Fall 2015 Fair Chase by Boone and Crockett Club

FALL 2015 | $9.95

CONSERVATION EDUCATION PROTECTING HUNTERS’ RIGHTS

It’s who we are. It’s what we do.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 6

FROM THE EDITOR

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

Volume 31 n Number 3 n Fall 2015

8 FROM THE PRESIDENT | Public Land Stewardship Morrison Stevens, Sr. Russ Mason and John F. Organ 12

CAPITOL COMMENTS | It’s Time to Sight in the Rifle

ARKANSAS’S WHITETAIL DEER | A 100-Year Journey

CARTRIDGE REVIEW | 7x57 Mauser

BLUNDERS I’D AS SOON FORGET

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL | Patience Is Key

NATIONAL CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE

16. Arkansas’s Whitetail Deer: A 100-Year Journey

70. Generation Next

Steven Williams

Cory Gray and Ralph Meeker

Craig Boddington

Wayne van Zwoll

Chuck Adams

Jonathan Gassett

In 2004 when the NCLI was established, the program had a clear vision: to prepare the next generation to lead conservation and to make it one of America’s greatest strengths.

EXTIRPATED? NEVER SAY NEVER

Excerpt from Forks in the Trail Jack Ward Thomas

MILESTONES IN CONSERVATION

THE NATIONAL COLLECTION OF HEADS AND HORNS - THE TROPHIES | Part Two

B&C Staff

Lowell E. Baier

SCIENCE BLASTS | Wild-Harvested Meat’s Role in Public Support for Hunting and Conservation John F. Organ

FEDERAL TRUST LANDS FOR THE NEW CENTURY

44. The National Collection of Heads and Horns

Doug Painter

Boone and Crockett Club

58 WILD GOURMET | My Favorite Recipe For Success Daniel Nelson Mistakes in these first crucial hours can irreparably affect the taste and safety of the entire animal. Much of what you need to do in the field will depend on the length of time before you can get your harvest to your final processing area. 62 TROPHY TALK | 158 Measurers ‘Lost’ Jack Reneau 66

BEYOND THE SCORE | New Mexico Solo Elk Hunt

GENERATION NEXT | 29th Awards Youth Trophy List Youth Story | Kyle C. Bartsoff

RECENTLY ACCEPTED TROPHIES AND TROPHY PHOTO GALLERY 29th Awards Program Entries | Sponsored by Realtree Xtra Green

THE ETHICS OF FAIR CHASE | Is Fair Really Fair and Why Did You Have to Chase? Daniel A. Pedrotti, Jr.

62. 158 Measurers ‘Lost’

COVER 8x8 Bull Elk works his way through an old burn in Western Alberta. © DONALD M. JONES

@BooneAndCrockettClub #BooneAndCrockettClub

Tammy Bredy

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ABOUT THE BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB The Boone and Crockett Club was founded in 1887 by Theodore Roosevelt. Key members of the Club have included Theodore Roosevelt, George Bird Grinnell, Madison Grant, Charles Sheldon, Gifford Pinchot, Frederick Burnham, Charles Deering, John Lacey, J.N. “Ding” Darling, and Aldo Leopold. The Club, through Roosevelt and these early leaders of the American conservation movement, saw a crisis in humanity’s impact on wildlife and their habitat and called people to action to change America’s direction. They initially focused on protecting wild places and impeding the killing of game and fish for markets. The result of the Club’s efforts to establish a foundation and framework for conservation in America includes what has lately become known as the North American Model for Wildlife Conservation. The Club’s efforts were aimed at the development and passage of the Timberland Reserve Act, which reserved approximately 36 million acres for national forests. The Club worked to develop the

Yellowstone Park Protection Act, which expanded the size of the Park, established laws for its protection, and became the model piece of legislation for all future national parks. The Club played a major role in establishing many other areas for use by the public, including the Glacier National Park, Mount McKinley National Park, Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, National Key Deer Refuge, Holt Collier National Wildlife Refuge, and Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge, to name a few. The Club played a major role in impeding the massive killing of wild animals for meat, hide, and plume markets, which resulted in the Club developing and working for passage of the Lacey Act and other modern day game laws. Other significant pieces of legislation the Club was involved in included the Reclamation Act, National Wildlife Refuge System Act, Migratory Bird Conservation Act, Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, Healthy Forests Restoration Act, and what is commonly called the “Farm Bill.” The Club and its members were also active in establishing other conservation organizations such as the New York Zoological

Society, Camp Fire Club of America, National Audubon Society, American Wildlife Institute, Save the Redwoods League, Ducks Unlimited, North American Wildlife Foundation, National Wildlife Federation, and more recently, the highlyeffective American Wildlife Conservation Partners. In 1906, the Club established the National Collection of Heads and Horns as a repository for examples of the vanishing big game of the world and to enlist public support for their protection. In 1932, the Club published the first edition of Records of North American Big Game. It has consistently published records books and has held Big Game Awards Programs since the 1940s. Boone and Crockett Club’s highly-popular scoring system was adopted in 1950 and is still the most popular scoring system in the world and one of the few based on science and fair-chase principles. The Club has long advocated for the need for science to be the backbone of professional wildlife research and management, including the establishment of Cooperative Wildlife Research Units at the nation’s land grant universities.

Editor-in-Chief – Doug Painter Managing Editor – Karlie Slayer Conservation and History Editor Steven Williams Research and Education Editor John F. Organ 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 Chuck Adams Lowell E. Baier Kyle C. Bartsoff Tammy Bredy Craig Boddington Jonathan Gassett Cory Gray Russ Mason Ralph Meeker Daniel Nelson John F. Organ Daniel A. Pedrotti, Jr. Jack Reneau Morrison Stevens, Sr. Jack Ward Thomas Steven Williams Wayne van Zwoll Photographic Contributors John Hafner Donald M. Jones Mark Mesenko Mark Miller

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

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

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Club President – Morrison Stevens, Sr. Secretary – Tom L. Lewis Treasurer – C. Martin Wood III Executive Vice President – Administration Timothy C. Brady Executive Vice President – Conservation James F. Arnold Vice President of Administration Marshall J. Collins, Jr. Vice President of Big Game Records Eldon L. “Buck” Buckner Vice President of Conservation Stephen P. Mealey Vice President of Communications Marc C. Mondavi Foundation President – B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Class of 2015 CJ Buck Class of 2016 Ned S. Holmes Class of 2017 Anthony J. Caligiuri

FAIR CHASE PRODUCTION STAFF

FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

FOUNDATION

Foundation President – B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Secretary – Tom L. Lewis Treasurer – C. Martin Wood III Vice President – R. Terrell McCombs Vice President – Paul M. Zelisko Class of 2015 Gary W. Dietrich B.B. Hollingsworth, Jr. Ned S. Holmes Tom L. Lewis Paul M. Zelisko Class of 2016 John P. Evans Steve J. Hageman R. Terrell McCombs John P. Schreiner C. Martin Wood III Class of 2017 Remo R. Pizzagalli Edward B. Rasmuson James J. Shinners John A. Tomke Leonard J. Vallender

Bernard + Associates, 767 Mill St. Reno, NV 89502 Jeff@bernardandassociates.com Phone: (775) 323-6828

B&C STAFF

Chief of Staff – Tony A. Schoonen Director of Big Game Records – Jack Reneau Director of Publications – Julie L. Tripp Director of Marketing – Keith Balfourd Office Manager – Sandy Poston Controller – Jan Krueger TRM Ranch Manager – Mike Briggs Assistant Director of Big Game Records – Justin Spring Development Program Manager – Jodi Bishop Assistant Controller – Abra Loran Digital Strategies Manager – Mark Mesenko Creative Services Manager – Karlie Slayer Conservation Education Programs Manager – Luke Coccoli Customer Service – Amy Hutchison Records Dept. Assistant – Wendy Nickelson Records Dept. Data Specialist – Kyle M. Lehr

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FROM THE EDITOR Remember the day you turned old enough to get your driver’s license? If you were like me—indeed, like most every teen in America —you headed down to the DMV the very next morning. Back in the day, it wasn’t just that cars were cool. That shiny new license in your wallet opened up a whole new world, whether it was taking Mary Lou to a drive-in movie, or heading off to your favorite fishing hole with a few of your best buddies. I heard on the news that only 46 percent—that’s less than half—of all 17-year-olds in America today have bothered to get a driver’s license. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Perhaps Uber is even more successful than any of us thought. Or, it might be that today’s teens are waiting for Google to perfect its driverless automobile. Some pundits point out that, for teens, smart phones and tablets are replacing the need for a car. I guess you no longer

have to pick Mary Lou up if you can now connect with her on Facebook. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reported on the steep decline in Little League baseball. According to the National Sporting Goods Association, about two million kids played in Little League last year, compared to 2.5 million in 1996, an overall decline of 25 percent. What’s next to go, Mom and apple pie? Even if you’re a bit oldfashioned like me, still read paper books, and drive down to the local hardware store when you need something, it’s impossible not to be aware of the big changes going on in our society, from Twitter and YouTube to Amazon and EBay. Other trends like teenage driving and Little League play are less obvious but no less real or portentous, not unlike the proverbial frog who blissfully sits in the pan of water while it slowly heats up on the stove until it’s too late. In the Little League

Dan Woodard took his grandsons Shaun and Braxton pronghorn hunting in Beaver County, Utah.

See Dan’s trophy listed on page 84.

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article it was noted that, according to Nielsen ratings, 50 percent of baseball TV viewers are 55 or older. David Ogden, a University of Nebraska researcher who focuses on youth sports makes the point that, “We’re looking at a generation that didn’t play catch with their dads.” Every study on hunting participation I’ve read over the last 40 years underscores that the key to recruiting the next generation of hunters is the introduction to the sport by a family member. At the same time, these studies confirm that the primary reason folks hunt over a lifetime is the social aspect, spending time in the field with family and friends. Our community has done a good job in creating programs that help newcomers get started in hunting. The Families Afield effort, for example, now boasts some 1.5 million apprentice licenses sold in more than 35 states. Sportsmen’s organizations

Doug Painter EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

and state wildlife agencies are now more active than ever promoting a wide range of youth hunting programs. Nonetheless, the future of hunting is dependent on each and every one of us being an active mentor. So, play a game of catch with your kids or grandchildren. Take them for a ride with the top down. And when the time is right, introduce them to our great tradition. Youngsters can play video games and go skateboarding on their own. They can’t go hunting without you. Hope to see you down the trail with a few young hunters in tow. n

Our community has done a good job in creating programs that help newcomers get started in hunting. The Families Afield effort, for example, now boasts some 1.5 million apprentice licenses sold in more than 35 states. Sportsman’s organizations and state wildlife agencies are now more active than ever promoting a wide range of youth hunting programs.

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5

PUBLIC LAND STEWARDSHIP I want to thank John Organ and Russ Mason for their review of public lands from a historical perspective and the evolution of the management of public lands, as well as for their thoughtprovoking conclusions. Most of us have been major witnesses to the recent efforts in Washington, D.C. to transfer federal trust lands to states, or otherwise buy or sell these lands. Federal lands are the foundation of the most successful conservation system in the world, which was established by Theodore Roosevelt and the founders of your organization, the Boone and Crockett Club. However, public lands are being inadequately managed due to reduced funding, routine litigation, and complicated regulations. These issues are not simple, but they could and should be fixed through a stronger commitment to good public policy, including the legacy of American conservation. But, to manage the intricate system of public lands, adequate funding is needed, which contributes more to the problem than whose name is on the deed. Winston Churchill once said, “The farther back you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see.” For the past 30 years, funding for conservation has been declining. In 1982, approximately four percent of the federal budget was dedicated to natural resources, the environment, and environmental enhancement programs. Function 300 includes all of the federal agencies that have a conservation mission (e.g.,

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Bureau of Land Management, United States Forest Service, National Park Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service). Currently, our nation spends less than one percent on natural resources, environmental, and conservation programs. Besides the obvious benefit to conservation, spending money on natural resources also makes economic sense. According to a 2011 study by the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation and further analysis by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, sportsmen and sportswomen spend approximately $90 billion annually on hunting and fishing in the United States. This kind of spending places the hunting and fishing industry in an equivalent spending category as the number 24 company on the Fortune 500 list, above companies like Kroger and Proctor and Gamble. This spending is more than the combined global sales of Apple’s iPhone and iPad products, for which on average, we spend approximately $2,407 per year. In 2011, there were 37.4 million people that hunted or fished in the United States, which is more than the population of the State of California. If every one of us had voted in the 2012 presidential election, we would have comprised approximately 30 percent of the total votes cast. Now that is a political force to be reckoned with! Hunting alone creates hundreds of thousands of jobs and generates $11.8 billion in taxes.

FROM THE PRESIDENT

These numbers show the significance of hunting, fishing, and wildlife viewing to our great nation’s economy. In the previous 10 years, the expenditures by hunters have grown by 55 percent. For a nation that places such importance on conservation and recreation, investing only one percent on something so important is irresponsible. Litigation is also becoming more of a problem than a solution. Originally, citizen lawsuits were intended to keep the bureaucracy honest. Today, honest attempts by agencies to do their jobs are the main targets of litigation. This is transforming our system of federal lands from one that is managed to one where preservation is the only “management” option. In the past 30 years I have witnessed litigation over the management of public lands move from the Northeast and the Pacific Northwest to the Southwest, Midwest, and the Southeast. Part of the reason for this is that the federal government reimburses the lawyers before the government, under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Lowell Baier, past President of Boone and Crockett Club has spent a great deal of

Morrison Stevens, Sr. PRESIDENT

personal time and resources researching the origins and intention of the Equal Access to Justice Act, and he has written extensive articles on this subject in the past (Fair Chase, Summer 2011, and B&C enewsletter, May 2011 and April 2012). His research has led to an amendment of the Act that is now included in the Sportsmen’s Act of 2015, which is currently moving through Congress. Lowell and the Club are supporting this amendment with the intent to get the Equal Access to Justice Act realigned with its original intentions. Lastly, regulations intended to protect public lands are complicated. These regulations are not limited to just those involving natural resources. These complicated and burdensome regulations are preventing the very management that many of our public lands were established under and a major source of frustration for professional agency personnel as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

It appears that we have come full circle from the late 1800s and 1900s when most of our public land administration was formal and managed aggressively to protect and enhance the habitat on a sustainable-use basis.

PUBLIC LANDS— THE HISTORY RUSS MASON Chief of the Wildlife Division of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Unfortunately, It is almost easier for hunterconservationists to develop meaningful programs and partnerships with states and agencies to enhance and maximize private lands for the benefit of fish, wildlife, and threatened species. A significant amount of habitat management dollars and personal effort has been initiated by some speciesspecific NGO’s. Members have also given generously to purchase conservation easements for public access and to improve habitat. All of the NGO’s share our frustration with efforts to motivate the agencies to fulfill their commitments to the American public. An excellent article was published in the recent Ruffed Grouse Society magazine (June 2015 issue) as part of the President’s Message on this very subject. This year the Ruffed Grouse Society filed a petition for rulemaking with the United States Forest Service (USFS) in Washington D.C. to deal with their underperformance in meeting the main goals in the law for regions eight and nine. Rulemaking is not a lawsuit, but legal action is often required if rulemaking is not properly addressed. The USFS has twelve months to respond to the petition. It appears that we

have come full circle from the late 1800s and 1900s when most of our public land administration was formal and managed aggressively to protect and enhance the habitat on a sustainable-use basis. We are now so conflicted that we utilize litigation and rulemaking and political posturing, which can end up hurting us all. To alleviate frustration by all parties affected means something new is needed soon! Approving the H.R. 2647, or the “Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2015” could be one step in the right direction. This bill, which was just passed in the House, is currently in the hands of the U.S. Senate. United States Senators John Barrasso of Wyoming and Ron Wyden of Oregon have introduced other related bills, as have Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and Jeff Flake of Arizona. Along with these more bills are likely, including one bill from the Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. The Boone and Crockett Club will continue working with these Senators and others toward the same goal we have supported in the House; namely, a faster pace of forest habitat restoration. n

In the beginning, public lands were established as a practical expression of the Neoromantic desire to preserve wildlife and other natural resources. Later, forestry emerged as a professional discipline, together with the concepts of conservation and wise use. Particularly in the West, states were poorly equipped and in some instances actively opposed to conservation. For that reason, the federal government and the U.S. Forest Service were the first to prove the practical value of public land and sustainable use. In the 21st century, particularly in the Midwest and eastern United States, circumstances have changed. The ability and capacity of federal agencies to effectively manage lands has diminished due to a lack of funding as well as laws (e.g., National Environmental Policy Act) intended to improve transparency and public participation in decision-making. Largely unfettered by similar legal constraints, states have taken the lead in actively managing landscapes in genuine partnership with stakeholders for the benefit of wildlife. As well, states are leaders when it comes to integrating multiple emerging demands on public lands in ways that are compatible with sustainable use. Consider Michigan. Natural resources conservation and the importance of public lands to wildlife, hunting, fishing, and other forms of outdoor recreation are central to the state’s heritage and catalysts for economic

recovery and reinvention. Michigan’s 4.6 million acres of state-managed public lands comprise the backbone of a $22.2 billion tourism industry. There are 1,300 boating access sites and 84 public harbors that support a $4 billion boating industry, and provide hunting and fishing opportunities that generate $4.7 billion annually. As well, these public lands are the drivers of a $16 billion timber industry and provide 1.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas storage capacity in the 6.4 million acres of mineral rights underneath. Coordinated sustainable use not only provides abundant recreational opportunity but supports industries that, in turn, accomplish the habitat work upon which wildlife depend (e.g., by ensuring tree species diversity and proper age structures). Regardless of ownership or the fact that management is funded almost exclusively through license fees and federal matching funds, public lands provide the path and the lens through which most people, whether or not they hunt or fish, define and encounter wildlife and their habitats. More often than not, these lands provide examples of good management and functional ecosystems. This reflects agency mandates to provide for sustainable populations of all wildlife. Public land provides the backbone by which natural systems (i.e., habitats, rare occurrences, and all wildlife) are sustained throughout North America. Much of the time, public lands provide key opportunities for encounters that blossom into appreciation and support. Yet this is not always the case. Sometimes preconceptions, parochial views, and resentment of government in general become catalysts for conflict. Consider periodic outbreaks FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5

of the Sage Brush Rebellion, simplistic conceptions of ecosystem balance, and Agenda 21 as examples. At a more local level, uninformed aesthetic preferences of what, how, and why management occurs are frequent causes of conflict. The wildlife management importance of clear-cuts can be missed in stridently expressed aesthetic preferences for old-growth forests. Perhaps the most persistent and pervasive issue facing public lands management is the growing divide among various user groups. Put otherwise, there is no longer a conservation community (if there ever was) that consistently works together for the benefit of public lands. Different user groups fight among themselves and with agency professionals over management strategies that favor some species (e.g., deer) or activities (e.g., hunting) over others (e.g., songbirds or bird-watching). This divide manifests in calls for more or better management, where “more” and “better” are usually code for sectarian expressions of self-interest. As well,

because public lands are available to all and used for a range of wildlife-related and other recreational activities, there is the perception that the quality must be less than that of privately managed lands. John Gierach pointed out that a pond behind a fence is always more attractive. One role that the Boone and Crockett Club can assume is the branding of conservation. Just as the word environmentalist lacks a clear definition, so too, conservation remains mostly in the eye of the beholder. The North American Model of Wildlife Conservation’s fiduciary analogy of trustees, managers, and beneficiaries, while glib, is a poor description of day-to-day natural resources management. In the absence of some firm baseline, there is no easily defended starting point from which to judge what constitutes or does not constitute acceptable practice. Some clear compass of what fits within the definition of wise, sustainable use is increasingly important as natural resources become a centerpiece to our quality of life. n

PUBLIC LANDS— THE SCIENCE PERSPECTIVE JOHN F. ORGAN B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Director of the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units

Many people consider the state and federal investment in public land ownership in the United States to be our greatest conser vation legacy. The saying, “They’re not making land anymore.” is often invoked by advocates for further public land acquisition. Recent legislative efforts to dispose federal lands underscore the fact that many people are divided over whether these resources represent a legacy or a liability. This article summarizes some basic facts about the relevance of public lands to hunting, challenges in public lands management, and the Boone and Crockett Club’s history in regard to this resource. My generation of wildlife biologists was taught from day one that wildlife needed three things: food, cover, and water. Thus, the quantity and quality of habitat became a driving force in wildlife management. Aldo Leopold in his epic, “Game Surveys of the North Central States,” funded by the Sporting Arms and Manufacturers Institute in the late 1920s, came to realize that private agricultural lands were key to game production in the upper Midwest, and thus Leopold advocated for

rewarding or subsidizing farmers as part of the American Game Policy in 1930. Private land wildlife incentives, best exemplified in the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program and the conservation provisions of the Farm Bill, are testaments to the vision of Leopold and the recognition that we will never be able to outright purchase enough land to meet public demands for sustainable wildlife resources. So what value do public lands provide? T he B o one a nd Crockett Club played a significant role in the establishment of federal lands for conservation. George Bird Grinnell is responsible for the establishment of Glacier National Park, like Charles Sheldon is responsible for Denali, and also Theodore Roosevelt for millions of acres of National Forests, National Wildlife Refuges, and other federal lands. The Club in many of its early books, including American Big Game Hunting, Hunting and Conser vation , American Big Game and its Haunts, and Hunting at High Altitudes emphasized the importance of federal protected lands for conservation. Public lands of all kinds in the United States – not just those for conservation – amount to around 40 percent of the total land area. Those lands open to hunting comprise a lesser amount. The National Survey of Hunting, Fishing, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, conducted every five years by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Census Bureau, has

Many studies on hunter attitudes, behavior, and motivations have identified access to hunting areas as a major concern, and a barrier to recruitment of new hunters. 10 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

the most reliable national data on public versus private land hunting. One-third of United States hunters hunt on public land. When data on hunter residence are included, we can see that half of all urban hunters hunt on public lands. Many studies on hunter attitudes, behavior, and motivations have identified access to hunting areas as a major concern, and a barrier to recruitment of new hunters. The availability of public lands both accessible to hunters and managed with the intent to provide hunting opportunities becomes increasingly important in light of this. State wildlife lands, particularly those purchased with Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration and/or hunter license dollars, are invaluable for providing hunting opportunity, and efforts to redirect these lands to purposes other than wildlife are prohibited under federal

law, as enforced by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Many federal lands provide significant hunting opportunities. National Forests, National Wildlife Refuges, Bureau of Land Management lands, and others offer varying levels of hunter access and opportunity, while others, such as many National Parks, may be closed to hunting completely. The latter can still be of importance as source population areas—or potentially as liabilities due to a lack of population management. In many cases, competing demands for multiple uses inhibit land and population management that is desirable for providing the maximum hunting opportunities, experiences, and practices designed to ensure the sustainability of habitats that support wildlife for generations to come. These competing demands can range from energ y production on

sensitive wildlife lands to advocacy for “hands-off” land management. Can there be resolution that allows for a sharing of the wealth? Often, the interests of wildlife and other land uses are incompatible to the extent that it becomes an e it h e r - o r proposition. Our courts often opt for the greatest good to the greatest number of people, but that defies principles of the Public Trust Doctrine in wildlife, that holds our government trustees to a higher standard and limits the decision space on trade-offs. Jack Ward Thomas, no stranger to divisive land management controversies, has suggested we consider a new approach to federal land management that is revolutionary yet imbued with the common sense that Jack is brimming with. He suggested we take all Agriculture and Interior Department public lands and look at each for their best,

most practical management utility, identifying those best for wildlife, timber, recreation and culture, grazing, energy, and so on; and reshuffle the deck, assigning them to the appropriate agencies for administration. Doing so with organic legislation that gives clear mandates would pre-empt the conflict and litigation over competing uses. Key to this would be the recognition that lands for wildlife will not be the left-overs, but rather the priority. This recognition would acknowledge the vision of Roosevelt and Grinnell in creating the Club; that America’s greatness is rooted in the values people derive from having wild lands to test their limits, hone skills, and build character such as that embodied in Fair Chase hunting. Doing so on public lands can cultivate another great American virtue, one that Shane Mahoney defines as citizenship. n

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FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 11

IT’S TIME TO SIGHT IN THE RIFLE Wildlife conservation has always been faced with tough challenges. However, recent efforts to stymie the conservation of sage-grouse through the National Defense Authorization Act and legislative riders on an appropriation bill has me figuratively calling foul and throwing the yellow flag on Congressional action. This may be regarded as routine legislating but it clearly is not in the best interest of conservation. Nor is it in the best interest of our nation’s defense or budget. Our Constitution clearly defines one of the responsibilities of Congress: “To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United Sates, or in any Department or Officer thereof.” Every year Congress debates bills offered for consideration. Some of these bills are lengthy and detailed discourses that prescribe the necessary and proper means to execute some type of government activity. Others are short and general in nature. The interpretation and execution of all bills that become law is the responsibility of the Executive branch of government. As a former member of Executive branches at both the federal and state levels, I have had to respond to numerous legislature inquires about how my department or bureau did or did not execute laws according to the intent of the legislature. I also endured the constant barrage of criticism 12 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

CAPITOL COMMENTS

as one of the much-maligned “bureaucrats” that allegedly caused all sorts of problems for the constituents we served. Those criticisms go with the territory when you work in the Executive branch of government. However, the recent spate of bills, legislative riders, and amendments that have been offered have really focused my thoughts on Congress’s inability to prescribe the “necessary and proper” means to execute laws. The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act brought inattentive legislation drafting to the national headlines in June. In that case, the law was challenged over the words in one sentence of the law. Apparently, it is far easier to criticize the execution of laws than for Congress to clearly define what it wants to accomplish when passing legislation. Let me provide two examples. The poster child and whipping boy for this issue is the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The ESA spells out specific timeframes and criteria to consider when the Fish and Wildlife Service receives a petition to list a species. Recent efforts to delay the listing decision for specific species arose from political and economic concerns—neither of which are criteria for listing defined by the ESA. Second, congressional actions to transfer federal land to other interests cite insufficient funding for management of those lands and legal wrangling that prevents management action. In both cases, Congress could amend the ESA and

address management concerns through an open and transparent legislative process. Rather, some members prefer to attach riders to appropriation bills or amendments that address a specific issue of concern. That is no way to run a railroad. Whether the riders and amendments are really meant to change public policy or to assuage selected constituents is not the issue. The interpretation of what is germane with respect to a bill amendment has become at best laughable and at worst, breathtakingly ill-infor med. We have allowed Congress to construct a patchwork quilt of conservation laws that, in some cases, contradict one another, are unenforceable, and/or lead to unnecessary legal challenges. We all suffer from the gyrations that some individual members have used to challenge wildlife conservation efforts. We should expect well-reasoned and measured debate to improve our existing wildlife policy. Instead, it appears that we are experiencing more shoot-from-the-hip legislating. I know that shooting from the hip is fun and sometimes you even hit the target. However, in keeping with the firearm analogy, we would all be better served if Congress stopped using the shotgun approach to legislating and instead took the time to use a sighted-in rifle to target legislative change in our current conservation laws and policy. T he B o one a nd Crockett Club can help identify the useful changes to

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

existing laws and help untangle the Gordian knot that strangles effective conservation efforts, as so eloquently described by Club member Jack Ward Thomas. The Club has regular and professional members who have spent many years on the front lines of conservation. We can more effectively bring that collective knowledge and experience to advance conservation for our nation. n

Read a story from the front lines of conservation in Jack Ward Thomas’s new book Forks in the Trail on page 36.

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Countless titles. Multiple world records. The ultimate foundation for accuracy. FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 13

“...a man who does not like to see, hunt, photograph or otherwise outwit birds and animals is hardly normal. HE IS SUPERCIVILIZED, AND I, FOR ONE DO NOT KNOW

HOW TO DEAL WITH HIM.”

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— ALDO LEOPOLD, 1922

More than any other factor, I believe that patience is the key to close-range hunting success. Patience is the key to finding a big animal you want, and key to hunting that animal until you score. If you do not persist

you might settle for smaller antlers or horns and not be completely satisfied. If you do not keep on stalking, over and over, or keep on sitting on stand until you get a shot, you might never succeed close-up. PG 30. PATIENCE IS KEY by Chuck Adams

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 15 15

ARKANSASâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

CORY GRAY RALPH MEEKER Deer Program Coordinators Arkansas Game and Fish Commission

WHITETAIL DEER: A 100-Year Journey

Arkansans have been on a 100year journey that started March 11, 1915, and culminated with the 2015 centennial birthday of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC).In the last 100 years, Arkansans have enjoyed conservation success stories like the re-establishment of eastern wild turkeys, elk, and black bear. Many species, including the whitetail deer were facing grim futures in Arkansas until the AGFC was formed in 1915.

ABOVE: This non-typical whitetail, scoring 201-1/8 points, was taken in 1953 in Arkansas County. LEFT: Michael A. Chapman harvested this 170-1/8 point typical whitetail in 2009 while hunting in Newton County.

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Like much of the United States at that time, Arkansas was dealing with market and unregulated hunting. Further exploitation of natural resources and habitat loss occurred as railroads, logging camps, and the clearing of land increased. Stories circulated of two hunters killing 50-60 deer in a two-week period, just to find out who could kill the most deer the quickest. When the smoke cleared in the 1930s, less than 500 whitetail deer remained statewide. The new AGFC faced many challenges.

Arkansas has maintained mandatory game checking since 1938, which has provided important long-term trend information on harvest rates. In 2009 the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) discontinued the use of physical deer checkstations and implemented phone and online checking methods. Quality control tests have indicated a 99.5% accuracy rate on the collected harvest data. Since then smartphone applications have also been incorporated and are gaining popularity as the preferred method of checking deer.

CHANGE IN MISSION

From 1915 until the late 1980s, one of the AGFCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s missions was to grow deer numbers. Whitetail deer bag limits and season frameworks remained conservative and included either a non-existent or highly restrictive doe harvest. All deer hunting regulations passed during this time were focused on the goals of herd growth and expansion. The deer management conversation began to change in the mid-to-late 1980s. It was clear that the benefits of wise conservation efforts implemented during the previous 60 years had been successful. But there was a new challenge: Now that we have deer, what do we do with them? In some areas of the state, wildlife biologists began to notice deer herds that demonstrated signs of nearing carrying capacity and exhibited increasingly skewed buck-to-doe ratios. Collected harvest and biological data supported these observations. In 1987, data showed that 63 percent of bucks harvested in the state were yearlings

(typically spike bucks). Of the overall average of 72,000 deer harvested during this time, more than 75 percent were bucks. The buck age structure and harvest leaned heavily on the young. An obvious change in management was needed. In the early-to mid1990s, deer management philosophies began to shift in Arkansas. Principles that produce more balanced age classes and buck-to-doe ratios began to surface. Along with that shift came a shift in huntersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; desires from harvesting a buck to harvesting a high quality buck. The timber industry and private landowners took the lead by implementing antler restrictions in an attempt to protect young bucks and improve the buck age structure. In February 1997, the AGFC surveyed Arkansas hunters to gauge their interest in buck management. Results from that survey showed that 72 percent of respondents supported adopting a minimum antler point restriction known as the 3-Point Rule, in order to protect younger bucks. Under

the 3-Point Rule, a buck would have to possess a minimum of three points on one antler to be legal for harvest. At the request of deer hunters and wildlife biologists, the AGFC implemented the 3-Point Rule in selected areas as a trial run for the 1997 deer season. As a follow-up to the 1997 survey, the AGFC performed a second hunter opinion survey in January 1998. This survey showed that 71 percent of respondents were willing to give up their opportunity to harvest a smallantlered buck in exchange for an increased chance to harvest a large-antlered buck in later years. However, it also showed that they were overwhelmingly opposed to reducing buck harvest days, reducing the buck bag limit from two to one, and instituting buck quota permits to do so. In addition, 85 percent identified a high quality buck as one with eight or more points and a 16-inch or greater inside spread. With these data in mind, the AGFC responded by adopting the 3-Point Rule

statewide for the 1998 deer season. This strategy would allow for maintaining the same season structure in regard to bag limits and season length, but would ultimately restrict the number of bucks taken. Just prior to the statewide implementation of the 3-Point Rule in 1998, Arkansasâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total buck harvest peaked at nearly 110,000, but the reported statewide buck harvest for 1998 declined to 78,764. What happened? The explanation for a decrease was not linked to bag limit changes or a decrease in hunting license sales, which increased during this time. The true reason for the decrease in buck harvest was the lack of bucks with three or more points on one side of their racks available in the population. Recall that harvest data showed yearling bucks comprised 63 percent of the buck harvest in 1987. This percentage decreased in the 1990s but fluctuated 35 percent to 50 percent, which left a very small percentage to be distributed to the adult buck FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 17

age classes. Arkansas hunters were very efficient at harvesting bucks and left very few to carryover for following years to build age structure. The 3-Point Rule had abruptly and dramatically lowered the statewide harvest of yearling bucks. In 1998, the percentage of yearling bucks reported in the statewide harvest declined to 20 percent and has decreased since. The Quality Deer Management Association’s 2015 Whitetail Report ranked Arkansas as the top state with the lowest reported yearling buck harvest rate at 8 percent. Following such a dramatic change in the buck harvest strategy, the AGFC was once again interested in hunters’ opinions. In the spring of 1999, the AGFC conducted a third hunter opinion survey. The results showed tremendous support for the new management direction. Seventy-six percent of respondents stated they supported the new mandatory, statewide 3-Point Rule; 86 percent stated they wished to continue the antler-point restriction for at least another

year; and 87 percent responded that they were willing to give up their chance to shoot a small-antlered buck in exchange for increased odds of shooting larger-antler bucks in later years. A large, 86 percent portion felt that hunters complied with the rules at least some of the time, and 91 percent agreed that the regulations were at least somewhat clear and easy to understand. The new 3-Point Rule appeared to be a success, not only by improving the buck age structure but by gaining public acceptance. MOVING FORWARD

Arkansas deer hunters desired a change in the 1990s. The opportunity to harvest any buck was not as strong as the yearning to harvest a high quality buck. In addition to exhibiting willingness to refrain from harvesting younger bucks, private landowners took a proactive approach to improving and managing wildlife habitat. They realized that high quality habitat was directly linked to helping produce high quality whitetails. In the early 2000s, the

AGFC responded to landowners’ requests to help manage their properties and local deer herds by forming a private lands deer management program called the Deer Management Assistance Program. DMAP helped bridge the gap between landowners who control nearly 85 percent of the habitat in Arkansas, and wildlife biologists. Working relationships were formed, land stewardship improved, and wildlife benefited from these efforts. Today there are nearly 750 deer management clubs enrolled in DMAP, which encompasses almost 1.5 million acres and engages about 10,000 deer hunters. This surge in private land management set the stage for an additional step regarding deer management in Arkansas. Educated hunters became better deer managers and they soon realized that antler-point restrictions were not the best methods of managing for older age-class bucks. Discussions about how to better use antler characteristics to tailor a buck harvest to more precise age classes began. Many hunters were

willing to make a judgment call regarding the length of a buck’s main beam and inside spread from a deer stand. As a result, the AGFC responded in 2009 by implementing a variety of antler restrictions based on a buck’s main beam length and/or inside spread. These new antler restrictions were tailored for a select number of deer zones and state wildlife management areas, and they proved successful. Harvest in these areas quickly shifted toward 3.5-year-old and older bucks, and over time has dramatically expanded the representation of older age classes.

ABOVE: In 2007, this non-typical whitetail, scoring 197-6/8 points, was taken by Ronald G. Harp in Benton County. LEFT: Age structure of Arkansas’s whitetail buck harvest (1981-2014). The mandatory statewide 3-Point Rule was first implemented for the 1998 season and the inside spread/main beam length restrictions implemented for the 2009 deer season in three select deer zones and on certain state-owned wildlife management areas.

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Not only has Arkansas’s buck age-class distribution improved with the implementation of antler restrictions, but the number of entries of whitetail deer into the Boone and Crockett Club has increased (right). Granted, the number of entries from Arkansas doesn’t compare to some of the heavyweight northern states that dominate the record books, but Arkansas is proud to have a seat at the table and prouder of the progress the state has taken. Any respectable deer biologist will say that as much stock should be placed in the female portion of a deer herd as the male portion. Let’s face it: If a deer manager is not capable of suggesting bag limits designed to ensure the replacement of what was removed during the previous deer season, then chances are he or she may be working their way out of a job. Data luckily suggest that Arkansas’s doe are very productive, almost to the point of being too productive.

ABOVE: Age structure of buck harvest for three Arkansas deer zones (16, 16A, & 17) for 2003-2014. *Denotes implementation of minimum inside spread/ main beam length antler restrictions.

BELOW: Number of official Boone and Crockett Club entries from Arkansas (1920-2014).

ABOVE: Charles L. Marcum took this non-typical whitetail in Lonoke County, in 2014. This buck scores 218-7/8 points.

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 19

Because of high lactation rates and fetal counts for yearling and adult does, the AGFC adopted more liberalized doe bag limits and a specialized season framework (which includes a five-day antlerless modern gun hunt before the statewide modern gun season) to ensure that deer herds are balanced with habitat and each other. Biologists believed that balancing sex ratios went hand-in-hand with addressing the buck ageclass structure. Arkansas doe data exhibit an age structure that leans toward the adult segment. In 1981, 59 percent of females harvested were 2.5-year-old or older, compared to 72 percent reported in 2014. Considering the ageclass structure of Arkansas’s does, the collected biological and observation indices which denote their reproductive capability and subsequent fawn recruitment, Arkansas’s deer population is showing signs of expansion rather than suppression. BELOW: Age structure of Arkansas’s whitetail doe harvest (1981-2014).

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TRAJECTORY

We believe Arkansas has come a long way in deer management since March 11, 1915. Whitetail deer hunters and managers in Arkansas have traveled a path together that has witnessed the exploitation of a resource, its comeback, and now the desire to improve upon it. Hunter attitudes and opinions have changed greatly since the AGFC conducted its first hunter opinion survey in 1997. In a survey conducted by Responsive Management in July 2014, 78 percent of respondents stated they were satisfied with the quality of bucks in the areas they hunt. A strong, 84 percent of respondents said they were willing to pass up harvesting a smallantlered buck with hope of harvesting him in upcoming years. Regarding the 3-Point Rule, 64 percent prefer the antler-point restriction, although 62 percent stated they felt comfortable with judging a buck’s inside spread and main beam length in the field. What does the future hold for deer management in Arkansas? Most hunters are

Granted, the number of entries from Arkansas doesn’t compare to some of the heavyweight northern states that dominate the record books, but Arkansas is proud to have a seat at the table and prouder of the progress the state has taken. satisfied with the level of deer management and the quality of animals they are harvesting. However, today’s society is ever-changing and quickly becoming more focused on instant gratification. Technology has improved how we as managers can collect and analyze data, but it is also being used to promote impractical management expectations. Arkansas deer hunters have enjoyed three consecutive years of exceptional deer harvest of more than 208,000 (2012-14). The 2012 season set Arkansas’s record harvest at 213,487. Hunters are harvesting as many bucks now as they did before the 3-Point Rule, and a large portion of those are older age-classed bucks.

In addition, hunters have harvested does and bucks at exactly a 1-1 ratio for the last two seasons. How high can the bar go? The AGFC is concerned about the future trajectory of deer management. How does it convey and promote sound management principles and fulfill hunter requests? To provide transparency in management and firmly communicate a management path, the AGFC’s Deer Team has developed a Strategic Whitetail Deer Management Plan. With a solid plan, we hope these management principles can be conveyed. And as we continue down our management path, we strive to ensure that we are recruiting and retaining hunters to help us achieve management goals and objectives outlined in that plan. How can we manage a deer population without hunters? We also want to ensure that our foundation in The North American Model for Wildlife Conservation is respected by standing against the commercialization and privatization of whitetail deer and other wildlife resources, and by basing our management decisions on data and sound management principles. We are very proud of Arkansas hunters who have traveled this path with us and realize the value of our wildlife resources. We hope you enjoy our story and that you plan a path that will bring you to enjoy The Natural State. n

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CARTRIDGE REVIEW

7x57 MAUSER

CRAIG BODDINGTON PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Photos Courtesy of Author

Okay, okay—with similar ballistics, the 7mm-08 Remington is probably a better cartridge than the 7x57 Mauser. As a relatively new cartridge it is only chambered in modern rifles, so it’s loaded to higher pressures and velocities. Out of concern for its use in the 1893 and 1895 Mausers, current American 7x57 factory loads are quite mild. Also, the 7mm-08 fits into a short (.308 Winchester-length) bolt action, while the 7x57, with six millimeters more case length is too long. So please forgive me, I prefer the 7x57!

TOP: Ruger has done recent runs of their Number One single shot in 7x57. I had to try all kinds of different loads to get this one to shoot. It isn’t a tack driver, but it’s accurate enough for the hunting I do with this cartridge. ABOVE: Eleanor O’Connor took this elephant in Zambia, in 1969. Sheep, moose, bears, elk, African plains game, and even a tiger fell to her 7x57. 22 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

LEFT TO RIGHT: 7mm-08 Remington, 7x57 Mauser, .280 Remington. Of our “non-magnum” 7mm cartridges, only the 7mm-08 is really popular today; but with handloads, the 7x57 is capable of higher velocity, though is not nearly as fast as the .280 Remington.

My preference is not just for nostalgia. The 7x57— also known as 7mm Mauser and .275 Rigby—is a classic cartridge with an unusually rich history. This is partly because it was one of the early smokeless powder military cartridges developed and introduced by Peter Paul Mauser in 1892, and first adopted by Spain in 1893; and also partly because it went on to do historic things, both dastardly and heroic. Eventually adopted as a military cartridge by ten nations, it was the 7x57 that our founder, Colonel Theodore Roosevelt faced at San Juan Hill. The 750 Spanish defenders were greatly outnumbered, but they poured down a withering fire, inflicting a staggering 1,400 casualties on the Americans before the hill was taken. More than a century would pass before Roosevelt received a well-deserved posthumous Medal of Honor for his actions on San Juan Hill. Immediately after the event a board of enquiry was convened to determine why the casualties were so lopsided. The answer was that the 7x57 Mauser was superior to the rifles carried by our troops— in some cases the .30-40 Krag, The 7x57 has become my go-to whitetail rifle. This was the first buck I took on my place in Kansas, dropped at 125 yards with the Todd Ramirez 7x57.

but many Americans were still armed with black powder Springfields. A short while later the British faced the 7x57 in the Second Boer War. And although they also eventually won, they took a terrible shel lack i ng f rom t he sharpshooting Boers and their Mausers. In South Africa, to this day, the 7x57 is commonly referred to as the “Boer Mauser.” The British respected the cartridge, and in 1899 John Rigby renamed it .275 Rigby for the British trade. Under that guise it became a favorite among some of Britain’s most famous hunters. Walter Dalrymple Maitland “Karamoja” Bell was a big fan. Although commonly stated, he did not take all of his 1,013 elephants with the 7x57—but it was one of his favorites. Between 1910 and 1923 Bell purchased six .275s from Rigby! Another Rigby .275 was a favorite companion of Jim Corbett, of man-eating tiger fame. He used a heavier rifle for most of his tigers, but his .275 accounted for several tigers, some infamous leopards, and all manner of other game. Over here the 7x57 hasn’t fared quite as well. It

has never died away, sort of coming and going, never exactly popular but also not quite forgotten. Jack O’Connor himself used it both before and after the 1925 introduction of the .270, but it was the darling of his wife Eleanor, who used very few other rifles during her own long hunting career. Sheep, moose, bears, elk, African plains game, and even a tiger fell to her 7x57. I’ll never hunt a tiger and, with all due respect to Karamoja, I’m not about to tackle an elephant with a 7x57. But I’ve used the cartridge on all the continents, including mountain game, red stag, and African plains game up to kudu and zebra. It’s effective far beyond its modest paper ballistics, certainly fully capable of handling game up to elk with no hesitation, mild recoil, and little fuss. Over here it has primarily been my favorite whitetail cartridge, which is certainly not damning with faint praise. The 7x57 made its bones with a heavy-for-caliber 173-grain round-nose at 2,300 feet per second, flashy in 1892 but not so impressive by today’s standards. The funny thing is that in 1913 the Spanish adopted a new 139-grain spitzer load rated at 2,789 feet per second (in their long-barreled Mausers). Despite our modern propellants today’s 7x57 loads barely come close. Standard today is a 140-grain bullet at a very mild 2,660 feet per second, while the smallercased 7mm-08 is loaded to 2,840 feet per second with the same bullet weight. Go figure. Hornady’s Superformance line offers a 139-grain bullet at 2,760 feet per second, which is getting there. However, the message is pretty clear: The 7x57 today is a handloader’s cartridge. It has greater case capacity than the 7mm-08, so in modern actions it can easily be loaded equal-to or even exceed its

brave young rival. Depending on which loading manual you use it’s no problem to get a 140-grain bullet up to 2,850 feet per second, and some manuals go to 2,900. Since I use it mostly for deer hunting that’s the bullet weight I prefer, but because of its greater case capacity and the ability to seat bullets farther out (because it requires a longer action) it widens the gap with heavier bullets. I used to load the 7x57 up to the gills, and it was impressive. I don’t do that anymore. I don’t think of it as a long-range cartridge, so I use it in mixed country where longer shots are unlikely, and it does wonderful work with a 139 or 140-grain bullet loafing along somewhere in the 2,700s. It’s still impressive. I’m sure I’ve never lost an animal hit with the 7x57, and I don’t recall any long tracking jobs. I will admit, grudgingly, that I have never owned a 7x57 that was a real tack-driver. The 7mm-08 is probably a more accurate cartridge—but since I don’t think of it as a longrange cartridge it’s plenty accurate enough for the hunting I wish to do with it. Today the 7mm-08 is much more popular, offered in a greater variety of loads, and chambered by virtually all manufacturers. New American factory rifles in the 7x57 are now very rare. Ruger has done runs of their Number One single shot in 7x57, and in 2013 Winchester did a limited edition Model 70 Featherweight, but regrettably, it’s no longer a rifle you can run down to the corner gun shop and purchase. I suppose time marches on and some great old cartridges have to be left behind. Heck, I got both my daughters 7mm-08s because of ammo and rifle availability. Me—I’ve never owned a 7mm-08 and I don’t intend to. I’ll stick with the grand old 7x57. n FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 23

Blunders Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d As Soon Forget

WAYNE C. VAN ZWOLL

B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Photos Courtesy of Author

For all its perils, confession cleanses the soul. If only it could erase memory!

Wait. Wait. Then wait some more. Meantime, think about why you decided to wait here, now.

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Approach ready to fire again, from behind the animal, rifle up front. Save congratulations for later.

In an era of slams and

super slams, of deer antlers bigger than the elk bone on my shed, I’ve come to accept my lot as reporter. Lest you think this a maudlin preamble to a list of excuses, I’ll hasten to say that verily, work in the shadows has become comfortable. It absolves me of any responsibility to excel.

Not that such burden ever weighed heavily on me. When I lost my shoe in a pond on a third-grade field trip and had to hitch a ride with the teacher while the other pupils hiked the rail line back to school, I had to re-think my aspirations. Trailing man-eating tigers behind Jim Corbett in India and dropping pairs of truculent elephants with a quick right-and-left beside John Hunter in Kenya, I’d earned my pith helmet as a reader. The shoe incident called my field acumen into question. A fiberglass bow that drew 18 pounds came my way via several books of green stamps. Arrows cost 25 cents—at least those bristling from the bargain box at the local hardware. Saturday mornings I’d paw through the lot to pick the straightest shaft. It would last a couple of days before shattering on rocks behind a target chipmunk, or submerging forever in cottontail cover. My parents thought firearms had as much place in the home as Soviet missiles in Cuba. They held out courageously before pestered to distraction, they loaned me $5.95 for a lever-action Daisy. It smelled deliciously of gun oil, hurled BBs in mortar-steep arcs, and staggered sparrows. It seldom brought them to earth, however, and I regret shooting so many. A neighbor whose stylish Irish Setter I’d ruined beyond redemption with treks into suburban lots after rabbits

took pity one day and ushered me onto the school softball diamond. He set a soup can on the pitcher’s mound and handed me a Model 12 Winchester. “You might as well fire a real gun,” he said. The 12 bore hit me hard. The can flew violently into right field—I was hooked. Ogling surplus infantry arms cataloged by Montgomery Ward, I despaired in junior high of ever owning a rifle. Even the .22 Winchester single-shot hanging under the dusty moose head at the hardware store cost $16. A 1903 Springfield, mail-ordered, was twice that. For cleaning his chicken house and picking rocks in southern Michigan dirt, a farmer loaned me a Remington 121 Pump and furnished a box of .22 Shorts to shoot rats. When the thick, hairy crosswire in the 3/4-inch Weaver J4 hopped, a brain-shot rat would leap lifelessly about in the sheep dung, striking the barn boards. Heady stuff. Harvey also had a long-barreled Krag. One summer evening he set a can in a fallow field and handed me an enormous .30-40 cartridge. The heavy rifle wobbled, though I tried mightily to steady it; then Pow! The steel butt-plate hammered my clavicle. The can stood unscathed. I’d not thought it possible that my first shot with a centerfire rifle would miss; the shame lingers still. Some time later I bought my own war trophy, a Short Magazine Lee Enfield (SMLE). Half of the .303 cases separated on firing— a headspace problem, someone said. Headspace meant nothing to me, but the rifle had set me back $15. I battled fiercely for a refund and got it. Months later I shelled out $30 for another SMLE, restocked it, and installed Williams open sights. With it I tumbled my first deer, breaking its neck as it dashed through poplars 90 yards off—a shot that lives vividly in memory as lesser performances fade. There have been many lesser performances. I once missed a mule deer at 14 feet, my bullet blasting shards of rock into both of us because the muzzle didn’t quite clear the ledge. I missed a bull elk with vitals the size of a microwave when

Viewing fine country from ridgetop is a pleasant pastime, but seldom shows you much game.

Not making the most of my time actually hunting pains me in retrospect. Why didn’t I commit a few additional steps, look harder into cover, and wait just a few more minutes on stand? FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 25

my hand slipped against a tree just as the trigger broke. I missed a black bear from prone after a summer of drilling half-inch X-rings in prone matches. Indeed, I’ve missed more easy shots than will fit in this issue of Fair Chase. I deserve absolution for very few of them. Nor would I get absolution from the law. One November day 50 years ago, as my pal Ron drove us from one woodlot to another, a game warden lit us up from behind. “Just checking,” said the uniformed fellow at Ron’s window. We showed our deer tags, then got out to pull rifles from the back. As Ron levered six rounds from his Winchester, I could have tripped the catch to dump the box from my SMLE. But it didn’t occur to me before the officer cited us both for loaded magazines. Empty chambers earned us no leniency. “If that’s the worst they do, I’ll live with it,” said Ron’s father to mine exiting the courthouse. Clearly his sentiment wasn’t shared. That $17.50 fine reminded me for decades to double-check hunting regulations. Such ineptness has forever kept me from the ranks of criminals who prefer clever company. It has also put me on a cautious path. I’ve declined shots for want of a confirming look at antler; stopped firing on the closing minute as ducks pitched into the decoys; turned back at invisible property lines instead of killing across them. Once, as dawn’s promise brightened Junipers, a huge bull elk eased from shadows in easy range and stopped. Crosswire on rib, I heard my guide whisper: “Close enough.” To legal time, he meant. But firing would be cheating. I demurred; the elk left. Hewing to rules, you’re penalty-free; and more importantly, memories need no apology in the telling. 26 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

Alas, I can’t lay all my failures to virtue. Once in steady drizzle, I slumped to rest under a Doug-fir. Freeing a bagel from my pack, I was suddenly aware of a presence. A sweep with my B&L showed only dripping conifers—until I picked up the eye. Not 20 steps away, it glinted from the gloom under an impossibly thick, gnarled antler. I diverted my gaze, lowered the binocular, and eased my .270 to cheek. The forest was empty. I’ve never seen a heavier deer antler afield. I failed to see soon enough a tremendous elk that my partner had spotted because he was looking afar and I much closer. It remains the biggest bull ever in my rifle sight. I stared right past an exceptional mule deer when, after a half-day’s tracking, it hooked below me in a squall. The buck stood until too late; I caught only the ghost-like image of its great rack. I’ve quit hunts too early, once walking 17 miles from a drop camp, convinced no elk were nearby. At trail head, I found the outfitter had stowed my pickup keys. So I hot-wired my ’66 International to get home. To his credit, the fellow mailed the keys and offered another hunt. But it wasn’t his fault I’d come for an elk, not an elk hunt. Persistence would have served me on another mountain as well, when backpacking in, I found little deer sign. A hunter chatted me up on the trail, said he was staying a week. After the season he mailed me a photo of the 200point typical mule deer he’d killed after I left. Not making the most of my time actually hunting pains me in retrospect. Why didn’t I commit a few additional steps, look harder into cover, and wait just a few more minutes on stand? And I’d like to have accepted defeat more gracefully.

Once, a friend and I hunted parallel into a pocket where I expected to see a buck. My pal saw the deer but hesitated, as he felt I should get the shot. From my angle, the buck was darned near invisible, but I followed my amigo’s sightline. He fired and missed just as I got on the trigger. The deer moved at the report, just as my bullet left. Two muffed shots! I moped all day. My companion, who owed me nothing, deserved better company. Hardware too often gets the blame for human shortcomings. After these many decades, I can’t recall more than three honest-togosh scope failures. I’ve had a few misfires from faulty ammo and light striker hits. Barrel fouling and heating can

Very few deer enter the records books. Any mature buck cleanly taken is a memory worth savoring.

affect accuracy but shouldn’t scuttle your hunt, because you’ll have a clean or lightly fouled barrel and you won’t heat it up firing at game. Faulty bedding, loose guard screws, and other common culprits rarely cause you to miss big game vitals. In one trial I removed the rear guard screw. The next group was a dime-size knot, dead-center. A gremlin that can ruin your hunt is a loose sight screw. In Namibia hunting eland, I ambushed a bull at dusk. The roll of the earth permitted a prone shot. To my amazement, the eland ran off paunched. At camp next morning I fired to confirm zero. The bullet struck true. Puzzled, I fired again, and that shot landed six inches to three

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 27

Blunders I’d As Soon Forget

TOP TO BOTTOM: Factory ammunition won’t cause you to miss. Misfires have become as rare as streets with hitch-rails. Blame the scope? Not unless it’s like this one. Since the 1960s, optics have become very reliable. One of Wayne’s early hunts put him on an ice-clogged Arctic Ocean. No blunders permitted here.

28 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

o’clock! It prompted me to check what I should have earlier: the single dovetail scope base. A windage screw had come free. Recoil was bouncing the rear of the scope back and forth against the windage screws. Every other shot hit; every other strayed. A tracker and I dogged the wounded eland. I killed it offhand at 80 yards as it lunged from its bed. Mechanical faults don’t become problems until you fail to see and correct them. Flawed judgment is harder to spot in time. And you can’t ensure good decisions will beget others. Sometimes, sound judgment denies you a shot. Once, coming off a mountain at dusk, I spied an outstanding buck below. Alas, a farmhouse window glowed beyond, far away but in perfect line. With no way to change the angle, I demurred, and a pal killed that buck the next week—a Boone and Crockett deer. Another time, in tight cover, I still-hunted to within short steps of a bull before I saw its ear flick. Alerted, the elk was unwilling to move. I could see enough for a brain shot through a web of twigs. Rather than risk a deflection that might cripple the elk, I waited, and he left. So left another tremendous bull I’d stalked with a client in a thicket. At 18 steps, I signaled not to fire until I confirmed the integrity of the antlers. The elk stayed motionless, boughs hiding rear tines. Our scent pool then detonated the stalemate. The parting glimpse of its magnificent, unbroken antlers haunts me still. Doing the right things will eventually bring you results that you don’t like. Then you must ask yourself if the measure of a decision is what comes of it, or what prompted it. I once declined at shortnotice a grizzly hunt because I’d promised to teach an archery course at a local school.

The hunt was offered at no charge. Any chance to trigger a shot can vanish instantly, and you’ll seldom know the result that would have followed a different decision. Recently, in a foggy dawn, I spied a fine whitetail buck. After a sneak that yielded a kneeling shot at 90 yards, I aimed and fired. The impact was audible; fog hid the deer. Then I saw it—or one just like it—standing. The rear legs seemed skewed. Within a short sprint of property that I couldn’t hunt, this buck was killable. But was it the buck I had shot? The crosswire quivered. In the Far North, with a pal hunting a grizzly, I watched as he drilled a fine silvertip at 100 yards. The bear roared and spun, biting at the wound. We eased forward but the whirling animal offered him no sure follow-up. Suddenly the bear sprinted for an alder thicket. Though I had no tag, I cheeked my rifle. Badly hurt, this grizzly was still mobile and lethal. A quick finish was also its proper end. To ensure only clients would kill elk, the outfit for which I worked during the ‘90s didn’t permit guides to carry rifles. It was sound policy. Then a client paunched a six-point bull. Unarmed, I trailed it with the hunter behind. We spied the bedded elk; but to get a shot, we had to crawl. Needing all fours, the man handed me his rifle. Suddenly the bull rose and galloped toward a canyon that would swallow it. In Africa, bellying through thorn toward a Cape buffalo facing our way, I found a shot-alley to its nose. At 28 steps, threading a bullet to the brain became an option. The bull was unlikely to hold, but my guide couldn’t see the alley. He pinched my ankle and whispered, “wait for a shoulder shot.” Confident of a kill, I

also owed the guide his due. The first chance I had at a bull elephant came after a short hike, though I’ve since logged many fruitless miles on elephant tracks. At 30 yards, the .458’s big ivory bead hovered just behind the ear as the animal quartered slightly away. The guide shook his head saying, “Ear-hole to ear-hole. Wait.” Sure of this shot and fearing our scent pool would soon spook the bull, I steadied the Ruger. Your behavior can presume shooting as an option when in fact it is not. Once, hunting the hem of a Zimbabwean river, I nearly jumped out of my boots as the breasthigh reeds were rent by the rush of a beast that split the water with equal violence. Seconds later a pair of reptilian eyes rose mid-stream. They seemed a foot apart. This introduction to wild Africa made an impression, and so did the hour I lay bellyflat and breathless in tall grass, as a crosswind foiled hostile elephants that were seeking me out. On a long ago trip to the Arctic, between flights at Churchill, Manitoba’s Aerodrome, I found the counter attendant an engaging girl. Where could I see a polar bear? She said, “The dump is some distance off, but walking there is dangerous. Take my car.” She tossed me a set of keys and continued, “The Rambler; follow the road.” My partner and I set off in the twilight. Shortly we found a polar bear. She was nosing about with a cub, facing away. I got out of the car, keen to photograph the beasts up close. Some yards farther on, the arithmetic struck home. If that bear could run twice as fast as me, I’d already gone too far. I shot a few frames and then heeded my pal’s urgings to retreat. Some decisions seem just fine in retrospect. n

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FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 29

PATIENCE IS

KEY

Kansas can be cold in November.

I was finding out just how cold as I lay on my belly in the sand. Nice whitetail antlers were rocking gently about 30 yards in front of me as the bedded buck chewed his cud. I say about 30 yards because my normally dead-accurate laser rangefinder had frozen and was no longer working.

Chuck’s Alberta “Sticker Buck” was a public-land dandy that required extreme stalking and waiting patience.

30 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

My fingers were also icy inside thick chopper mittens. I hoped they would still work when the buck finally decided to get up. I had been lying in the same position for more than two hours after crawling across a ridge and into a slight depression. There are not many trees in the Sand Hills of southern Kansas, but wild plum bushes dotted the landscape and provided a little cover. A vigorous belly sneak had kept me tolerably warm for a while on this subfreezing and windy day, but my stored-up body heat was now long gone. The buck in front of me was like an old friend. I had seen him almost every day for more than a week, and I had stalked him five times without getting closer than 100 yards. If the fickle breeze did not ruin things, I bumped into other deer or ran out of cover. But finally a stiff wind had driven the buck into a sheltered pocket below a ridge. I was able to maneuver close, and then I had to wait. Some bowhunters and guides have told me they like to make noise or toss a rock to get a bedded deer to stand. In my experience, this impatient tactic almost never

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL CHUCK ADAMS B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Photos Courtesy of Author

works. Even if the animal does not blow out at high-speed, it is on high alert when it gets up. This usually means a missed shot after the critter jumps the bowstring. Just before dark, the deer’s body language changed. His ears flicked forward and he rotated his head repeatedly to scan terrain. When he finally stood, he was looking directly away with ears back and body slouched. I willed my frozen body to move, rolled to my knees, clutched the icy bow, and drew. The deer never moved as I aimed at his quartering body and released. The arrow hit with a solid thump and the buck leaped ahead like a cutting horse after a calf. Halfway up the sandy slope, he suddenly pitched on his gorgeous whiteringed nose. The heavy 5x6 antlers later scored more than 160 record-book points, placing him well up in the Pope and Young record book. The long wait had paid off. More than any other factor, I believe that patience is the key to close-range hunting success. Patience is the key to finding a big animal you want, and key to hunting that animal until you score. If you do not persist you might settle

for smaller antlers or horns and not be completely satisfied. If you do not keep on stalking, over and over, or keep on sitting on stand until you get a shot, you might never succeed close-up. My dad was a serious gun hunter his entire life, but the old man was never long on patience. He tried bowhunting a few times to share the woods with me, but one or two busted stalks and he was done. “If I can’t shoot a deer in three days with my .270, I really don’t want to keep hunting the same area,” he would say. “I want action, and I want it now!” Pop was a skilled rifleman, and he generally bagged his buck in a day or two. That buck wasn’t always very big, because Pop was not willing to wait, but he always had fun. I happen to differ but to each his own. By comparison, the most famous Native American archer in history had the patience of Job. Ishi taught California residents Saxton Pope and Art Young to hunt with bow and arrow, and would sit for hours in the crotch of a tree or on the ground in wait for a deer to walk by. Ishi’s maximum game-killing range with his crude 45-pound bow was about 50 yards, yet he lived in the wild for nearly six decades on meat that he had shot. The famous Pope and Young Club is the namesake of these two friends of Ishi. Like Ishi, they loved the thrill of getting really close to game. My dad proved that close-range hunting is not for everyone. But getting close can almost always be accomplished with enough patience. Mindset is one key. You should never give up, no matter how disappointing an individual hunting episode might be. When bowhunting I always adopt what I call “pessimistic optimism.” I continually tell myself that things

probably will not work out, because they seldom do; be it finding a huge buck or bull, or getting inside good bow range, my expectations are low so that I am never disappointed. But in the back of my mind I know that sooner or later a monster will appear or a close-range shot will materialize. This seemingly contradictory attitude keeps me happy, even when hunting is temporarily sour. Take for example the Alberta mule deer that my guide called “Sticker Buck.” Sticker Buck was not such an original name for a very special animal that lived on Crown land. Gun hunters and bowhunters alike had tried unsuccessfully to get within shooting range of this big, mature deer. His antlers spread beyond 30 inches, and the array of “sticker points” on the big 5x5 mainframe made the rack unmistakable. I hunted Sticker Buck in his public domain, competing with resident and nonresident archers in the wide-open prairieland of southern Alberta. Finally, after spotting the famous deer twice in one day, I stalked him behind a ridgeline and eased up a steep bank just below where he was bedded. Massive antlers and ear tips were all I could see from 35 yards away. What followed was a very long wait on a very awkward semivertical slope. Just before sundown, Sticker Buck finally stood up. He meandered out of sight over a knoll and I scrambled to the top with hopes of a close-range look. The buck was 45 yards away, quartering toward a big draw where he would disappear forever. I drew with stiff muscles and sent an arrow toward the deer. The broadhead sliced both lungs for a very quick kill. As I watched Sticker stagger across a coulee and go belly up, I enjoyed the thrill

that only comes from a closerange kill. The big deer’s rack was 32-2/8 inches wide with a gross score over 210 and an official P&Y score of exactly 203. That’s enough to make any patient hunter grin! n

Patiently waiting on stand is one way to eventually bag a nice animal.

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 31

NATIONAL

CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE

DR. JONATHAN GASSETT B&C Professional Member NCLI Cohort 1 Photos Courtesy of Author

In a classroom in the hills of eastern West Virginia,

a group of 36 conservation professionals gather. The setting is intimate, not because of its size, location, or dĂŠcor, but rather because the participants have given themselves over to the most intensive leadership-training program that the conservation community has to offer. Over the next two weeks, these future leaders will be fired in a crucible of self-assessment, evaluation, introspection, and peer-review designed by its creators to forge a perpetual influx of high-performing conservation leaders across our country. The National Conservation Leadership Institute (NCLI) undoubtedly has become the premier capstone experience for conservation professionals in our country.

The NCLI is a program modeled on the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, co-taught by some of the same faculty, and designed to provide intensive, real-world leadership training over a yearlong program.

32 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

CONSERVATION LEADERSHIP COMES AT A COST.

NCLI is able to offer training at a fraction of the price offered elsewhere through generous donations from state, federal, and NGO partners. But the organization still experiences annual struggles to make the next cohort of fellows financially feasible. Those who have experience with NCLI, directly or indirectly, agree that it is THE best leadership program for conservation available. NCLI is seeking sponsors and donors to continue to produce high-caliber leaders for conservation. If you wish to support this essential program that is so critical to the future of conservation, donations can be made online at www.conservationleadership.org.

A BRIEF HISTORY

NCLI began as the brainchild of a group of Boone and Crockett members including Lowell Baier, John Baughman, Bob Model, and Steve Williams, among others. These forward thinking conservationists realized that the retirement of the current workforce of “baby-boomers” would generate a deficit of seasoned leadership that would likely exceed 50 percent of all conservation leader positions. With natural promotional opportunities that come with the retirement of those leaders, the next level of policy makers and administrators would be tasked with guiding the future success of the conservation profession. Those up-and-coming conservation leaders would need quality leadership training in an extremely short timeframe. Enter the NCLI, a program modeled on the Harvard Kennedy School of Government (and co-taught by some of the same faculty) designed to provide intensive, realworld leadership training over a yearlong program. The program consists of provocative, hard-hitting education provided by key leaders, not only from the conservation arena, but also from experts in adaptive leadership, emotional intelligence, and conf lict resolution. During a two-week residency, followed by months of small group work, and culminating in a four-day capstone course, NCLI fellows are exposed to a world-class faculty that

understand the role of creating battle-ready leaders in a compressed timeframe. Establishing the NCLI from scratch was no inexpensive endeavor. Putting toget her t he a mbit ious curriculum and world-class staff created substantial funding needs. The Boone and Crockett Club, founded by none other than conservation leader Theodore Roosevelt, has been the major, sustaining contributor throughout the life of the program. The substantial annual contributions from the Boone and Crockett Club combined with those from national conservation organizations and individuals from across the country provided the seed money to launch the NCLI vision. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, and the U.S. Geological Survey also provided invaluable cash and in-kind donations to see that vision realized and sustained. SUCCESSES OF THE FIRST DECADE

Now 10 years later, the NCLI is a resounding success with 318 fellows (and 36 more about to start their residencies) working across the country in conservation leadership positions. Ten years is a magical number. We now have a decade of new leaders within the conservation community that not only have the NCLI experience, but also carry on the tradition of passing their newfound skills to others.

Here are some of the more pertinent numbers: 



9 NCLI Fellows currently or previously were state fish & wildlife agency directors. 216 NCLI Fellows are in leadership positions with 40 state agencies. 48 NCLI Fellows are in leadership positions with 8 federal agencies. 44 NCLI Fellows are in leadership positions with 21 conservation Non-Governmental Agencies. 6 NCLI Fellows are from 5 industry organizations. 4 NCLI Fellows are from 4 Native American tribes. Most NCLI Fellows hold key conservation leadership positions.

Additionally, of the total 318 fellows to date, 102 are female, providing a gender balanced conservation leadership that is reflective of our profession and of society today. These numbers tell the story that the vision of a few conservationists a decade ago is coming to fruition. Our profession will not experience the brain-drain deficit seen by many others, primarily due to the opportunities afforded by the NCLI. MOVING FORWARD

In 2004 when the NCLI was established, the program had a clear vision: to prepare the next generation to lead conservation and to make it one of A mer ica’s greatest

strengths. The impending leadership exodus that the founders anticipated did, in fact, happen. For example, over the last 48 months, more than 40 state fish and wildlife directors have retired, been replaced, or otherwise moved on. But the urgency of the NCLI founders to create a world-class leadership development program caused that program to flourish and fill the knowledge deficit of the retiring baby-boomers. NCLI was ultimately successful at crossing organizational boundaries and equipping these incoming leaders with the skills and training needed to address tomorrow’s challenges. We are now witnessing a remarkable shift in thinking about leadership in conservation. This shift has had real impacts on all of the NCLI Fellows and their organizations, from the smallest tribe to the largest conservation agency. The ranks of NCLI Fellows are strong and growing each year. But more importantly, the skills learned and relationships built during the process are having an impact on conservation that is growing with them. This increase in capacity in conservation leadership could not have come at a more critical time. Conservation organizations are facing an unprecedented social, economic, and political evolution that far exceeds what past leaders have had to face. While our conservation legacy was built on the backs of those past leaders, it will FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 33

take strong and novel new leaders to protect and defend it. THE FUTURE

By all measures the NCLI program is a success story. We have seen the impacts of this program throughout all levels of state and federal leadership and other conservation entities. Not only are the Fellows that populate those organizations thinking strategically rather than tactically, but they are also cross-pollinating the concepts learned through NCLI with their peers and staff that have not had the opportunity to attend. Further successes are seen in the amount of interagency cooperation that naturally comes with having Fellows reach across agency boundaries. So what lies ahead? First, we cannot rest on the accomplishments of the past decade, content that the crisis of leadership â&#x20AC;&#x153;brain drainâ&#x20AC;?

has been avoided. With the generational shift in leadership comes a different mindset in regards to careers and work life. The generations that followed the baby-boomers are much more likely to change jobs than their predecessors. Economic factors also come into play, as organizations continue to have to make hard choices on staffing, potentially resulting in unintended mid-level management drain. Political factors are also more relevant and injurious, especially to governmental organizations. As the country continues to see an ever-expanding divide between political philosophies, conservation leaders (who are often apolitical) find themselves in increasingly difficult political positions. The turnover of our leaders remains a real threat to our conservation legacy. NCLI shall and must continue to provide well-trained Fellows

to fill the on-going leadership gap. NCLI must focus not only on current leadership and real-world challenges those leaders face today, but also must continue to redefine leadership as the world changes around us. We must continue to challenge many of the deeply held assumptions that potentially hold us back. We must continue to nurture a high-trust network of conservation professionals that can bridge the gaps within and among conservation entities that ultimately results in the right decisions being made at the right time and for the right purpose. Legacy is an often overused yet still genuinely powerful word. In the field of conservation, it brings to mind names like Roosevelt, Pinchot, Darling, Grinnell, Leopold, and others that gave their minds and bodies over to the concept that the conservation of our wild and

natural resources was essential to the very surv iv a l of our society. Those great men began in a time of great scarcity and founded a conservation ethic, which is still as relevant today, in our time of superabundance and increasing human population growth, as it was at the turn of the last century. Our conservation legacy will remain grounded in the principles founded by those great individuals, but it will only do so if we continue to develop and nurture our future conservation leaders; if we give them the tools necessary to approach problems adaptively; if we give them the skills to navigate an everchanging and uncertain world. NCLI provides just such tools and skills. n

We are now witnessing a remarkable shift in thinking about leadership in conservation. This shift has had real impacts on all of the NCLI Fellows and their organizations, from the smallest tribe to the largest conservation agency. 34 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

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FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 35

JACK WARD THOMAS B&C EMERITUS MEMBER An excerpt from his new book, Forks in the Trail

fter graduating in 1957 from Texas A&M with a degree in wildlife management, I found gainful employment with what was then known as the Texas Game Department (TGD). My first assignment was as an assistant project leader for game management in the small town of Sonora in Sutton County, located where the western edge of the Edwards Plateau meets the Chihuahuan Desert. My first wildlife management district—Sutton, Edwards, and Crockett counties—was a perfect place at a most opportune time for a “newbie” wildlife biologist, arriving on the scene just when wildlife management was coming into its own, to learn and help invent what was to be my lifelong profession. During my second year of drawing a paycheck as a genuine professional wildlife biologist, I was charged with operating a check station where hunters who had killed antlerless deer (usually does and fawns of both sexes) were required to appear with their kills. That check station was located in Edwards County, just east a mile or so outside of the county seat of Rocksprings, at a wide spot beside a road where gravel and crushed limestone were routinely stockpiled. Clouds of caliche dust rose in clouds when a vehicle entered or left the area. The hunting season for antlerless deer was the last two weeks of a forty-five-day deer season at the end of the calendar year. The hours were 8 a.m. until 9 p.m.—a long, largely uneventful, thirteenhour day for anyone manning one of those check stations. In 1959 hunting for antlerless deer was

36 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

a first-time event for Edwards County and had not yet been widely accepted by most landowners and hunters. In the early afternoon of a sunny day in the last week of December, an old Ford pickup, with rusted-through fenders rattling, slid to a stop in a billowing cloud of dust next to my TGD pickup. I was seated on the tailgate “just spitting and whittling” to pass the time. As my level of irritation settled along with the cloud of caliche dust, the driver dismounted, slammed his pickup door, and walked toward me. I was not a happy camper but met him halfway with an extended hand and something of a forced smile. The grizzled old-timer had a wad of Day’s Work chewing tobacco stuffed in his cheek. The color of his remaining teeth gave evidence of his lifelong habit of dipping snoose and chewing tobacco. He leaned over and spat a stream of tobacco juice and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Are you the TGD biologist?” The word “biologist” came out with an intonation that led me to believe that no respect was implied. I stood up. “Yes, sir, my name is Jack Thomas. Can I help you?” I extended my hand. He shook my hand with a stronger grip than was warranted—I could feel the calluses. “Son, I want to know just one damned thing. What’s y’all gonna do about the bear that’s gettin’ into my angora goats?” It was more

challenge —maybe a demand—than an inquiry. I was a bit taken aback. “Sir, black bears were extirpated in this area somewhere around about 1910.” He spat again; the impact in the dust was getting closer to my boots. His eyes were flashing black under bushy, dusty gray eyebrows. He stepped closer. I didn’t step back. “Okay, you government smartass, just what the hell does ‘extirpated’ mean?” It seemed wise to take my hands out of my pockets, raise them waist high, and take a deep breath. “Well, sir, ‘extirpated’ means that a species is locally extinct.” The old ra ncher squinted. “Species? Locally extinct?” I struggled to be respectful while extracting my size 12 boot from my mouth. “Well, sir, ‘extirpated’ means ‘local extinction.’ In other words, there are a lot of black bears in the United States— even a few in East Texas, south of us in Mexico, and in far West Texas. But because black bears were killed out in this part of Texas by the early 1900s, we say that they are ‘extirpated’—they were here once but not now.” The old rancher turned his head and relieved himself of another mouthful of tobacco juice—even closer to my boots. I was beginning to believe that there was some message in this behavior. He wiped his mouth with the frayed sleeve of his faded denim jacket. “So, let me get this straight. Y’all are telling

Extirpated? Never Say Never

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 37

EXTIRPATED? NEVER SAY NEVER

But then I thought, ‘Naw, that couldn’t be! After all, black bears have been extirpated from these parts for nigh onto sixty years. Must be true— the biologist told me so. Heck, everybody knows how smart those guys are!’”

Jack weighing a buck at a checkstation. He worked for the Texas Game Department from 1957 until 1966 when he took a position with the U.S. Forest Service in West Virginia.

me that it ain’t no bears gettin’ into my goats?” “Well, sir, I’m not saying you don’t have a predator problem, but it’s highly unlikely that it would be a bear. I’ll call the local game warden, Ellis Martin, on my two-way radio and ask him to be in touch with you. He can arrange with the TGD trapper to give you some help.” I wrote down the fellow’s name and telephone number. He assured me that Ellis knew him and where he lived. And there was no use in anybody trying to call, as the phone line from the county road to his house was down and had been for a couple of weeks. With that, my new friend spat again, about six inches ahead of the toe of my boot, and walked to his truck. His scuffed boots, spurs attached, raised puffs of dust

38 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

with each step. His old Ford pickup started up after several grinding attempts. He was off—literally in a significant cloud of dust. It seemed to me that he spun the tires to pr ov ide emph a si s t o his disdain. I dug around in the gear box in the bed of my ancient truck for my copy of Hunting, Trapping, and Fishing Laws of the State of Texas. The section related to black bears, obviously enacted long after extirpation had occurred, prohibited, at the risk of significant penalties, any attempt by any means by any person to take, kill, harm, harass, etc., etc., a hair upon the head, or ass, of any black bear that might exist in the western two-thirds of the sovereign state of Texas. Later in the afternoon, the game warden showed up.

He poured himself a cup of the cowboy coffee I had simmering on the Coleman stove on the tailgate of my pickup. I passed on the report that the old rancher had given me. Ellis saw some humor in my explanation of “extirpation” to the old-timer. He cautioned me that such fancy language was one of the reasons some locals thought wildlife biologists were a little strange—and a bit on the smartass side. He smiled as he asked me if I knew what “extirpation” meant before I “done went to college.” I blushed and admitted that I didn’t. He promised he would call on the rancher and, if necessary, arrange for a TGD trapper to give him some help. Three days later, the rancher’s old truck roared into the check station, a tad too fast and raising a huge cloud of dust. I interpreted that as some sort of statement. I had just finished collecting required data from a hunter and certifying his antlerless deer as legally taken. That hunter and his partner were toasting their backsides at my fire of mesquite logs. With some trepidation, I walked through the settling cloud of dust to greet the driver. The rancher had walked around to the back of his truck and dropped the tailgate with a bang. Just as I

walked up, he reached into the truck’s bed and tugged something toward him. I heard a heavy thud and saw a plume of dust rise as a very dead yearling black bear hit the ground. I stood there slackjawed. With a flourish, the old-timer slammed the tailgate back into its upright position and latched the chains. The ensuing dramatic pause allowed him time to relish the stunned look on my face. Then he drew himself upright and spat just in front of the toes of my boots—the closest yet! That flourish, however well executed, was beginning to irritate me. “Don’t worry, sonny boy, it ain’t what you think. I have to admit the sonofabitch fooled me too at first. I thought for a second there, it for damned certain was a gawd-damned bear. But then I thought, ‘Naw, that couldn’t be! After all, black bears have been extirpated from these parts for nigh onto sixty years. Must be true—the biologist told me so. Heck, everybody knows how smart those guys are!’” He climbed back into the old truck, slammed the door, ground the engine to a reluctant start, and spun the tires in the caliche dust all the way to the pavement. He had his hand out the window waving gleefully as he drove away. I guess I should have been grateful that he wasn’t waving his middle finger. I figured I would hear this story for years to come. Right then, I pledged to never ever say “never”—and sure as hell not to say “extirpated” except to another wildlife biologist. Lesson learned. n Read more from Jack Ward Thomas in his new trilogy featuring Forks in the Trail, Wilderness Journals, and Hunting Around the World.

N O W AVA I L A B L E F R O M B O O N E A N D C R O C K E T T. . .

THE

JACK WARD THOMAS

TRILOGY

Forks in the Trail

A Conservationist’s Trek to the Pinnacles of Natural Resource Leadership From his youth on a hardscrabble Texas farm to a career at the pinnacles of natural resource leadership in Washington, D.C., the life of Jack Ward Thomas is the story of how conservation happened in America during the second-half of the twentieth century. Forks in the Trail is a collection of stories about the experiences that shaped the values, knowledge, skills, and decisions of a field biologist who became chief of the U.S. Forest Service.

Wilderness Journals

Wandering the High Lonesome Rough country, fine horses and good friends. Wilderness Journals is adventure in the saddle as author Jack Ward Thomas explores some of the West’s legendary skylines. Up the trail, deep in his beloved “high lonesome,” Thomas finds bold bears, reclusive war veterans, and a treasure of wild places untrammeled by man. These are the pack trips that fueled the passion and vision of a future U.S. Forest Service chief.

Hunting Around the World

Fair Chase Pursuits from Backcountry Wilderness to the Scottish Highlands Hunting nourishes human bodies, minds, and, in some cases, careers. Like many rural Texas youths in the 1940s, Jack Ward Thomas learned to hunt early on. It provided food for his family and a lifetime of enjoyment. But hunting also brought Thomas to his life’s work in conservation, highlighted by his tenure as chief of the U.S. Forest Service. Hunting Around the World offers the best stories and wisdom of a quintessential hunter-conservationist.

V IS I T W W W.B O ONE-CR O CK E T T.OR G /J W T F OR DE TA IL S

Available in a limited edition box set for $150 or individually in paperback for $24.95. Call 888/840-4868 to order.

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 39

Milestones in Conservation

The history of the Boone and Crockett Club is a tale of over 127 years of measured and thoughtful commitment to conservation. It is a commitment that balances human needs with wildlife needs. We will be celebrating the anniversaries of the passage of laws, the establishment of institutions, and the designation of wildlands, which exist today in large part because of the extensive efforts of the Club and its dedicated membership.

Boone and Crockett Club 2015

75th Anniversary, Reigning World’s Record Desert Sheep In 1941, Carl M. Scrivens was on a hunt in the lower portion of the Baja Peninsula, Mexico, on a rancho at the southern end of the Sierra San Pedro Martir. Upon arrival, and while the vaqueros were rounding up the mules for the hunt, he decided to take a stroll around the rancho. There, in the back of a dilapidated wagon, he found a bleached skull and set of horns. Being an accomplished sheep hunter he knew what he was looking at was special. After some investigating with some of the rancho’s vaqueros he learned that the ram had been taken by a local who was hunting meat the year before and left the skull and horns where they laid. Scrivens bartered for the head and in 1946 had the ram scored by B&C Official Measurer Samuel Webb. At 205-1/8, it became the new World’s Record desert sheep. The ram is on loan to the Club’s National Collection of Heads and Horns, which will be on display in its new home at America’s Wildlife Museum and Aquarium in Springfield, Missouri, opening during the spring of 2016. The #2 desert sheep, at 201-3/8, is the only other desert ram on record to score over 200-inches.

115 Years Since The Lacey Act Looking back, one of the seven principles of the North American Model for Wildlife Conservation is, Democratic Rule of Law—laws developed by the people and enforced by government agencies that regulate the proper use of wildlife resources. It can be argued that one of our first laws was one of our finest. In 1900, B&C member, Congressmen John F. Lacey of Iowa, pushed through Congress this legal cornerstone of fish and wildlife conservation. The Lacey Act made it a federal crime to transport illegally taken game across state lines—poach game in one state with the purpose of selling the bounty in another. This spelled the beginning of the end for the commercial marketing hunting industry, which the Club strongly believed had to go if fish and wildlife were to recover from unregulated overharvest. The Lacey Act would also become the cornerstone for all game laws that followed. Today it is primarily used to prevent the importation or spread of potentially dangerous non-native species. The Lacey Act also makes it unlawful to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign commerce any plant in violation of the laws of the United States, a state, an Indian tribe or any foreign law that protects plants. 1900

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1941

1950

1980

Ten Years Ago – New World’s Record Tule Elk In 2005, a large tule bull was found dead on a ranch near Elk Creek and Stonyford in northern California’s Mendocino National Forest. California Fish & Game could not determine the cause of death and returned the bull to the rancher whose family had enjoyed seeing the herds of elk rest, graze, and wander through their property. When the game department returned the bull, they had told landowner, Jeff Lopeteguy that they thought this might be the second largest bull ever recorded. Lopeteguy coached football for Elk Creek High School, which has an enrollment of only 25-40 students making it one of the smallest schools in the state. Appropriately, he felt the bull should hang in the school’s gym, the home of the Elk Creek Elks. At 379 points the bull was declared a new World’s Record tule elk at Boone and Crockett Club’s 26th Big Game Awards. 2005

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I AM A FAIR CHASE HUNTER Thank you for all the support of the Boone and Crockett Club and fair chase hunting! We received many photos of B&C Associates declaring they are Fair Chase Hunters! These people received their complimentary copy of Wild Gourmet cookbook. Be sure to follow us on Facebook to stay up to date on the latest promotions and updates on what the Boone and Crockett Club is working on to promote fair chase and conserve our hunting heritage.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION. TELL US WHY YOU ARE A FAIR CHASE HUNTER! 42 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

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And, as always, encourage your friends to join the Boone and Crockett Club. Associates receive: n

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T H E N AT I O N A L C O L L E C T I O N

OF HEADS AND HORNS

The Trophies PART 2 This four part series will narrate the history and legacy of Boone and Crockett Club’s National Collection of Heads and Horns. From its inception in 1906 to the big move next spring to Springfield, Missouri. It is a story that begins with an undertaking to memorialize through museum displays big game species whose futures, at the time, looked bleak. It is, however, a story that ends on a far more positive note: the dramatic restoration of these same species to healthy and abundant numbers throughout much of their native range. This historical recap was originally published the 8th edition of Boone and Crockett Club’s Records of North American Big Game. 44 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

On September 1, 1908, “The National Collection

of Heads and Horns, Part II” was published by Hornaday wherein a broader outline of the Collection’s objectives and purposes was stated. This companion to the original brochure called upon the sportsmen of all countries to contribute to the Collection: The National Collection of Heads and Horns represents an effort to build up a collection that will adequately represent the big game of the world in general, and that of America in particular. Such an undertaking is now rendered necessary by the rapid disappearance of large mammalian life, all over the world. . . The objective of this collection is to afford to the sportsman, naturalist, and every other person interested in animals, a comprehensive and satisfactory view of the big game of the world, with a wealth of detailed information and illustration. The first effort will be to bring together materials of two complete series of heads and horns, one zoological, and the other geographical. In addition to these, it is desirable to form collections of horns and antlers of specially important species, such as the moose, wapiti, mountain sheep and caribou, to show their status in widely separated localities, and under varying conditions of food and climate. . . Such special collections surely will be of real value to everyone who is interested in the species thus represented; and they will form an important feature of the National Collection as a whole. Individual gifts and entire collections came from British Columbia, China, California, London, and Philadelphia. New York contributed what was by far the most outstanding accession of the first year, the Reed-McMillin collection of heads, horns and skins of Alaskan big game. A.S. Reed was an Englishman who between 1896 and 1902 lived in Victoria, British Columbia. On his frequent hunting expeditions to Alaska and Northern British Columbia, he made it a practice to hunt very late in the fall or early in the winter, and go after only the best and most magnificent specimens. The result was, of course, an unparalleled collection of Alaskan big game that included

By the end of 1910, four years after it was formed, 695 specimens were contained in the National Collection. The stories behind many of the trophies are themselves separate and often fascinating histories of trophy hunts. LEFT: Perhaps the largest collection to be presented was the Clarence H. Mackay Collection of 26 elk, bison and moose heads, collected in 1902. The moose were collected on the Kenai Peninsula of Alaska and the 10 wapiti heads were from Wyoming. The four bison were the first plains bison received in the collection. BELOW: Grancel Fitz measuring the main beam circumference on the A.S. Reed Alaska-Yukon moose (240-7/8 points) that is currently in the Boone and Crockett Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s National Collection of Heads and Horns.

6 moose, 6 caribou, 10 sheep, 10 bear skins, 2 mounted walrus heads and 7 pairs of tusks. Mr. Emersom McMillin of New York, a member of the Camp Fire Club of America, donated $5,000 to purchase the entire collection. Madison Grant donated an extraordinarily large pair of walrus tusks and a family group of white mountain sheep heads, from the extreme northern end of the Rocky Mountain chain, within 50 miles of the Arctic Ocean. He later presented two bighorn sheep and a British Columbia mountain goat. John Roger Bradley sent heads of a Coke Hartebeest, an impala, a common waterbuck, the fine head of a Siberian argali and the mounted head of an Atlantic walrus. George L. Harrison, Jr., of Philadelphia, sent three shipments of African heads, representing about 60 species. The African groups were further enriched by an extensive gift from John W. Norton of New York and Cazenovia, including a greater kudu, an eland, a Baker roan antelope and a Crawshay waterbuck. Caspar Whitney donated a fine mounted head of a wood bison. Warburton Pike, probably the first sportsman to penetrate the Barren Grounds north of Great Slave Lake, FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 45

T H E N AT I O N A L C O L L E C T I O N

OF HEADS AND HORNS

offered a tremendous musk ox head that still stands high among the record heads. From George H. Gould of Santa Barbara, California, came a mountain sheep head that Hornaday described as not only one of the finest heads ever taken on the American continent, but probably the greatest trophy of Ovis canadensis that ever fell to the rifle of a gentleman sportsman.” Even China contributed in that first year. Mason Mitchell, the American Counsel at Chungking, forwarded what was then the rarest specimen in the young collection: the entire skin, skull and horns of a takin from Szechuan. That form had only recently been discovered and it was named Budorcas texicolor mitchelli in honor of its discoverer. Mr. Mitchell had himself shot the specimen and it arrived safely after five months’

George L. Harrison, Jr., of Philadelphia, sent three shipments of African heads, representing about 60 species. The African groups were further enriched by an extensive gift from John W. Norton of New York and Cazenovia, including a greater kudu, an eland, a Baker roan antelope and a Crawshay waterbuck.

transit, swathed in many layers of cloths impregnated by, “the most pungent powders that are dealt in by the Chinese apothecary to keep off bugs, mice and rats of all sorts.” A white rhinoceros head, presented by Colonel Theodore Roosevelt early in 1911, was then regarded as the most rare and valuable single specimen of that year. It was the second finest specimen obtained by the Roosevelt expedition, with the best one donated to the National Museum at Washington. Roosevelt shot the rhino in the Lado District, west bank of the Nile, on January 28, 1910. It

The “Combat Collection” of locked antlers.

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was mounted by James L. Clark of New York. The length of the front horn was 25 inches and the rear 27-1/8 inches. A “Combat Collection” of locked antlers was assembled including locked moose, caribou, and mule deer antlers. Other than these, and a “Collection to Illustrate Horn Development and Anatomy”, all other specimens fell into either the Zoological or Geographical divisions of the Collection. No collection of freaks was accepted; a few freak heads were used to fill gaps in the two primary divisions, but they were few in number. Notwithstanding the many heads offered in the formative years,

Hornaday was persistent in not accepting a specimen without a specific place for its presence in the collection’s two divisions, zoologic or geographic. By the end of 1910, four years after it was formed, 695 specimens were contained in the National Collection. The stories behind many of the trophies are themselves separate and often fascinating histories of trophy hunts. The names of a few of the early well-known collectors are enough for the reader to mentally conjure up long, exhausting and dangerous shikars, safaris and treks: Douglas Carruthers, Frank Buck, Sir Edmund Giles Loder, Charles Sheldon, Frederick Selous, William Morden, James L. Clark, and Roy Chapman Andrews, to mention a few. The Zoological Society’s 1910 Annual Report listed 12 World’s Record heads and 5 number two heads contained in the Collection. While the Collection had grown substantially and provided a well organized scientific foundation, Hornaday continued to stress that, “In all comparisons of horns and antlers, it is both right and necessary that the tape line should play an important part in determining records and fixing comparative values... it is therefore quite fair to judge every important collection by the number of record or World Record specimens it contains...It is fit and proper that

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T H E N AT I O N A L C O L L E C T I O N

OF HEADS AND HORNS

New York City should possess and exhibit on a scientific basis to the world at large, one of the world’s finest collections of big game trophies.” Clearly the National Collection was to be more than simply a scientific collection that was a valid and valuable appendage to the Zoological Park. Hornaday also intended it to be the world collection of record big game hunting trophies. While trophies continued in lesser numbers to be donated to Hornaday’s collection, which grew to 798 specimens by the end of 1912, he complained that the offerings of record heads were few by 1914. His reasoning for this SPOTLIGHT TROPHY WOODLAND CARIBOU DONATED BY H. CASIMER DE RHAM Continuing to stand as the oldest World’s Record, the top woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) was shot in Newfoundland before 1910 and donated to the National Collection of Heads and Horns by the late Casmir de Rham. The hunter who obtained the impressive mahoganycolored antlers probably took his shot just before the rut in late summer, early fall when the animal’s antlers had become fully developed and hardened. Newfoundland is considered the best hunting grounds for woodland trophies. Weighing upwards of 500 pounds, a particularly impressive woodland caribou will have a rack with as many as 40 tines. However, these are extremely difficult to count in the field, and other criteria must be considered such as rarer double shovels, as well as the size of the rack in proportion to the body.

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was the lack of money available for outright purchase of record heads, which became a bitter resound in his annual director’s report. With the publication of the Collection’s second reference text in 1908 (Part II), a Contributors’ Fund was created to fund the purchase of many specimens not otherwise available, to pay for taxidermy work and shipping costs of newly acquired heads. A $2,500 goal was established for initial working capital with annual subscriptions sought to maintain this minimum working capital level. Thirty-three sportsmen were credited with contributing to the Contributors’ Fund in 1909. When the fund became exhausted, H. Casimir de Rham, a substantial benefactor of the Zoological Society and National Collection, subscribed an additional $2,500.

The first published report of the Heads and Horns Fund on March 1, 1910, shows receipts of $7,610 and disbursements of $5,568. But such funding and private support was shortlived and declined to a low of $15 contributed in 1917 against expenses of $18. Support for the National Collection was of necessity primarily by private subscription, since the Zoological Society had its own burden of meeting the operating expenses and building expansion program of the Zoological Park. From 1908 through 1917 a total of $8,729 had been raised from 66 s p o r t s m e n-b e n e f a c t o r s toward support of the National Collection against expenses of $11,638, with the Zoological Society contributing $2,700. The broad base of sustaining financial support

Hornaday and Madison Grant had hoped to generate in their 1908 appeal never materialized from the ranks of the sporting fraternity. When the National Collection was installed in the Administration Building’s picture galleries, in February 1910, it consisted of 688 specimens. By 1916 it had grown to 850 specimens, far beyond the capacity of the two picture galleries to be properly displayed in a scientifically meaningful fashion. In 1916 Hornaday single-handedly raised $100,000 from 10 contributors for a new building to be built along Baird Court, thus completing the grand concourse of the park. Henry A. Whitfield was retained to prepare the building plans and specifications with a view of a building dedication on May 20, 1918. n

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“Conservation means DEVELOPMENT as much as it does PROTECTION.”

— THEODORE ROOSEVELT

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The Club is forever committed to the best use and care of these remarkable conservation treasures, which are among its most important legacies, beginning with actions of the Club’s founders and leaders in the early conservation movement to establish Yellowstone National Park and the Timberland Reserves in the late 19th Century—the cornerstones of the National Park System and the National Forest System. PG 54. FEDERAL TRUST LANDS FOR THE NEW CENTURY

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WILD-HARVESTED MEAT’S ROLE IN PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR HUNTING AND CONSERVATION Aldo Leopold wrote “One of the anomalies of modern ecology is the creation of two groups, each of which seems barely aware of the existence of the other. The one studies the human community, almost as if it was a separate entity, and calls its findings sociology, economics, and history. The other studies the plant and animal community and comfortably relegates the hodge-podge of politics to the liberal arts. The inevitable fusion of these two lines of thought will perhaps constitute the outstanding advance of this century.” Leopold, of course, wrote this during the last century, and his vision was not fully realized. Among those who are ensuring Leopold’s vision is realized this century are my colleagues, Professor Shawn Riley and graduate student Amber Goguen of Michigan State University, working in an area of study known as human dimensions of wildlife management. Shawn cut his teeth as a wildlife biologist with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and went on to earn a Ph.D. at Cornell as part of the New York Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and the Human Dimensions Research Unit. With his pedigree, he is uniquely qualified to fuse wildlife science and the social sciences. Shawn’s interests resulted in a Fulbright scholarship to study the game management culture in Sweden. One major 52 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

difference between hunting laws in North America and those in Sweden is that in Sweden hunters are allowed to sell wild-harvested meat from animals they have legally harvested. Shawn and his Swedish colleagues studied the differences in attitudes towards hunting and conservation of urban nonhunting Swedes who had access to wild-harvested meat and those who did not. Those who had enjoyed wild-harvested meat expressed more positive attitudes toward hunters and greater acceptance of hunting. Shawn and colleagues at the Michigan Department of Natural Resources are interested in exploring how access to venison by Michigan residents might affect attitudes towards hunting. Initially, they sought to answer the question: How much access do Michigan nonhunters have to venison given that it is illegal to sell wildharvested meat in the United States? Amber Goguen recently completed her Master of Science degree with Shawn, examining this relationship, and has moved on to a Ph.D. study comparing the distribution and effects of wild-harvested meat in Sweden and Michigan.

SCIENCE BLASTS

Amber’s work to date has shown that despite the lack of a market for wildharvested meat, venison sharing is common in Michigan and a surprising percentage of non-hunters consume wildharvested meat on a regular basis. The chief impediment to accessing wild venison appears to be whether a nonhunter knows a hunter. Amber is now exploring the specific social pathways that predispose sharing opportunities and the impact that access by non-hunters has on public attitudes and behavior toward hunting and hunters. Her analyses should provide policy makers and hunters with insights on actions they can take to enhance opportunities for non-hunters to access wildharvested venison. In recent yea rs, conservation leaders have bemoaned the growing disconnect between people and nature in North America. Similar concerns over rapid urbanization and a distancing from the outdoor life were in the forefront of discussions that Theodore Roosevelt and George Bird Grinnell had that led to the creation of the Boone and Crockett Club. The significance of Amber and Shawn’s work is that it may foster strategies that hunters

Those who had enjoyed wild-harvested meat expressed more positive attitudes toward hunters and greater acceptance of hunting.

JOHN F. ORGAN B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Director of the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units

can play in coupling people and nature, garnering popular support of our hunting heritage. Can we capitalize on the locavore movement to promote wild-harvested meat as healthy, local, and environmentally friendly? Will u r b a n it e s and suburbanites who view locally overabundant whitetail deer as pests and liabilities develop a new appreciation for this resource? Will the role of hunters as a source for healthy local meat generate increased appreciation for them? Could the realization that a person can provide themselves with high-quality, healthy meat without owning a ranch motivate non-hunters to buy a license and go afield? Could this contribute to efforts to recruit hunters? These questions and others will have key policy implications as the Club and others work to ensure our hunting heritage is secure for future generations by maintaining relevance to our current generation. Stay tuned for a future feature-article by Amber and Shawn with results of their efforts. n

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Federal Trust Lands for the New Century The latest debate in the U.S.

between the ideas of keeping federal lands or disposing of them to states or private entities is about the same basic question in all previous rounds of this same debate: How is the wealth of these lands best maintained and most widely shared? An early answer, 110 years ago, was that “the question shall always be answered from the standpoint of the greatest good of the greatest number in the long run.” Today’s debate must focus on the same basic question and arrive at specific workable agreements that meet the “greatest good” test. It must be done in the present time with today’s knowledge and needs, mindful of past attempts, but not bound by them, so we neither repeat mistakes nor disregard new ideas. Past failures to appreciate earlier views while also innovating explains why we have had this debate before but not changed much. Having changed nothing much, we have let problems worsen and have come back around to the same debate. The Boone and Crockett Club brings a particular passion to this debate as its founders led the early conservation movement, particularly in the achievement of helping establish Timberland Reserves in the late 19th Century, which became the National Forest System. This was a pivotal moment between a U.S. policy to dispose of common lands and a new policy of retaining those lands in trust for all Americans. The U.S. is unlikely to return to disposing of federal lands for the same reasons we did not do so during the Sagebrush Rebellion or the privatization movement; however, we are guaranteed to continue to wrestle with polarizing debates unless we improve federal land management. Those improvements can be had by taking an open-minded look at what privatization and state trust land management does well, and why federal land management is failing to satisfy the many demands placed on it. From this it is possible to develop improvements. The Boone and Crockett Club is committed to improvements for the same reason the Club’s founders helped establish the federal land estate: these lands are the foundation of the most successful conservation program in the world. We want a long future for conservation and for the lands at its core, but we need not continue to administer them in the same way that made sense more than 100 years ago. 54 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

BOONE AND CROCKETT CLUB BACKGROUND PAPER

WE OFFER THIS BACKGROUND PAPER AS A GUIDE TO A PRODUCTIVE DEBATE LEADING TO WORKABLE SOLUTIONS.

The problem with federal land policy today is that it has accumulated directives on a long list of competing values. Federal agencies must produce, but have no satisfactory way of allocating them. By requiring land agencies to base decisions on science, policy ensures we know what is possible, but not what is desirable. As a result, the agencies have been steered by Congress as it has enacted laws and annual budgets, and by interest groups as they have lobbied Congress and litigated agency decisions in the courts. Because many interests have had a turn in power over the years to enact their particular views in some way, the agencies are now struggling to satisfy conflicting legal requirements. Today agencies have less money for land management, overcomplicated rules to follow, and frequent litigation to defend against. The situation has been described as the legendary Gordian knot, showing no loose ends at which to begin releasing it. Although it is no wonder that dissatisfaction leads to proposals to do away with federal lands, there are two reasons these proposals have never carried, and which also make them unlikely to succeed today. These are the same reasons that the decades-old proposal from sportsmen to convene a wholesale rewriting of public land law has never progressed either. Economically, people are torn between liking a low-cost deal for what they get now from federal lands and potentially liking a higher-cost deal to get something better later. Most people can use and enjoy values of public lands for no cost beyond their income taxes. In some cases, there are pay-asyou-go costs such as the entrance fee at Yellowstone National Park that defrays costs of keeping the roads and other facilities in good shape. Grazing fees on federal lands are far lower than fees on state trust lands. In past rounds of debate about transferring federal lands to states, or privatizing them, the prospect of paying more on a user-pay basis than must be currently paid on taxpayer-subsidized basis has undermined support for disposing of federal lands. The other reason disposal policy has not resumed is the paradox that federal “public” lands are actually controlled in various degrees by private interests. As people have debated federal land policy for about 150 years they have built power bases. These are the institutions such as trade associations and special interest groups for sportsmen (B&C is one of these), other recreation, and environmentalist causes—and also even the federal agencies themselves that protect their own interests

court to an inclusive public deliberation based on science and justified in law. For the Forest Service—and applicable to other land agencies—the Boone and Crockett Club has and will continue to promote such ideas. We have promoted stewardship end-results contracting, which enables agencies’ to combine the production of goods such as timber with the procurement of services such as stream restoration within a single contract with private entities that can deliver both. We have supported pre-clearance of environmental reviews for routine projects that fit within defined parameters, such as those authorized by Congress through the Healthy Forests Restoration Act. Because all projects need up-front funding to design and review, we support separate budgets for projects and the exorbitant costs of large wildfires. The Club is focused also on access to federal lands. True to the vision of Theodore Roosevelt—who said that conservation is as much about development as it is about protection—our view of access includes both. Federal lands are rich sources of energy of various types, and we support efficient and decisive means of enabling its development. Federal lands

also provide vast opportunity for recreation, which is the prime interest of sportsmen and others, and we support more and better allowances for recreation such as those detailed in the Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act of 2015. Lastly, we are focused on the federal program for acquiring, consolidating, and operating units of the federal land estate. Since the 1960s, the mainstay of this program has been the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Its

purpose and use, however, is too narrow for today’s needs. We are developing ideas for reauthorizing this program that include the possibility of additional sources of revenue into the fund, including revenues from land swaps, transfers, and sales of parcels with minor conservation values. We are considering broader uses of the fund to include projects and infrastructure in addition to more acquisitions of fee titles, easements, and leases.

The Boone and Crockett Club is firmly committed to the federal public land system. The future of these lands depends on their accessibility for multiple uses and the quality of their management. The Club is forever committed to the best use and care of these remarkable conservation treasures, which are among its most important legacies, beginning with actions of the Club’s founders and leaders in the early conservation movement to establish Yellowstone National Park and the Timberland Reserves in the late 19th Century—the cornerstones of the National Park System and the National Forest System.

in the federal lands. This is why it is common for commodity interests such as ranchers to describe their grazing permits as rights and to lobby Congress to define them as such, and why environmentalists sue to stop uses of federal land much as a landowner would do to prevent takings of private property rights. Any new idea for federal lands will be worked by these players using their means in Congress and the courts to protect what they already hold in de facto private control. But there are ways to improve satisfaction with federal land management that will reduce the pressure for wholesale changes such as disposal. Some of these draw on the attractive aspects of state and private economics. For example, contracts and concessions with states, tribes, and private entities can improve management. Others draw on the reality that each interest has leverage in Congress and the courts to prohibit, disrupt, or delay agreements; and, therefore, agreements formed by public deliberation must have enough legally-binding effect to counter-balance legalistic ploys of special interests. The collaboration movement must move agency decision-making from an entirely centrallyplanned, experts-decide process that is vulnerable in

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MEMBERS OF THE WILDERNESS WARRIOR SOCIETY The Wilderness Warrior Society is the Clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s premier major gifts society. It 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 founding 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 custom gifts to recognize and honor you for your contribution. 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. We added four new members in 2014, bringing our total to twenty-four members of the Society. This translates to more than $3 million for the endowment. It has been a huge success by any measure but we will continue to grow the Society with a goal of 25 members or more. Please join us in this grand effort on such a significant occasion. Contact the Boone and Crockett Club today to find out how you can become a founding 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 Morrison Stevens Sr. Ben B. Wallace Mary L. Webster C. Martin Wood III Leonard H. Wurman M.D. Paul M. Zelisko * Deceased

2014 Annual Meeting, St. Petersburg, Florida Contact Ben Hollingsworth at 713/840-1508 for more details. Boone and Crockett Club | www.boone-crockett.org 250 Station Drive, Missoula, MT 59801 | 406/542-1888 56 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

The T/C® Venture Weather Shield® Some guns don’t come in from the rain. With the corrosion resistant T/C Venture Weather Shield, the reasons to get out there will always outweigh the excuses not to. M OA G UA R A NTEE : 5 R R IF L ING : A DJ USTA B L E TR IG G ER : 1 6 CA L IB ER S

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* Scope and Rings Sold Separately

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MY FAVORITE RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

MORE FROM WILD GOURMET

PA RT ON E

Successful field processing starts by going into each hunt prepared to care for your harvest from the moment you take its essence until the moment you consume it. There are four main ingredients to proper care that you must consider in the first moments after you harvest your game: n Microorganisms, n Exposure, n Fat, and n Temperature. Mistakes in these first crucial hours can irreparably affect the taste and safety of the entire animal. Much of what you need to do in the field will depend on the length of time before you can get your harvest to your final processing area. If you are a short walk away from your vehicle and plan to return to your home for processing in a short time span, then you should keep the work done in the field to a minimum, as it is much more difficult to control the variables of success in the open field. The further you have to travel from your hunting area, the more difficult your field processing will be. I always have, at minimum, the necessary tools to gut my quarry. For me, this is a sharp knife, preferably with a skinning hook; three to six plastic bags for keeping offal, protecting meat from exposure, and collecting trash; a stack of paper towels; several pairs of vinyl gloves; a good length of rope. I have found that a properly assembled 58 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

field-processing tool kit is the best measure you can take to ensure you are prepared for success. If you take this gear bag on all your hunts, the worst you will be is over-prepared. I have separate totes for each of my favorite game to hunt. If weight of gear is a concern, try packing in only the essentials for gutting and removing your game to your finish processing area. When scent control is a concern, I will pack these essentials in a carbon scent bag and leave it a safe distance downwind. MICROORGANISMS

Your first care after finding your harvest is to check the integrity of the meat. The safety of your harvest can be jeopardized by two major factors: length of time the carcass was at a temperature higher than 45°F and a break in the guttural integrity. Both of these factors are crucially controlled by the kill shot on the animal. When you have a quick, clean kill, not only have you been witness to the final moments of life, but typically the wound path is no where near the guttural area, so it is in your best interest to choose only the best of kill shots. I will try to take the temperature of any harvest that has been left to expire for any length of time over six hours. Harmful bacteria, parasites, and other microorganisms thrive at temperature above 70°F and will continue to survive until 40°F; some parasites even require deep freezing below –10°F. It

is easy enough to bring a small digital thermometer when you go back to track. Once you find your harvest, you want to take the internal temperature of the meat in the deep thigh; this is the thickest part of the animal and will be the last to cool completely. The colder it is outside, the longer you can wait before tracking, but don’t be fooled by mild temperatures. The hide of large game is especially prone to retaining warmth, and I have measured core muscle temperatures above 70°F four hours postmortem even in zero-degree conditions. The contents of the alimentary canal, running from mouth to anus, should never be allowed to come in contact with the flesh of your game. There are many bacteria and parasites that live in the nether regions of the bowel, and they can ruin your harvest in no time. I gut all of the

Daniel Nelson CO-AUTHOR Wild Gourmet

animals I harvest in the field, even fowl and small game. Gutting your quarry removes a large quantity of hot organs as well as the main source of bacterial contamination. It also creates a large cavity to aide in cooling your game. EXPOSURE

Now that you have removed the major sources of contamination that exist within the animal, you must address the possibility of contamination from outside. There are innumerable sources of contamination in nature, from bugs, dirt—even air. I always do my best to close off the chest cavity from these bacteria sources. For large game, I prefer to put the entire

FIELD PROCESSING TOOL KIT n

Skinning knife, boning knife, game shears, knife sharpener, hand-held zip/bone saw

Digital thermometer

Disposable vinyl gloves, disposable plastic aprons

n n

Box of paper towels that can be individually drawn out like tissue—this helps ensure you are not contaminating a whole roll of towels when trying to remove a sheet Several sizes of thick, plastic bags (black preferred, because exposure to light, especially ultraviolet light, can brown out the color of flesh and accelerate the development of rancidity in fat) Zip ties, rope, hanging pulley, gambrel Heavy drag-out bag designed for hauling large game from woods

Adequately sized coolers, hard plastic freezer bricks, dry ice

Collapsible shovel

As soon as the last heartbeat thumps from the chest of your harvest, the natural process of decay begins, and the only way to slow it is by bringing the core temperature down. animal in a body bag. These heavy-duty, sealable bags are great for keeping out contaminants and they really help make dragging large game easier. I will often stuff the cavity of smaller game and fowl completely with rags to help prevent any buildup of moisture and guard against dirt and germs. As soon as the last heartbeat thumps from the chest of your harvest, the natural process of decay begins, and the only way to slow it is by bringing the core temperature down. Again, heat only travels from areas of high concentration to areas of low concentration, so the ice packs do not necessarily cool the meat;

rather heat leaves the muscle to warm the ice packs. This means that you want to remove any barriers to heat energy and reduce the distance needed to travel to reach the ice packs. The empty chest cavity is an excellent place to begin to cool your game. I prefer to use hardfrozen ice packs. The dense material in these ice packs lasts much longer than ice, and the hard protective plastic makes them easy to clean and reuse. I often have a small cooler loaded with these frozen packs and topped off with a couple pounds of dry ice. The extreme cold of the dry ice will sink down into the cooler keeping the packs hard frozen. If you have a very

efficient cooler, you can even put in a completely thawed pack and refreeze it. Keep these packs pressed against the flesh of the cavity as the contact with muscle will aid in the transfer of heat. If I have a few hours’ time before I begin processing the animal, I will put an ice pack in the armpit of each leg and between the thighs to help cool these muscle-dense areas more rapidly. If you are hunting in high temperature conditions (55°F and above) you should make every effort possible to get to your harvest quickly and begin removing heat as rapidly as possible. Once you have taken control of the microorganisms, exposure, and temperature, your game is ready to drag out of the woods. You don’t necessarily want to process the animal any further until you are in a cleaner, more controlled environment. If you have a lot of demands on your time and cannot finish butchering the animal in a timely manner, then I suggest you are always knowledgeable of a close and reputable butcher. If you can get your game to the butcher within the next few hours, you are all set! This is the point at which I handed my first deer over to a butcher and the quality and usefulness of the meat changed my life. Any trustworthy butcher will take great care of your game and deliver the exact cuts you ask for. Take the time to talk to your butcher

and let him know what your family will find most useful. Perhaps it will be a lot of ground venison for quick family meals, large muscle roasts for special occasions or a big pile of jerky to snack on for the next year. Many deer processors are also quite capable and willing to handle your other game meats as well. It may be the first time they have been asked to process squirrel, pheasant, or duck, but if you talk to them, establish a relationship and are clear with what you want, I am sure that you will find most eager to help you. Next issue we will discuss fat and temperature as they pertain to processing and preparing wild game. n

WANT MORE? Check out Boone and Crockett Club’s award-winning cook book, Wild Gourmet!

Includes dozens of recipes for wild game, fish, and fowl, plus wine pairings and a detailed chapter on meat preparation. A must-have for every sportsman. Order directly from B&C to receive your Associates discount at 888-840-4868 or boone-crockett.org. Regular price is $34.95. B&C Associates pay only $27.95.

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 59

Long Range Planning.

“I believe strongly in our American hunting heritage and have personally worked to preserve it for future generations by being involved in the Boone and Crockett Club and supporting it’s vision and mission. My wife Julie and I want to continue to support the work of the Club after I am no longer involved, so we are leaving my 401K and IRA to the Boone and Crockett Club Foundation. Our gift will save taxes, provide a generous lifetime income for Julie and increase the amount that goes to the Foundation for the long term benefit of the Club.” — Morrison M. Stevens, Sr., President, Boone and Crockett Club

For more information, please contact: Winton C. Smith, J.D. 1-800-727-1040 wsmith@wintonsmith.com

60 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 61

158 MEASURERS “LOST” If you’re an Official Measurer, you know by now that measurer appointments are renewed every two years, and early 2015 was our renewal time for 2015-2016 appointments. I know that more than a few measurers know about this because Justin and I received a number of calls from many who wanted to know if they could still measure even though they still hadn’t received their updated credentials. The obvious answer to that question is a resounding, “Yes!” The long renewal process is started by sending out two separate emails to all active measurers about one month apart. One month later, we sent a renewal letter to all measurers who either don’t have email addresses or didn’t respond to our emails. The official renewal letter itself from the Records Committee Chairman, doesn’t go out until we are comfortable that everyone who is going to respond to our renewal efforts has responded. Of those measurers who returned their renewal form, we had a great renewal rate. Unfortunately, we still haven’t heard back from 158 measurers. If we don’t hear back from these Official Measurers within the next month or so, it will be tragic because their appointments will be permanently inactivated, and each and every measurer is important to us. We have expended a lot in training and support for our measurers, and each one of them has expended a lot of energy becoming a scorer and supporting the Club. So, they are very important to us. If your name is included on the list at right, and you want to continue as an Official Measurer, please call the office immediately at (406) 542-1888, ext. 204, and let Justin know that you would like to renew. He will take care of you. For those measurers who renewed, you should have received a packet of materials in the mail. The packet included a renewal letter from Records Committee Chairman, Richard T. Hale, on topics relevant to continuing measurers, a current Official Measurer ID card, and a packet of entry forms and new score charts. If you didn’t receive this packet and you fulfilled the renewal process, please call the office and let Justin know you didn’t get your packet. If you received the packet, please do not set it aside, there is a lot of important information that every measurer needs to know. The score charts and forms included in the packet are only a sample supply of newly revised forms with the 2015 copyrighted score charts with a measurer order form. If you need more score charts for any category, you can either download them from B&C’s website or order them from B&C using the order form enclosed in the packet. If you download them, please print the front and back on one sheet of paper.

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TROPHY TALK

JACK RENEAU B&C PROFESSIONAL MEMBER Director of Big Game Records

158 LOST MEASURERS Gilbert T. Adams David D. Adamson Warren H. Alloway W. Daniel Anderson John W. Anstey Shawn Bagley Matthew R. Bain John R. Baker Brandon Baker Marc Ballard Haven R. Barnhill Maxey B. Baucum David P. Baumann Duane C. Baumler P. Franklin Bays Thomas G. Bloomingdale Eric H. Boley William A. Bower Travis Bowman Jon Bronnenberg Jerry Brown Chancy Brown Paul T. Brown James G. Bruner Steve Burch Bruce H. Burton Jay Cantrell Dale S. Chambers Alfred Cheney Yves Chouinard William A. Coggins Michael Cooley Scott A. Cox Dee Creath Jason Davis Ronald L. Deis Charles F. Doria Dustin Dowler Kenneth R. Eifes Paul C. Erickson L. Greg Fehr Jayson Felty Benoit Ferland Robert A. Filbrandt Chris Finnegan Jon K. Fischer Donnie F. Fisher William Fleeman Robert B. Fletcher Jeff Ford Andrew Forrest Michael Fowlks John E. Frampton Dennis J. Francais

Brian E. Galligan Terry Garcia Ashley Gary Patrick J. Gauthier Kevin J. Gierat Donald W. Goers Charlotte Good Roy M. Goodwin Richard N. Gubler R. Joseph Hamilton David Hasenbeck Guy G. Hempey Dan Hicks Stephen J. Hill W. Larry Hines Bill D. Hlavachick Brad Hodge Chris Holt Volney W. Howard Clair L. Huff Robert C. Jones Benjamin C. Jones Randall Kelley Kirk Kelso David N. Kennedy Travis Kingery LeGrand C. Kirby John J. Kuzma Steven K. Larison Doug Larsen Justin LeTexier Ronald G. Lowe Philip Luckenbaugh James Mackrell Mitchell K. Marks James W. Martin Travis Mattison Ronald E. McKinney Joseph D. McSpadden Thomas J. Milne Russell A. Mort Bill Moulton Eric Moyers Michael Murphy Brian E. Neitzel Don Nickel Randy Nickels Clayton L. Nielson Steve Nifong Kevin T. Noftz Will Ogden Matteo Orlando Dave Overman Morris G. Owen

Thomas M. Padgett Jeff Pals Philip Peden James M. Peek Greg Peters Greg D. Pleasant Dru Polk Ronald W. Poppe Kevin D. Pugh Robert D. Rae Emilio RangelWoodyard Brian J. Rehman Harry E. Richards Edward L. Robinson Lynda Rollins Bryan Rooks David Rose Curt Rotering Steven Roudebush Brian A. Rudyk Robert Ryan David P. Sanford Eric Savard Don Schwab Brian Shadowens Jerry Shaw Gregory D. Shoemake Steve M. Sirianni Ron Smith Lee Smith Luc Soucy Brian Spice Jay G. St. Charles Sammy W. Stokes Thomas Swayngham Paul Thompson Randy S. Toering Cody C. Trowbridge William Tyler Danial P. Urban Christopher S. Ussery Gary M. Vail Brent Vandeloecht Billy D. White Kelly Wiebe James S. Williams Joe Wisnasky Tony Wright Vincent D. Yannone Charles Yoest

April 10-14, 2015

NOTIFY B&C IMMEDIATELY

If you move in the future, change telephone numbers, and/or your email address, please think of Boone and Crockett Club and let us know of the changes. B&C seriously values all of its scorers who donate their time and talents to score trophies for B&C, and we don’t want to lose anyone. DEADLINE FOR USING OLD FORMS AUGUST 31, 2015

Entry Affidavit is an entirely new and separate form no longer on the back of the score charts, which means that Entry Affidavits on the backs of score charts will no longer be accepted. The current HGH form is now asking for demographic information that isn’t on most of the older forms. This information is needed to determine the importance and relevance of records keeping. We are now asking for the gender and age of the hunter, as well as information on whether or not the trophy was taken on public or private land. Please destroy all your old forms so they don’t get inadvertently used in the future. NEW MEASURERS APPOINTED

While we may have lost track of 158 measurers, I am pleased to announce the appointments of 47 new Official Measurers, representing 23 states and one Canadian province. These men and women successfully completed one of two Official Measurer training workshops held in Missoula, Montana, during April and June.

APRIL OM WORKSHOP APRIL 10-14, 2015

JUNE OM WORKSHOP JUNE 26-30, 2015

Jayson Arnold - Austin, TX Darcy Barrett - High River, AB Jason Boke - Spearfish, SD Will Bowling - Oneida, KY William Bowman - Stockholm, WI Randy Burtis - Cheyenne, WY Robert Crank - Hazard, KY Jeremiah Gordon - Spencer, IA Merlyn Howg - Coaldale, AB Gabriel Jenkins - Frankfort, KY Richard Jochem - Sidney, NE Steve Kline - Superior, MT Kahla Louthan - Missoula, MT Betsy Mortensen - New York, NY Tom Norwick - Mitchell, SD Jeff Patrick - Highlands Ranch, CO Tom Pettiette - Houston, TX Frederick Poirier Powder Springs, GA Simon Roosevelt - New York, NY Kevin Shepard - Lyles, TN Aron Shofner - Lacon, IL Kent Sipes - Mountain Home, ID

Joe Brummer - Stillwater, MN Rebecca L. Cain - Haslett, MI Wes J. Cammack - DeWitt, NE Adam Cramer - Mount Vernon, OH Thomas W. Dew - Hayward, WI Brady Dupke - Payson, AZ Jeffrey R. Harmon - Jonesboro, AR Gary R. Howard - Kingman, IN Hubert Inhaizer - Budakeszi, ZZ Samuel N. Ivey - Monticello, GA Perry L. Jensen - Unity, WI Adam L. Kester - North Platte, NE Kyle M. Lehr - Missoula, MT Kendra McKlosky - Missoula, MT Luke R. Meduna - North Platte, NE Trevor Mortenson - Logan, UT Steve T. Petkovich - Zionsville, IN Zachary Randall - Chicago, IL David Robillard - North Troy, VT Noah H. Shealy - Cuthbert, GA Gaines B. Slade - San Antonio, TX Ronald Wardell - Houston, TX Jason C. Webster - Houston, TX David M. Williams East Lansing, MI

Jack Reneau and Justin Spring demonstrate the proper scoring technique for musk ox to the class.

Official Measurers should note that it is extremely important that they start using the new score charts, Entry Affidavits (EA), and Hunter, Guide, and Hunt (HGH) Information forms in the packet. All these forms have a copyright date of 2015. The last day to use the old forms is August 31, 2015. If we receive older forms for any trophies scored after that date, we will be requesting that 2015 forms be filled out and submitted. This is important because there will otherwise be significant delays in trophy acceptance. Even though the old forms look similar, they really are different. The

June 26-30, 2015

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TROPHY TALK

I am especially pleased to introduce Hubert Inhaizer, from Budakeszi, Hungary, who also attended the workshop. Hubert is the Wildlife Monitoring Officer (Director of Big Game Records) for the International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation (CIC), whose headquarters is located in Hungary. Hubert is the first European to become a B&C scorer since the last one resigned decades ago, and hopefully he isn’t the last. Justin and I are really pleased with the enthusiasm and professionalism everyone brought to the workshops. I will also add that we missed Fred King who has assisted us at many workshops in the past. 29TH AWARDS PROGRAM DEADLINE FAST APPROACHING

This is just an early reminder to let you know that entries for the 29th Awards Program and for listing in Boone and Crockett Club’s 29th Big Game Awards book must be postmarked to B&C no later than December 31, 2015. Entries received with later postmarks will become entries in the 30th Awards Program and other future books. KYLE M. LEHR HIRED AS DATA SPECIALIST

I am really pleased to introduce Kyle M. Lehr who was recently hired to work in B&C’s records department as a data specialist. His primary duty is to process and accept trophies entered in the records program, so you may be talking to him soon if you call about a trophy or if he calls you with a question about a trophy you either scored or entered. Kyle originally comes from York, Pennsylvania, with a degree in recreation and resource management from the University of Montana here in Missoula. He has worked seasonally for the U.S. Forest Service since graduating. He enjoys hunting, hockey, skiing, snowboarding, and spending time with his wife Morganne and their two children, Hattie and Owen. His wife is a cartographer in the U.S. Forest Service’s Regional Office (R1) here in Missoula. n

RIGHT: Kendra McKlosky of Montana Dept. of Fish, Wildlife and Parks takes the D-3 circumference on the left horn of this musk ox while Rebecca Cain records it on the score chart. Rebecca is with the B&C Quantitative Center at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan.

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ABOVE: Hubert Inhaizer (l.) and B&C regular member Tom Dew put the tape on a barren ground caribou. Hubert attended the workshop from the International Council for Wildlife & Game Conservation’s headquarters (CIC), Budakeszi, Hungary. He is the first active Official Measurer in Europe in over three decades.

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NEW MEXICO SOLO ELK HUNT Twelve days before my Gila Wilderness elk hunt last September my husband stated he could not draw his bow, and was both canceling his hunt and scheduling a shoulder replacement— unexpected news on both subjects. I thought about it for a bit, then told him: “I understand you can’t hunt this year because I know it is something you love, but I am unwilling to give up my hunt.” I have been hunting all my life, but this would be the first time I would be calling the shots, putting all my years of experience and skill on the line. “Okay,” he said, “just because I can’t go doesn’t mean you can’t go get us some elk meat.” He made arrangements for a packer to assist me. I was happy to have the help and not be alone. I also chose to save money by walking rather than taking an extra horse the four miles to our camp. A week later, when I pulled my camper up to the trail head, the excitement and anticipation of hunting settled into my heart and soul, taking over my entire consciousness. All the preparations were in place and I could let go of civilization to interact with the wilderness, enjoying all its beauty and unexpected events. Tammy A. Bredy took this typical American elk in Catron County, New Mexico, while on a hunt in September, 2014. This bull scores 366-6/8 points.

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The sound of elk bugling in the early morning hours was the topic of conversation at breakfast. Our friend and the packer loaded up the mules and horses for the trek to the upper camp. But just before we departed, a yellow jacket nailed me, sending a painful welt across my neck. Ice and after-bite from the first aid kit helped some, but the burning was irritating and painful for several days—a sharp reminder of being in the wilderness. Rains had left the ground soft and the mesas rolling with high green grass. With our backs to the comforts of civilization and our faces toward the mountain

BEYOND THE SCORE

Tammy Bredy B&C TROPHY OWNER Photos Courtesy of Author

peaks, I wondered what was in store in the days to come. I am nearly 60 years old and was heading into the wilderness with a packer I had just met. My first impressions were that he was capable, hard-working, and respectful; but for a brief moment I thought, “What am I doing!?” That quickly faded and I embraced how fortunate I was to be having this experience. After reaching camp we set up the larger tent and put the gear inside. I had intended to place a tree stand three ridges over for an extra place to hunt, but lunch and talking went on too long, and with rain moving in we headed back to the trailhead.

Part way back my friend asked if we had seen his heeler, Jack. We had not. The packer and I offered to go back and see if Jack was at camp but my friend said no, he would be fine. After a rainy day off to resupply, we loaded up again. I walked the four miles in, leading the packhorse. I drank in the mountain views, enjoying the walk even though it was difficult through the mud and uneven ground. The packer made it to camp first and then came back to the river (with Jack at his side!) to make sure I was crossing safely, Jack had gotten zipped up in the main tent two days earlier. Luckily, a metal bowl

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 selfreliance 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.

I had left in the tent was directly below a leak in the rain fly, so Jack had water to drink, and he found some granola bars to eat, but had not messed in the tent or chewed anything up. Good Jack! I knew we needed water but didn’t feel like kneeling beside the river in the rain to use the filter pump. Instead I went for a walk, and wandered over to another camp from the previous hunt. At the base of a tree was a pile of water bottles! Smiling to myself I filled my arms—a fortunate event at just the perfect time. With camp established we took the mule, loaded with the tree stand, over one ridge and down a canyon, then back up the other side. I was getting uncomfortable with how late it was, not wanting to walk into this area during “prime time.” I decided to unload the stand in a patch of high grass to retrieve it later. As we started back to camp the rain came again. My legs were exhausted. It was a challenge to walk these ridges and canyons on dry ground, let alone when it was muddy goo. That night as I lay in my sleeping bag, I finally felt like I was at elk camp. I had felt rushed to get everything ready. Now there was just one more day till my hunt started. I was a bit uneasy and felt somewhat unprepared as I normally scout several days before a hunt, but I had to trust that all was as it should be. I fell asleep to the sound of the running river. The aroma of fresh rain in the morning mountain air always heightens your senses.

We took the mule back to where the tree stand had spent the night, loaded it up, and then continued our trek. My legs were refreshed by a good night’s sleep, and I was thankful for the hiking I had done during the summer. As we worked our way to the top of the final ridge I found a nice five-point shed, which is always fun! We also found a wallow with large elk tracks around it, and four tree rubs nearby. A dry wallow had been tracked and scraped up. I could tell there was a very large bull on this ridge. The excitement stirred inside me. This was three miles from camp, but when it comes to elk, distance doesn’t matter. As we walked back to camp all I could think about was what I would choose to do opening day. It was my call. I was the only hunter there. This was MY hunt—the first time I had the choice to hunt anywhere I wanted or to change my mind as I pleased. It was fun thinking about which direction I would go, especially knowing there was a big bull on that high ridge. The next morning was rainy, and I did not want to hunt early. After breakfast I headed up the ridge to the east to check out an area where I had shot a bull before. With my backpack on and bow in hand, I set off on another demanding hike. Up, up, and up I went. All along the ridge I saw fresh tracks and rubs. At 1:30 p.m. I knew I did not have time to get off this ridge and back up to the other before the elk started moving. I decided to hang right where I was. As I sat down to rest, I

realized I had left my camo face mask in camp. But I did have black powder makeup! I chuckled to myself as I put it on without a mirror. “Good enough,” I thought, “the elk won’t care what my face looks like!” At 3:30 I moved to a different tree with a clear shooting lane to the wallow. The next few hours seemed to go by fairly fast as I enjoyed the trees, the green grass, and the white clouds against the deep blue sky. It was nice to just be still, and it’s always fun to watch birds and squirrels flit around. I dozed off. As the air got cooler in the late afternoon I heard four different bulls bugling and I was right in the middle. Nature’s symphony at its best! I wished I could freeze time. One bull screaming behind me was coming closer and closer with each bugle as he answered other bulls. I nocked an arrow. My stomach had that light, exciting feeling and I got very still, straining to hear any noise. The screams got closer and the sound of hooves walking was all around me. My heart started beating faster as the excitement grew. Would I actually get a shot at an elk on my first night? “Stay calm,” I told myself. “No mistakes!” Cows came into view in every direction. One large cow put her nose in the air to sniff around. I thought, “Oh please, don’t bust me!” Luckily the wind was in my favor. I sat motionless, taking in every detail: clouds in the sky, green trees, the smell of elk and wallow mud, the cows twitching their ears

as they drank and grazed, and the sound of bulls screaming. I wanted to freeze time, to capture the sounds and sights of those moments. At that moment the bull I had been hearing came in and caught Boss Ma’s attention. Then the bull put on the best elk encounter I have ever seen. He did it all—scraped his antlers in the mud, pawed with his hooves, rolled in the wallow, and splashed water all around. His show was both deliberate and playful. Then he lay in the middle of the wallow, screamed some more, leaned his antlers back, and thrashed and rubbed his neck in the mud. He changed the wallow’s shape from an oval to a heart. All this time the cows were moving farther and farther away. It was the bull and I. No other eyes were around. “It doesn’t get any better than this,” I told myself. Moving ever so slowly, I placed my release on the D loop, then checked it twice to make sure it was set right. “No mistakes. NO MISTAKES!” The bull stood up, presenting a broadside shot. I drew, telling myself again, “No mistakes! Stay calm!” He let out another loud scream as I looked through my peep and placed the pin on his heart, confident that my yardage was correct. Almost automatically my arrow flew. I hardly remember making the shot. It was a good hit, right through the heart. Usually elk run the opposite direction after an arrow hits. This magnificent bull stood still, as if looking for another bull that had come to fight. I quickly FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 67

BEYOND THE SCORE The bull stood up, presenting a broadside shot. I drew, telling myself again, “No mistakes! Stay calm!” He let out another loud scream as I looked through my peep and placed the pin on his heart, confident that my yardage was correct. Almost automatically my arrow flew. I hardly remember making the shot. In addition to being a superb bowhunter, Tammy is also an accomplished archery target shooter, youth archery instructor, a mother, and a grandmother.

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nocked a second arrow (the only time I have ever shot twice), drew, aimed at his lungs, and released. The arrow went through both lungs and part-way out the far side. He walked 10 yards toward me. I nocked a third arrow, but as I was about to draw he dropped onto his belly. He looked around and let out a weak screech, then lay over and expired in about 30 seconds—just the way you want any harvest to be. I just sat for a bit, thankful my Bear Anarchy HC had done its job. When I counted, I was surprised to see he was an 8x7. When you see a bull in the forest, he doesn’t look as big as he does when you get right up by him. This one was healthy and long, with lots of good meat. Those 20 minutes will be burned in my memory the rest of my life—a majestic part of nature I was so fortunate to experience! My thoughts went to my husband, who normally is by my side on a hunt, and I quietly wished he was there to share the moment. But now my hunt was over. You spend so much time planning, preparing, practicing, anticipating, and wondering. And then it happens; you experience everything in about 30 minutes. Executing the shot and watching your arrow fly to hit its mark is but a few seconds of the whole experience. The realization that it all just happened is overwhelming with emotion and thankfulness. I always have a few tears when I put down any game; a culmination of excitement, sorrow, and the climax of the kill. My body felt weak as I walked slowly toward my bull. Placing my hand on him, I gave a prayer of thanksgiving of his life. Respect given for what he was. After a time of quiet I stood

and shifted into what I needed to do now, and that was to take care of this magnificent animal. I knew it was going to be a long night, as any time you take an animal this large in the evening, your next 24 hours are a given. I called the packer with my walkie. By the time he arrived darkness had fallen. “Wow, nice bull,” he said. “He didn’t go very far, did he? I somehow knew you were going to get your elk today.” In addition to his kind words, he showed up with everything I had asked him to bring, including a sandwich. In four hours we were loading the panniers with quarters and meat. We bagged the hindquarters and put them in a tree with the head and antlers. Making our way back across the top of the ridge and down the canyon to camp in the dark seemed to take forever. Totally exhausted after camp chores, feeling most every muscle in my body ache, my mind was numb as I slid into my sleeping bag. Last time I looked it was 3 a.m. We slept for three hours, ate, and then set out to retrieve the rest of my bull. We loaded the remaining quarters on the packhorse. But when we tried to put the head and antlers on the mule, it didn’t work so well. The mule bolted and the antlers took a tumble. We tried tying everything on top, which worked better for a while. Heading back we came across another stash of water bottles—yet another perfectly timed gift. There were more such gifts yet to come. Our friend’s stepson and his friend showed up just in time to help get the antlers back to camp. The boys needed water, and I just happened to have some! After packing the bull to the trail head, our livestock escaped from the corral in a lightning

storm, but the packer retrieved them later in the week, safe and sound. We drove to town for extra ice and I texted my husband. “Did you get an elk already,” he asked. I wrote back: “I shot the first elk I had a good shot at so we have winter meat!” At this he called me. “That’s great,” he said. “So glad we have elk meat. What did you shoot?” I said I had shot a bull. “How big,” he asked. “An 8x7.” He got quiet and then I lost reception. I chuckled to think what was going through his head. But my hunt wasn’t over quite yet. I wasn’t going to let the packer take down camp by himself. We drove back to the trailhead for yet another four-mile hike to camp. I was getting used to this walk by now. The river had risen from hard rains and was moving fast, however, and we decided it was not safe to take the mule across. The packer crossed by himself, going underwater twice before he reached the other side. We ended up tossing a line over and pulling our gear across one bag at a time, then loaded the gear and walked back once again. I was happy to reach home. When the packer opened the horse trailer door and my husband’s eyes fell on my antlers he smiled. “Wow, you did good,” he said, and gave me a big hug. “Nice bull!” At home, my thoughts often return to my amazing hunt with all the beauty, elk activity, weather, discomfort, the unplanned but perfectly timed gifts, the boys, the horses, and Jack. Time to settle into normal life until the wilderness calls again and I return once more to listen to the elk bugle in the rugged high country. n This story was originally written for the Outdoor Reporter.

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FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 69

JACK STEELE PARKER

GENERATION

NEXT FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE

LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

BLACK BEAR 20 12/16

Preston Co., WV

Parker R. Calvert

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 29th Big Game Awards Program, 2013-2015, 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.

2013 S. Rauch

This listing represents only those trophies accepted since the Summer 2015 issue of Fair Chase was published.

COUGAR 14 13/16

Moffat Co., CO

Trystan J. Lyons

2013 B. Wilkes

TYPICAL MULE DEER 194 4/8 200 4/8 184 1/8 191 1/8

Coconino Co., AZ Leslie M. Harris 2012 R. Black Elko Co., NV Terry L. Fagg III 2014 C. Lacey

TYPICAL SITKA BLACKTAIL DEER 101 7/8 118 3/8

Prince of Wales Island, AK

Ethan J. File

2014 M. Nilsen

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER 191 7/8 175 174 7/8 168 7/8 165 5/8 162 2/8

221 6/8 190 2/8 179 178 3/8 172 3/8 167 2/8

Gage Co., NE Frosty A. Adams Marion Co., IA Kirkland A. Howard Beltrami Co., MN Tyler R. McNamara Winnebago Co., IL Picked Up Parke Co., IN Justin A. Waymire Cupar, SK Trevor R. Macknack

2000 2014 2012 2006 2014 2014

S. Cowan S. Grabow S. Grabow J. Lunde R. Graber J. Lorenz

NON-TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER 220 3/8 219 3/8 207 3/8 204 5/8 195 2/8

225 223 7/8 211 5/8 209 7/8 204 2/8

Linn Co., IA Washington Co., IA Jones Co., IA Harrison Co., IA Madison Co., TX

Hunter D. Carlson 2014 Matthew L. Hoenig 2014 Seth M.S. Deutmeyer 2011 Seth M. Christiansen 2014 Makayla A. Hay 2013

S. Grabow L. Miller D. Boland D. Pfeiffer B. Lambert

TYPICAL COUES’ WHITETAIL 113 5/8 117

Gila Co., AZ

Robert K. MacMillan 2012 R. Stayner

PRONGHORN 84 80 6/8

84 5/8 82 1/8

Elmore Co., ID Elko Co., NV

Coy Braithwaite Brycen D. Kelly

2014 T. Boudreau 2014 G. Hernandez

ROCKY MOUNTAIN GOAT 53

53 4/8

West Kootenay, BC Kyle C. Bartsoff

2014 L. Hill

Read the story of Kyle Bartsoff’s Rocky Mountain goat hunt on the following pages.

70 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

Parker R. Calvert

Robert MacMillan

Coy Braithwaite

Frosty A. Adams

Leslie M. Harris

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 71

JACK STEELE PARKER GENERATION NEXT For weeks we had been scouting from various places to see multiple spots and different angles of the mountainside. We were seeing over 20 goats per day, but none of the big billies were in range for us to approach safely. After a while of not being able to go after a goat, I wanted to shoot the next goat that walked by, no matter how big or small it was. On Friday I had gathered all of my gear and clothes that I would need to spend the weekend goat hunting with my Dad and Marco Marrello. That night I had been so excited to go hunting for the weekend that I was just lying in my bed wide awake for what seemed to be hours. This is the only time when waking up at 4:00 a.m. with only six hours of sleep could be so exciting. I quickly put my hunting clothes on, and then ran downstairs as if it were Christmas. I slipped on my boots and carried my backpack out to the truck. Almost an hour after leaving the driveway we arrived at the first spot we glassed from. When it started to get light out, our binoculars were instantly on the mountain looking for any little, white dot. We would glass the mountain and then the fog would roll in causing us to wait ten to 15 minutes before we could continue. After spotting several groups of goats with no big billies or no billies at all, we spotted a group of three goats, which included two nannies, one with a broken horn and the other with horns that seemed to be 12 inches 72 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

Kyle C. Bartsoff B&C TROPHY OWNER Photos Courtesy of Author

long, and one billy. We watched the group of three for a couple minutes at a time, due to the fog floating down the valley. Although we could tell that the billy was fairly good, we couldn’t confirm how big he actually was. After half an hour of watching the three goats and waiting out the fog, we decided to go after the billy. Marco, my Dad, and I threw on our backpacks, got our hiking poles out, and started walking. About two and a half hours of bush-whacking later, we started to climb at a very steep incline for another hour and a half. We had to go down through a creek draw and back up the other side, placing us almost directly under the goats. Still having to get closer, we climbed higher up until we reached a spot I would be able to shoot from. My Dad helped me make a rest, which consisted of a big stump and two big backpacks, while Marco set up the spotting scope five feet behind me. We could only see the two nannies, so I got set up and practiced holding my cross-hairs steady to make sure I wasn’t shaking. The billy finally walked out and my dad ranged him at 340 yards. I was confident at this range because we have gone to the shooting range many times and practiced beyond this range. My Dad told me to hold higher than I normally

Fifteen-year-old Kyle Bartsoff was hunting near West Kootenay, British Columbia, in 2014, with his dad Mike, when he took this Rocky Mountain goat, scoring 53 points.

would, about three quarters of the way up the body of the goat. With nothing in the chamber, I held right where my dad told me to and squeezed the trigger, dryfiring the gun. I did this three times to get myself calm and ready. My dad then asked, “Do you think you can kill it?” I instantly replied “Yes.” I was ready to shoot it. I loaded one into the chamber, closing the bolt slowly. All I was waiting for was the billy to turn broadside. When the billy turned, I aimed carefully, three-quarters the way up the billy’s body. Flicking the safety forward, I breathed in, then, squeezed the trigger while breathing out. The bullet hit the goat in the

perfect spot, causing him to hunch up. Before I could load another bullet into my gun, the billy sprinted forward. A flash of white went flying through the trees below the 60-foot cliff, which the goat had been standing atop. WHACK! The billy hit the ground below the cliff, leaving an uncertain feeling that the horns would be broken. Even after the shot, the two nannies stood on the side of the mountain, looking at us. After celebrating and high-fiving for a few minutes, we packed up to go find the goat. When the hillside got thicker with trees, we split up to find it faster. My dad and I went one way and Marco went the other way. Almost two and

a half hours after I pulled the trigger, my dad stumbled upon some thick white hair in the alders, which led us directly to the goat. As I approached the billy, which was wrapped around a small tree, I could not believe how big it actually was. The first thing Marco said when he saw the huge billy was, “That thing’s book!” All three of us were completely surprised by the size of the goat. Rather than being smaller than we thought, which normally happens, the billy actually was bigger. We started snapping pictures of the humongous billy from every angle. We quickly skinned and deboned it, and then loaded our packs up. By the time we started heading back down it was getting dark. Walking down the mountain with loaded packs is hard enough, but on top of

that we had to do it in the dark. Finally we arrived back at the truck more than three hours later. We decided not to stay overnight, even though we had packed for the whole weekend. As soon as we were back at home we grabbed a tape-measure. We measured the bases at six inches each and measured the length of the horns at 11-2/8 inches and 11-4/8 inches. Three days later after waiting for our legs to recover from the first trip up the mountain, we went after another goat to fill my dad’s tag. While glassing from below we spotted the broken horned nanny and the long horned nanny again, and there was another big billy with them. We hiked to almost the exact same spot from which I had shot my goat. My dad rested his gun on a rock

Kyle’s dad took a goat around the same area, unfortunately almost two inches of horn broke off during the roll down the mountain.

only 160 yards away from the goats. Waiting for more than a half-hour, he was finally able to shoot. After the third shot the goat rolled down the mountain, doing flips and snapping almost two inches off the left horn. When we found the goat we realized that had it not broken it would have been just as big, if not bigger, than my goat. Before we could get both of our goats scored we had to wait the mandatory 60-day drying period, which felt more like six months. It was well worth the wait for me because the B&C gross score for my goat was 53-4/8 inches, and the official B&C net score was 53 inches exactly. For my

dad’s goat the B&C gross score was 51-7/8 inches, but it had 2-1/8 inches in deductions due to a broken horn, making the B&C net score only 49-6/8 inches. I would like to give a big thanks to Marco Marrello for all of his help and hard work. Also, I would like to thank my dad for taking me hunting every weekend. The hunt of a lifetime wouldn’t have happened without them. n

FAIR CHAS E | FAL L 2 0 1 5 73

RECENTLY ACCEPTED TROPHIES

BIG GAME TROPHIES LISTING AND PHOTO GALLERY

The following pages list the most recent big game trophies accepted into the Boone and Crockett Club’s 29th Big Game Awards Program, 2013-2015, which includes entries received between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2015. All of the field photos in this section are from entries that are listed in this issue and are shown in bold green text. This listing represents only those trophies accepted since the Summer 2015 issue of Fair Chase was published. SPONSORED BY

Share your field photos with us! Follow: @BooneandCrockettClub Tag: #booneandcrockettclub 74 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

Wayne Bowd was on a hunt near the Liard River in Northwest Territories, in 2014, when he harvested this Dall’s sheep scoring 167-5/8 points. He was shooting a .300 Winchester Short Mag.

TOP TO BOTTOM

BEAR & COUGAR FINAL SCORE

LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

BLACK BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 23-10/16 22 2/16 Armstrong Co., PA Gabriel J. Heckman 2014 D. Razza 22 1/16 Penguin Arm, NL Ted R. Park 2014 J. Anstey 21 12/16 Douglas Co., NV David R. Kinamon 2014 C. Lacey 21 7/16 Butler Co., PA Jeffrey L. McClymonds 2014 A. Brunst 21 7/16 Iron Co., WI Douglas A. Pemper 2014 S. Grabow 21 5/16 Rusk Co., WI James A. Zillmer 2014 J. Hjort 21 4/16 Venango Co., PA Heath M. Bromley 2014 E. Defibaugh 21 3/16 Gogebic Co., MI Thomas B. Guyott 2014 G. Villnow 21 2/16 Klickitat Co., WA Debbie Rae Cole 2014 S. Wilkins 21 2/16 Polk Co., WI Bradley C. Thomas 2014 K. Zimmerman 21 Barron Co., WI Garrett A. Larsen 2014 L. Zimmerman 20 15/16 Mesa Co., CO Clifford E. Healey 2013 R. Black 20 13/16 Douglas Co., NV Star R. Chenoweth 2014 C. Lacey 20 12/16 Preston Co., WV Parker R. Calvert 2013 S. Rauch 20 11/16 Florence Co., WI John J. Samorske 2014 S. Zirbel 20 11/16 Lake Co., MI Duane A. Coon 2014 R. Novosad 20 11/16 Leaf Rapids, MB David S. Wood 2014 J. Ohmer 20 11/16 Sawyer Co., WI Timothy J. Drover 2014 W. Resch 20 10/16 Dunn Co., WI Jacob A. Durand 2014 J. Lunde 20 10/16 Lafond, AB Jonathan G. Shapka 2014 B. Rudyk 20 9/16 Douglas Co., NV Scott A. Wilkinson 2014 C. Lacey 20 4/16 Elk Co., PA Robert E. Mahan, Sr. 2009 G. Block 20 3/16 Botetourt Co., VA Raymond L. Cole, Jr. 2012 R. Mayer 20 1/16 Adams Co., ID Brooklyn T. Hudson 2012 K. Primrose 20 1/16 Burnett Co., WI Shawn D. Bird 2009 L. Zimmerman 20 1/16 Thurston Co., WA Carl B. Vesey 2013 D. Waldbillig 20 Carlton Co., MN James A. Makowsky 2014 J. Lunde

Jonathan G. Shapka took this black bear, scoring 20-10/16 points, in 2014 while bowhunting in Lafond, Alberta. This typical American elk, scoring 361-5/8 points, was taken by Ryan Wilson in Martin County, Kentucky, in 2014. In 2014, Tressa J. Seamons harvested this 199-6/8-point typical mule deer while on a hunt in Garfield County, Utah.

GRIZZLY BEAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 27-13/16 25 5/16 23 14/16 23 6/16 23

Nulato Hills, AK Shearwater Point, BC Brooks Range, AK Elkhorn Mountain, BC

William S. Paulsen Bryan B. Payne

2014 M. Moline 2014 M. Wendel

Dale B. Skinner Milton Schultz, Jr.

2014 J. Westerhold 2014 D. Eider

Trystan J. Lyons

2013 B. Wilkes

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

COUGAR - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 16-4/16 14 13/16

Moffat Co., CO

ELK & MULE DEER FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

TYPICAL AMERICAN ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 442-5/8 401 2/8 390 381 4/8 380 2/8 380 375 4/8 367 6/8 365 6/8 365 3/8 362 7/8 361 5/8

415 4/8 396 5/8 396 1/8 387 6/8 391 2/8 380 5/8 372 2/8 384 4/8 379 2/8 376 1/8 378 6/8

Medicine Hat, AB Kent E. Waddell White Pine Co., NV Jesse R. Murdock Moffat Co., CO Clay J. Evans Garfield Co., UT Picked Up Colfax Co., NM Timothy B. Fisk Sweetwater Co., WY Clay J. Evans Sevier Co., UT James P. Rumpsa Nye Co., NV Ernest P. Camilleri Elko Co., NV Taylor A. Lund Banner Co., NE Douglas J. Correll Martin Co., KY Ryan Wilson

2014 2014 2014 2013 2014 2014 2014 2014 2014 2014 2014

W. Paplawski S. Sanborn B. Wilkes C. Farnsworth K. Witt B. Wilkes R. Hall L. Clark G. Hernandez B. Wiese G. Ison

NON-TYPICAL AMERICAN ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 478-5/8 428 434 2/8 White Pine Co., NV Sue A. Kinney 405 2/8 418 3/8 Sierra Co., NM Gary G. Higby

2014 C. Lacey 2014 N. Lawson

ROOSEVELT’S ELK - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 404-4/8 381 389 6/8 352 4/8 355 2/8 306 7/8 319 3/8 304 4/8 309 293 6/8 307 5/8 291 4/8 296 7/8

Jervis Inlet, BC Sayward, BC Vancouver Island, BC Del Norte Co., CA Douglas Co., OR Humboldt Co., CA

Terry L. Raymond Kevin T. Klumper Clay J. Evans

2014 W. Paplawski 2014 J. Weise 2014 B. Wilkes

Richard K. Currier 2014 G. Hooper Mark A. Christensen 2014 D. Heffner Milton Schultz, Jr. 2014 J. Capurro

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RECENTLY ACCEPTED TROPHIES

ROOSEVELT’S ELK CONTINUED 290 7/8 295 7/8 Trinity Co., CA Kendall J. Greenwell 2014 S. Boero 283 2/8 287 1/8 Campbell River, BC Brent Acorn 2014 A. Berreth 276 4/8 286 7/8 Benton Co., OR Eric H. Nittka 2014 J. Stone

TYPICAL MULE DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 226-4/8 207 5/8 226 5/8 Mohave Co., AZ John C. McClendon 2014 P. Dalrymple 205 5/8 214 5/8 Clearwater Co., ID Unknown 2013 W. Bowles 199 6/8 205 6/8 Garfield Co., UT Tressa J. Seamons 2014 R. Hall 195 3/8 198 1/8 Bonneville Co., ID Thad O. Griffith 2014 J. Wiggs 194 7/8 210 7/8 Bear Lake Co., ID Ryan J. Gould 2014 R. Atwood 194 4/8 200 4/8 Coconino Co., AZ Leslie M. Harris 2012 R. Black 190 5/8 196 6/8 Garfield Co., CO David A. Hadden 2014 B. Wallace 190 1/8 196 3/8 San Juan Co., NM Mark A. Rozelle 2013 J. Willems 188 3/8 192 5/8 Rawlins Co., KS Brandon J. Luebbers 2014 E. Stanosheck 184 1/8 191 1/8 Elko Co., NV Terry L. Fagg III 2014 C. Lacey 181 4/8 187 1/8 Sheridan Co., MT Wesley W. Parker 2014 J. Pallister 180 3/8 184 6/8 Eagle Co., CO Gregory S. Evers 2014 S. Grabow

NON-TYPICAL MULE DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 355-2/8 264 3/8 281 2/8 228 4/8 235 3/8 218 225 1/8 217 224 3/8

Gaines Co., TX Lincoln Co., WY Powder River Co., MT Garfield Co., CO

Richard D. Meritt Rick A. Weis John D. Poole

2014 M. Ledbetter 2014 T. Heil 2014 L. Buhmann

Matthew M. Dunkle

2014 R. Kingsley

TYPICAL COLUMBIA BLACKTAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 182-2/8 160 3/8 166 7/8 Skagit Co., WA Kendall W. Klein 2013 M. Streissguth 152 5/8 155 6/8 Trinity Co., CA Gary D. Cyphers 2014 S. Boero 142 5/8 145 6/8 Mendocino Co., CA Robert L. Cook 2014 D. Biggs 139 6/8 143 5/8 Jackson Co., OR Lee Frudden 2014 P. Peden 137 7/8 149 4/8 Douglas Co., OR Dean A. Starr 2014 J. Stone 136 2/8 141 6/8 Tehama Co., CA Kayla L. Trautwein 2014 S. Boero 136 145 1/8 Jefferson Co., WA Nathan S. Breithaupt 2014 D. Sanford 133 136 1/8 Siskiyou Co., CA John R. Taylor 2010 D. Biggs 132 7/8 136 Thurston Co., WA James E. Rhodes 2013 M. Opitz 128 131 1/8 Abbotsford, BC Travis W. Parker 2014 R. Berreth 126 3/8 132 7/8 Chilliwack, BC Alden Abraham 2014 R. Berreth

NON-TYPICAL COLUMBIA BLACKTAIL - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 208-1/8 161 3/8 172 2/8 Shasta Co., CA

Dustan M. Gyves

2014 S. Boero

TYPICAL SITKA BLACKTAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 133 108 2/8 109 6/8 Kodiak Island, AK 101 7/8 118 3/8 Prince of Wales Island, AK 101 5/8 106 3/8 Kodiak Island, AK

Stephen O. Moore Ethan J. File

2014 D. Waldbillig 2014 M. Nilsen

Tim D. Hiner

1991 C. Brent

WHITETAIL DEER FINAL GROSS SCORE SCORE LOCATION

HUNTER

DATE MEASURER

TYPICAL WHITETAIL DEER - WORLD’S RECORD SCORE 213-5/8 191 7/8 221 6/8 Gage Co., NE Frosty A. Adams 2000 S. Cowan 188 198 2/8 Washington Co., MN 2014 J. Lunde 185 1/8 190 3/8 McMullen Co., TX John W. Beasley 2014 N. Ballard 183 3/8 189 5/8 Meade Co., SD Picked Up 1996 N. Lawson 182 7/8 198 7/8 Marathon Co., WI Kyle N. Page 2014 T. Heil 182 5/8 185 3/8 Black Hawk Co., IA Travis L. Hepler 2015 J. Ream 182 5/8 185 7/8 Grant Co., IN Bryan J. Mullenix 2014 R. Karczewski 182 4/8 190 7/8 Coahuila, MX Gregory A. Almond 2012 G. Adams 182 2/8 195 6/8 Hennepin Co., MN Jeffrey L. Eggen 2014 P. Carlson 180 2/8 185 1/8 Chase Co., KS Ennis J. Goodale III 2014 T. Caruthers 180 1/8 184 2/8 Foard Co., TX John C. Merritt 2014 K. Witt 180 187 7/8 Live Oak Co., TX Charles E. Wormser 2014 B. Wallace 179 5/8 191 5/8 Otter Tail Co., MN Nathan J. Heschke 2014 T. Kalsbeck 179 197 Otter Tail Co., MN Cody V. Truax 2014 M. Harrison 178 7/8 190 2/8 Pope Co., MN Eric N. Jensen 2010 S. Grabow 178 5/8 184 7/8 Stearns Co., MN Beau D. Pilgrim 2014 S. Grabow 178 3/8 188 3/8 Henry Co., IA Robert E. White 2014 C. Pierce 178 1/8 182 5/8 Yazoo Co., MS John N. Trammell 2014 S. Jones 176 5/8 185 4/8 Garfield Co., OK Andrew W. Hall 2014 G. Moore

76 FA I R CH A S E | FA LL 2 0 1 5

OPPOSITE PAGE: TOP TO BOTTOM

John Poole was on a hunt in Powder River County, Montana, during the 2014 season, when he harvested this non-typical mule deer scoring 218 points. He was shooting his 7mm Remington Mag. While on a 2014 hunt in Sierra County, New Mexico, Gary G. Higby took this 405-2/8-point non-typical American elk.

THIS PAGE: TOP TO BOTTOM

Sam V. Davenport took this desert sheep, scoring 168-2/8 points, in 2014 while hunting in Yuma County, Arizona. He was shooting his .270 Winchester. This typical Columbia blacktail deer, scoring 160-3/8 points, was taken by Kendall W. Klein, in Skagit County, Washington, in 2013. In 2014, Milton Schultz, Jr. harvested this 23-point grizzly bear while on a hunt near Cranbrook, British Columbia. Gregory A. Almond was on a hunt in Coahuila, Mexico, when he harvested this typical whitetail deer scoring 182-4/8 points. He was shooting his .270 Winchester Mag.