8 Ray Co., MO Stan D. Utley 2015 R. Bergloff 166 5/8 179 7/8 Bath Co., KY Charles D. Black 2015 D. Weddle 166 4/8 182 2/8 Lincoln Co., NE Zachary R. Bryant 2015 C. Becker 166 2/8 170 1/8 Nicolet, QC Ronald Sauvé 2012 R. Groleau 166 2/8 186 5/8 Webb Co., TX Harry L. Overstreet II 2015 M. Hellickson 166 1/8 191 5/8 Butler Co., KS Kyle W. Robbins 2015 P. Riese 166 1/8 186 4/8 Union Co., IA Patrick M. Parks 2012 K. Fredrickson 165 7/8 168 4/8 Bollinger Co., MO Scott J. May 2015 R. Gadberry 165 2/8 178 5/8 Lewis Co., KY Jarrod P. Cropper 2015 D. Weddle 165 1/8 186 Marion Co., IA Garey A. Bryan 2015 C. Coburn 165 175 1/8 La Salle Co., TX Remo R. Pizzagalli 2015 C. Smiley 165 187 4/8 Monroe Co., WI Michael J. Jensen 2015 J. Lunde 164 5/8 191 5/8 Furnas Co., NE Marion E. Jones 1964 R. Krueger 164 5/8 169 5/8 Vernon Co., WI Lukas D. Miller 2015 B. Ihlenfeldt 164 2/8 167 6/8 Elkhart Co., IN Duane L. Anderson 2015 J. Bogucki 163 7/8 167 5/8 Tuscola Co., MI William B. Skellenger 2015 R. Banaszak 163 4/8 182 6/8 Pike Co., IL Eric Horkavy 2015 D. Good 163 3/8 166 7/8 Allegheny Co., PA Zechariah C. Medved 2016 J. Medeiros 163 2/8 172 4/8 Bedford Co., TN Andrew J. Doak 2015 L. Konyndyk 162 6/8 174 4/8 La Salle Co., TX Michael F. Mordell 2015 S. Ivey 162 6/8 173 4/8 Meigs Co., OH Rex D. Gloor II 2015 W. Culbertson 162 4/8 171 1/8 Fond du Lac Co., WI Lisa A. Buss 2015 M. Miller 162 4/8 170 Shelby Co., KY Larry J. Roberts 2015 K. Stockdale 162 4/8 166 4/8 Val Verde Co., TX Christopher B. Stone 2016 R. Collier 162 2/8 168 7/8 Lincoln Co., WI Steven C. Kelly 2015 T. Heil 162 172 Crawford Co., IL Brett L. Richeson 2001 D. Good 161 6/8 168 6/8 Lincoln Co., MS Jeremy S. Rawls 2015 G. Wilson 161 6/8 176 5/8 St. Louis Co., MN Adam D. Reed 2015 J. Olson

This typical mule deer, scoring 182-2/8 points, was taken by B&C Lifetime Associate Steven S. Bruggeman in Sonora, Mexico, in 2016.

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FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 89

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER CONTINUED 161 4/8 161 2/8 161 2/8 161 160 7/8 160 6/8 160 4/8 160 4/8 160 3/8 160 2/8 160 2/8 160 1/8 160 160

175 7/8 174 3/8 190 7/8 178 163 7/8 168 1/8 163 4/8 169 4/8 165 7/8 166 2/8 166 6/8 177 4/8 171 173 5/8

Buffalo Co., WI Knox Co., IN Lincoln Co., AR Poweshiek Co., IA Iowa Co., WI Kanawha Co., WV Maverick Co., TX Walworth Co., WI Buffalo Co., WI Day Co., SD Wayne Co., KY Prowers Co., CO Delaware Co., OH Mercer Co., PA

Edward P. Crowley Stephen B. Like Jeremy M. Dunn Jonathan D. Plate Randy R. Byrne John L. Shultz W.D. Winters Tyler M. Deschner Rodney D. Smith Michael J. Burr Danny Phillips Joerdan R. Kennedy Raymond V. Fridley Trevor D. Keim

2015 2015 2015 2015 2010 2015 2015 2015 2015 2015 2016 2015 2015 2015

R. Blaisdell M. Verble J. Harmon C. Coburn B. Ihlenfeldt E. Richmond J. Stein M. Miller S. Godfrey J. Lunde D. Weddle K. Witt S. Boham D. Bastow

NON-TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 333-7/8

TOP TO BOTTOM:

Katie Rogers took this Rocky Mountain goat, scoring 51-4/8 points, in 2016 while hunting near Clore River, British Columbia. She was shooting a .270 Winchester Mag. This Shiras’ moose, scoring 166-4/8 points, was taken by Bradley R. Vargo, in Twin Falls County, Idaho, in 2016. He was shooting a 7mm SAUM. Scott P. Yaschuk was on an archery hunt near Steen River, Alberta, when he harvested this black bear, scoring 20-2/16 points.

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247 4/8 255 3/8 Franklin Co., KS Picked Up 2015 L. Lueckenhoff 241 7/8 247 4/8 Todd Co., KY David Howard 2015 K. Ison 228 6/8 241 7/8 Greenwood Co., KS Kevin Bechtle 2015 D. Hollingsworth 226 5/8 234 2/8 Dallas Co., IA Larry J. Stanley 2015 K. Herring 222 7/8 228 4/8 Jo Daviess Co., IL Timothy M. Linn 2015 A. Crum 214 3/8 216 3/8 Mercer Co., MO Matthew W. Schmidt 2015 D. Ream 208 215 1/8 Kleberg Co., TX Peter J. Holt 2015 S. Fuchs 203 4/8 213 2/8 Todd Co., MN Jason A. Janshen 2015 M. Harrison 202 6/8 211 5/8 Le Sueur Co., MN Scott A. Ayers 2015 C. Cordes 202 6/8 216 6/8 Foam Lake, SK Gordon J. Buckingham 2015 F. Hendrickson 202 6/8 209 Webb Co., TX Brad W. Wuest 2015 D. Brimager 201 208 4/8 Dimmit Co., TX Jill B. Wood 2015 J. Newport 200 4/8 208 Kleberg Co., TX Joseph B. Richter, Jr. 2015 S. Fuchs 200 3/8 203 Bear Hills, SK D.E. Swiderski 2015 J. Clary & N.B. Swiderski 200 2/8 206 1/8 Morrison Co., MN Larry D. Jesinoski 2015 M. Harrison 197 4/8 203 6/8 Grant Co., KY Jeffrey W. Shelton 2015 J. Phillips 197 1/8 206 3/8 Lake Co., IN Picked Up 2016 J. Bogucki 197 1/8 208 6/8 Vegreville, AB Connor W. Giebelhaus 2015 W. Voogd 196 6/8 209 3/8 Seneca Co., OH Joseph C. Gosche 2015 W. Ogden 196 1/8 203 4/8 Oldman River, AB Brian S. Gustum 1994 D. Coupland 196 200 7/8 La Salle Co., TX Aldes H. Cadwallader V 2015 J. Stein 195 7/8 198 2/8 St. Louis Co., MO Robert A. Brown 2015 J. Hindman 194 3/8 206 5/8 Jefferson Co., IL Dale A. Kobus 2015 D. Good 194 2/8 201 5/8 McPherson Co., SD Damon G. Opp 2015 L. Wahlund 194 196 3/8 Putnam Co., IL William R. Myres 2012 D. Good 193 1/8 197 6/8 McKean Co., PA Michael J. Speaker 2015 D. Bastow 193 206 7/8 Clark Co., SD Tanner K. Bjerke 2015 S. Rauch 192 6/8 198 2/8 Lincoln Co., MT Robert A. Guckenberg 1990 P. Jensen 192 6/8 198 4/8 Trigg Co., KY Joe L. Nichols 2015 D. Weddle 192 2/8 197 4/8 Cheyenne Co., CO Grant M. Guthrie 2015 K. Witt 191 5/8 202 7/8 Henderson Co., KY Kurt D. Stone 2014 R. Morton 190 5/8 200 1/8 Adair Co., IA Donald F. O’Brien 2015 G. Salow 190 1/8 195 4/8 Hughes Co., OK Tom Cartwright 2015 G. Moore 188 6/8 196 4/8 Summit Co., OH Ronald M. Nusbaum 2015 R. Pepper 187 1/8 194 Grundy Co., MO Michael A. Kohlhaus 2015 F. Horn 187 199 7/8 Mahaska Co., IA Cody N. Alesch 2015 R. Bergloff 186 7/8 191 1/8 Henry Co., VA Gary N. Gilbert 2015 H. Atkinson 186 7/8 196 McLean Co., IL Roger W. Weed 2015 D. Hollingsworth 186 5/8 191 2/8 Morrison Co., MN Richard P. Woolhouse 2015 K. Fredrickson 186 2/8 194 2/8 Sauk Co., WI Daniel E. Gingerich 2014 S. Zirbel 185 7/8 188 3/8 Logan Co., WV Jacob M. Miller 2015 G. Surber 185 6/8 192 5/8 Creek Co., OK Gary D. Bacon III 2015 G. Moore 185 3/8 192 2/8 Chisholm, AB Daniel A. Low 2015 B. Daudelin 185 2/8 193 7/8 St. Louis Co., MN Andrew J. Peterson 1964 J. Brummer 185 1/8 189 Dunn Co., WI Jason J. Maes 2015 S. Ashley 185 1/8 190 6/8 Jefferson Co., MS K. Susie Taylor 2015 J. Bordelon

TYPICAL COUES’ WHITETAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 144-1/8 124 7/8 115 4/8 111 7/8 110 6/8 107 6/8 106 3/8 104 3/8 100 6/8

130 4/8 117 5/8 113 7/8 113 1/8 113 5/8 113 6/8 118 105

Pima Co., AZ Sonora, MX Santa Cruz Co., AZ Pima Co., AZ Sonora, MX Gila Co., AZ Sonora, MX Grant Co., NM

Brenda J. Cook Timothy A. Maddock Hayden G. Maclean Robert G. Ameen Billy I. Dippel, Jr. Hunter F. Alexander Randall L. Fehr Michael L. McBrayer

2015 2016 2015 2015 2012 2015 2016 1973

W. Keebler E. Fanchin P. Dalrymple D. Widby T. Bowen R. Rippentrop S. Grabow J. Edwards

NON-TYPICAL COUES’ WHITETAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 196-2/8 131 5/8 128 7/8 123 6/8 105 3/8

133 6/8 135 3/8 142 7/8 116 4/8

Sonora, MX Gila Co., AZ Pima Co., AZ Gila Co., AZ

Paul D. Wint III Anthony M. Flores John N. Bessett, Sr. Mike B. Alexander

2016 2015 1964 2015

D. Mitchell B. Dupke E. Buckner R. Rippentrop

TOP TO BOTTOM:

Fernando G. Semiao took this woodland caribou, scoring 277-5/8 points, in 2015 while hunting near Black Lake, Newfoundland. He was shooting a 30/30 Winchester. This pronghorn, scoring 87-6/8 points, was taken by William M. McNamara, in Elko County, Nevada, in 2015. He was shooting a .30-06 Springfield.

MOOSE AND CARIBOU FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

CANADA MOOSE - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 242 202 4/8 214 3/8 200 7/8 205 1/8 185 2/8 188 2/8 185 188 7/8

Dease Lake, BC Prairie Creek, AB Thorsteinson Lake, MB South Indian Lake, MB

Howard F. Low Ryan N.W. Pendrak Donald D. Cross

2016 K. Lehr 2015 B. Rudyk 2015 E. Parker

Robert A. Karpiak

2015 D. Wilson

Emmet N. Lerg was on a hunt in Nye County, Nevada, when he harvested this desert sheep scoring 175 points. He was shooting a 7mm Remington Mag.

ALASKA-YUKON MOOSE - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 266-4/8 229 5/8 228 5/8 224 218 2/8 212 3/8

233 234 1/8 226 7/8 223 216 1/8

St. Marys, AK Clay J. Evans Rogue River, YT Paul A. Durso Innoko River, AK Ronald C. St. Clair II Mulchatna River, AK Glen A. Rutten Hart Lake, YT James H. Rinehart

2015 2014 2015 2016 2015

B. Wilkes P. Martin S. Zirbel T. Heil T. Atkinson

SHIRAS’ MOOSE - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 205-4/8 166 4/8 156 5/8 156 155 2/8

173 6/8 161 7/8 161 5/8 164 1/8

Twin Falls Co., ID Teton Co., ID Park Co., MT Fremont Co., WY

Bradley R. Vargo Eli K. Johnson Brett W. Hyde Robert B. Andersen

2016 2015 2015 2015

J. Wall K. Lehr F. King B. Wilkes

WOODLAND CARIBOU - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 419-5/8 319 4/8 331 Belby Pond, NL 277 5/8 293 Black Lake, NL 274 1/8 291 6/8 Sam’s Pond, NL

Jeffrey C. Flinn, Jr. 2015 D. Boland Fernando G. Semiao 2015 R. Lund Jerry M. Baker 2015 D. McBride

QUEBEC-LABRADOR CARIBOU - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 474-6/8 375 5/8 385 5/8 Unknown

M. Blake

1989 G. Villnow

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

HORNED GAME FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

PRONGHORN - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 96-4/8 88 4/8 89 2/8 88 2/8 89 2/8 87 6/8 89 4/8 87 4/8 88 5/8 87 4/8 88 1/8 84 6/8 85 1/8 84 6/8 85 5/8 84 2/8 85 4/8 84 86 1/8 84 84 3/8 82 6/8 84 82 4/8 83 1/8 81 82 7/8

Elko Co., NV Kevin K. Moore Washington Co., CO Patrick C. Arias Elko Co., NV William M. McNamara Coconino Co., AZ Ryan B. Parker Washoe Co., NV Marvin R. Mort Mora Co., NM Brian K. Turner Mora Co., NM Douglas R. Fisk Socorro Co., NM Craig T. Huff Carbon Co., UT Scott H. Geston Lassen Co., CA Stacey L. Perrien Navajo Co., AZ Cory L. Napier Modoc Co., CA Heather A. Moore Lander Co., NV Robert S. Lane

2016 T. Humes 2015 P. Allen 2015 T. Boudreau 2015 2016 2015 2014 2014 2015 2016 2015 2016 2015

M. Golightly T. Humes T. Adams T. Adams R. Stayner D. Eider D. Perrien A. Moors R. McDrew R. McDrew

BISON - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 136-4/8 125 2/8 120 6/8 119 118 6/8

126 5/8 121 4/8 119 4/8 119 7/8

Coconino Co., AZ Park Co., MT Teton Co., WY Aishihik Lake, YT

Randall B. Brown John D. Twedt Dale V. Query J. Geoff Wooding

2016 2016 2015 2015

M. Golightly B. Zundel D. Hart C. Walker

ROCKY MOUNTAIN GOAT - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 57-4/8 51 4/8 51 50 49 47 4/8

51 4/8 51 4/8 50 5/8 49 2/8 47 6/8

Clore River, BC Tahtsa Lake, BC Skeena River, BC Misty Fjords, AK Port Chatham, AK

Katie M. Rogers Howard Hummel Martin G. Crowe Michael J. Wolff Douglas A. Matney

2016 2016 2015 2010 2015

R. Rauscher R. Berreth R. Burtis J. Medeiros L. Scherer

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 91

30 TH BIG GAME AWARDS

MUSK OX - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 129 118 4/8 115 4/8 115 4/8 113 6/8 105 2/8

119 3/8 121 4/8 116 7/8 121 4/8 106 7/8

Kugluktuk, NU Rand J. Kramer Great Bear Lake, NT Archie G. Landals Kugluktuk, NU Martin G. Crowe Baker Lake, NU Gordon J. Banda Nelson Island, AK Frank S. Noska IV

2016 2015 2016 2016 2016

P. Jensen C. Fennema R. Burtis D. Pezderic C. Brent

BIGHORN SHEEP - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 209-4/8 188 4/8 188 184 3/8 181 4/8 180 5/8 180 2/8 178 4/8 178 177 5/8

190 3/8 188 3/8 184 6/8 181 6/8 181 3/8 181 1/8 178 7/8 178 2/8 177 6/8

Fergus Co., MT Mount Allan, AB Duchesne Co., UT Unknown Taos Co., NM Big Horn Co., WY Phillips Co., MT Chouteau Co., MT Blaine Co., MT

Richard L. Murray Chad A. Dillabough Ty H. Navanick Unknown Richard A. Smith Gary T. Laya Shane A. Schantz Lee M. Wahlund Terry L. Dolecheck

2015 2015 2015 1949 2016 2016 2015 2015 2015

F. King K. Wiebe R. Hall G. Villnow L. Rominger M. Barrett F. King J. Zins J. Pallister

DESERT SHEEP - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 205-1/8 178 2/8 176 2/8 175 174 173 4/8 172 5/8 172 2/8 170 7/8 170 5/8 169 3/8 169 168 4/8 168 4/8 165 6/8 165

178 6/8 177 175 4/8 174 2/8 174 4/8 173 3/8 173 4/8 171 4/8 171 5/8 169 6/8 169 4/8 168 6/8 169 7/8 166 3/8 167 1/8

Pinal Co., AZ Lincoln Co., NV Nye Co., NV Cochise Co., AZ Nye Co., NV Churchill Co., NV Chihuahua, MX Maricopa Co., AZ Lincoln Co., NV Kane Co., UT Chihuahua, MX Sonora, MX Pinal Co., AZ Pima Co., AZ Mohave Co., AZ

Robert S. Lindsay 2015 Daniel N. Gilbert 2015 Emmet N. Lerg 2015 Kevin P. Layton 2014 Gary K. Waldron 2015 Thomas B. Gordon, Jr. 2015 Gary R. Scheffen 2015 Steven W. Quinn 2014 Ian W. Steninger 2015 Christian R. Tabone 2015 Michael G. Miller 2016 Frank J. Maestri II 2015 Zona L. Pinto 2015 Donna R. Mattausch 2015 William J. Ford 2014

C. Goldman J. Tiberti V. Trujillo J. Edwards J. Capurro H. Wilson P. Gauthier C. Goldman J. Capurro K. Leo D. Nielsen M. Barrett D. May D. May C. Kelly

DALL’S SHEEP- WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 189-6/8 170 4/8 170 6/8 Unknown 164 164 6/8 Brooks Range, AK

Unknown Randall L. Fehr

2007 G. Villnow 2009 T. Kalsbeck

STONE’S SHEEP - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 196-6/8 175 7/8 176 1/8 Tuchodi Lakes, BC Daniel A. Proctor

Lifetime Associate Zona L. Pinto took this desert sheep, scoring 168-4/8 points, on a hunt in Pinal County, Arizona, in 2015.

TOP TO BOTTOM:

Rand J. Kramer took this musk ox, scoring 118-4/8 points, in 2016 while bow-hunting near Kugluktuk, Nunavut. B&C Associate and Official Measurer Chad A. Dillabough (left) was on an archery hunt near Mount Allan, Alberta, in 2015, when he harvested this bighorn sheep, scoring 188 points. This bison, scoring 120-6/8 points, was taken by B&C Associate John D. Twedt, in Park County, Montana, in 2016. He was shooting a .300 Winchester Mag.

92 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

2016 R. Berreth

FAIR CHASE | S P RI N G 2 0 17 93

DO MORE HUNTING STUFF THIS YEAR Here we are at the beginning of a brand new year with several good reasons to reconsider and rededicate ourselves to those things we hold most important. For me, I am going to double down on my conservative values and do what I can to make sure there is a better tomorrow for all concerned. In the context of my hunting life, that means I am going to work harder to hone my hunting skills and reduce my reliance on technology. I further resolve to celebrate my brothers and sisters in the hunting community with greater gusto and revel in their stories of pursuit and challenge every chance I get. I will commit to learning more and more about the habits and habitats of North American big game species. And, I will invest what time, treasure and talent I can afford into the conservation movement. All in all, I am going to do more hunting stuff and less “not-hunting stuff.” By the end of this year, I will have planned and experienced more days afield, and I will have contributed to the wellbeing of the wild animals, wild places, and the conservationists like never before. It is going to be the best year ever! Perfect, right? If only everyone would do exactly the same. If only I would… I have never been one to get easily discouraged. I suspect most folks who really know me consider me a decidedly optimist sort. I am

94 FA I R CH A S E | S P R I N G 2 0 17

planning and scheming most all the time. I wake up each day with a list of things to do and I almost always take time to look around and see what else needs doing. I pursue life in whatever form it takes. With all this zest for life, I just don’t get to hunt as much as I should. This is a problem that needs fixing. A friend of mine explained long ago that life is made up of three parts. (I am sure he didn’t make this up, but I don’t know who to give credit for it, so I am simply saying these are not my words.) The three parts are work, maintenance, and play (hunting is “play”). The entire process of life is an effort to trade work units for play units without giving up too many credits to maintenance. Work earns money, money buys either “stuff,” which requires maintenance, or “play,” which is the antithesis of work. (For those who work in the hunting industry, I apologize.) I am at a work/ maintenance crossroad, and I need more play. One of my early hunting buddies always said that a day hunting adds two days to the end of your life. I need to adjust the ratio and work on adding days to the end. Well, life sometimes gets in the way of the best-laid plans. It is relatively easy to get all gung-ho at this time of the year, but like a New Year’s resolution, the trick is in keeping the enthusiasm and effort going through the year. When it comes to hunting, I certainly do not have this figured out, but I believe the key is to keep

THE ETHICS OF FAIR CHASE

one’s hunting plans top-ofmind throughout the year. In order to do this, we need to justify a higher priority for our hunting stuff. The justification is that hunting our way is a good and worthy use of our precious time. Ours is a culture of righteousness. Our reward is commensurate with the effort we put in, as long as we measure it properly. In fair chase hunting, there is integrity and honor. We are well-served by immersing ourselves in such things. Unlike so many other distractions in life, this one is worthy of our time. Our time afield as a fair chase hunter and conservationist/ steward is good and proper. We are fulfilled, and we grow in our understanding and appreciation. And just in case we ever begin to take ourselves too seriously in hunting, humility is always close at hand. All in all, we are better because we hunt.

Daniel A. Pedrotti, Jr. B&C REGULAR MEMBER Chair, Hunter Ethics Sub-Committee

I believe the good Lord wants and needs us to pay more attention and respect to living a virtuous life and being more willing to stand up for righteousness. I believe, with all my heart, that the fair chase hunting life is aligned with this objective. The point of this particular ramble is to encourage each and every one of us to spend more time doing hunting stuff and less time doing “not-hunting stuff.” You will be better for it, and the wild animals and wild places will benefit from your time and effort. Go ahead and add a couple of months or even years to your life. n

Ours is a culture of righteousness. Our reward is commensurate with the effort we put in, as long as we measure it properly. In fair chase hunting, there is integrity and honor. We are well-served by immersing ourselves in such things.

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