Welcome to TheOhioOutdoors
Wanting to join the rest of our members? Login or sign up today!
Login / Join

My Essay - You asked for it!

saddlepants

Member
1,224
0
central Ohio
Ok guys here goes. Mind you its as long as required but you asked for it and some of you helped me with it. THIS IS A ROUGH DRAFT. I decided to post the draft so you can give me input before submitting the final which is Due DEC 2nd. That way I have time to revise. I wont post the final - this is what you get, lol. Ill let you know what I get for a grade after it comes in. Thanks for all the input guys!

Lorraine Dudley Page one
English 102
Professor Benjamin
11/20/11

The Hunter-The Conservationist​
Every time I go out into the woods to hunt Ohio’s white-tailed deer, I remember how I only could dream of doing such a thing when I was a child growing up in the city, with “city parents” doing “city things”. It wasn’t where my heart was. My heart was in the country, in the adventure movies of cowboys and Indians, and on the hunting channel! It’s hard to imagine that the bountiful harvests I might have this year were once nearly extinct due to over hunting and poor management
The white-tail deer is by far the most popular game in the U.S., chased by some 11 million hunters each fall. But other wildlife populations have undergone great highs and lows as well over the course of history from overhunting, population increase, and city and rural development. Some of these animals have become extinct in areas where they once were abundant. Predators have been removed from many areas for “public safety” reasons with no consideration to the balance in nature they provide. Many animals have also been displaced due to lack of sufficient food, cover, and removal of breeding grounds to make way for new human living space.
Researching my favorite hobby has brought a new awareness to conservation efforts dedicated to keeping our sport alive as well as keeping the balance in nature as intended. Hopefully this awareness becomes the norm and the species we all love to hunt today will last for generations to come. There is plenty of information out there to be had, to help you do your part in the conservation of our wildlife weather you hunt with a gun, a bow, or a camera. The internet makes this even easier today and even if you don’t hunt at all you can learn how to do your part in preserving the habitat of many species even in your own backyard. Hunting is a great part of our national history; it is what kept us alive in the new world. The history of Hunting in America, it’s challenging times, and the changes that are taking place, have an effect on nature as a whole which in turn affects all of us.

Dudley Page two

The White-tailed deer, as well as many other animal species, were hunted long before settlers first came to America. Native Americans taught us about them and how to utilize every part of the animal to support our lives here in the new country. The native also taught us how not to waste. Animal populations were high and there was enough for everybody if they learned how not only to use everything that animal provided but also in how to hunt in such a way as to preserve the populations.
Over the course of time, greed and money reduced the populations in great numbers. The biggest and first of these situations was a result of the fur trade. Rampant market hunting in the late 1800s reduced the whitetail population to an all-time low of 500,000, and does and bucks disappeared completely in some areas. In 1900 The Lacy Act, the first federal wildlife law, was enacted. Lacy prohibited the interstate trafficking of venison and other wild game, and the exploitation of whitetails began to slow. In 1908, 41 states established departments of conservation, furthering the protection of deer. The Great Depression was hard on Americans. But it was boom time for whitetails in the East, South and Midwest. As people flocked from the country to scrap out a living in cities, abandoned farms and home sites sprouted weeds, brush and saplings. Biologists and sportsmen began to realize that America's changing habitat was good for growing numbers of deer. Once considered denizens of big, contiguous forests, whitetails would be forever known as "edge" animals.
Jump forward about 75 years and white-tail populations continued to soar throughout the 1980s and '90s. Solid deer management was one reason. And then there was suburban sprawl. In many regions more and more people built single-family homes in once-rural areas, creating a checkerboard of "farmettes" and small estates. Developers carved subdivisions, golf courses and strip malls in farms and woodlands. Ironically, this created ideal strip and pocket habitats for the adaptable whitetail, which has an uncanny knack of living alongside man. This trend continues in the new millennium, and it is not without its downsides. Burgeoning numbers of deer ravage shrubs, fruit trees and crops, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damages annually in the Midwest, Northeast and Southeast. Deer-auto collisions are on the rise in many states. Thus annual studies continue of populations to understand and keep the balance in check. Killing off of the many large predators that once roamed our country has forced man to become the only predator responsible in this balance.
“The great irony is that many species might not survive at all were it not for hunters trying to kill them.” (Poole, 2). Not only in the numbers that we hunt but also in the amount of money we spend each year to support the industry in many ways. Hunters annually spend thousands on products to help them fill the freezer but also in fees for licenses and tags and donations to organized groups dedicated to conservation. ““It’s the hunters who keep most of these species going,” said Jim Clay, a middle school English teacher, hunter, and maker of turkey calls in Winchester, Virginia. “They put in the money, and they put in the hours. Hunters really care about what happens.” (Poole, 3). Millions of Americans are involved in conservation and wildlife, but those who are against hunting may not be aware that hunters are the largest contributors to the conservation.
Dudley page three
Surveys by the U.S. government show that hunters and anglers produce a multiplier effect that puts more than $67.5 billion into the nation’s economy each year. A great deal of this money finds its way into far-reaching conservation programs.(NSSF, 12). Conservation efforts have begun to explode in this country for all types of game, from the large organization level down to the private individual. Clubs like the National Wild Turkey Federation and Pheasants Forever are diverse groups of hunters, non-hunters, farmers, ranchers, landowners, conservation enthusiasts and wildlife officials who want to make a difference for wildlife by creating habitat, restoring wetlands and protecting prairies. Groups like these help to pass legislature, purchase and restore land for both hunters and wildlife, and help teach about conservation and safety. "More public land brings more hunters to our area, and that’s good for local businesses," (Pheasants Forever, web). Large groups like these can also help the farmer or private individual in creating and managing food plots and cover areas on there own land which give wildlife a place to live and reproduce but also give the hunters a great place to hunt.
A great example of this type of conservation effort is one announced recently by Ohio’s department of Natural Resources. It’s an incentive fund to help improve Ohio’s rapidly diminishing quail populations. These populations have declined due to the lack of the grassy plains that once used to cover much of Ohio. Building homes and farming more and more available land has greatly diminished the type of ground cover and breeding habitat these animals need to survive. Bobwhite quail has always been a popular game bird but the hunting is not its major cause of decline. The ODNR has designed a program to help restore this habitat with cash incentives to landowners. “Grassland buffers along crop fields enhance the movement of existing quail coveys and are a critical component of this restoration program. The program will provide a much-needed habitat niche that is lacking in counties within the existing quail range.”(ODNR, web). Many of the landowners and farmers involved in this type of conservation effort are also hunters carrying on age old family traditions in ways to help put food on the table.
There are many private individuals in this country as evident especially in the Midwest who are learning the importance of conservation simply to supply there own hunting desires. Small and large conservation clubs and your next-door neighbor may be practicing efforts to bring the wildlife they hunt onto there own property with careful consideration to logging practices, pond and waterway creation and management, creating wetlands for migration of waterfowl and creating their own limits and boundaries for what they will hunt and when. It is evident in the local hunting store and even the Wal-Mart, where one might find bags of seed designed to attract certain species of hunters prey if planted and cultivated properly. Blocks of minerals that the white-tailed deer need to sustain health can be purchased all year round and cultivation tools are marketed to fit smaller tractors and ATVs to assist the recreational hunter in planting small crops. Yes, these crops do attract what the hunter is looking for but they also draw the animals away from the farmer’s crops as well as supply better nutrition alternatives for the wildlife. Other groups and individuals instill minimums and maximums on the wildlife they harvest and allow members or family to harvest on the land they manage. One example of this is when hunters pose restrictions on themselves or anyone hunting on the land they own and manage, is to how
 

saddlepants

Member
1,224
0
central Ohio
Dudley page four
many does they can take per season and how large a buck must be allowed to grow before he can be harvested. Or harvesting bucks with underdeveloped or malformed antlers early so as not to pass on the weaker gene pools. This management allows for stronger and healthier herds on the property.
Ben Fashing, Owner of Piney Fork Hollow Hunters Camp, Jefferson County Ohio is a private land owner who has created a hunters camp for family and friends. Ben operates and manages a personal camp that is funded with personal dollars. He purchased 100 acres in 1999. It is shared with family and friends for hunting and recreation purposes. On average about 6 hunters per year. The property was ex-strip mine property that was owned by a coal company and never reclaimed. Besides the initial investment in the property they spend about 3,000 annually for management practice and upkeep. “Since 2000 we have harvested 121 deer from our 100 acres (11 per year average). A few nice bucks (around 2-3 per year) but our main harvest is mature does.” (Fashing, interview, 2011) He does not support any organization financially but support their ideologies/practices of conservation organizations. He is a member of the Short Creek Sportsman’s Club out of Adena, Ohio. They have an adjacent 3,500 acres that meets his property. Over on the club property with his property, they manage 5 ponds, 17 food plots, stock the ponds, rabbits, and pheasants throughout the seasons. They create brush piles for the rabbit’s habitat and plant switch grass for pheasant habitat. There is a 250 member limit at this club and hold fundraising events. Then in turn use those profits to manage the club, develop habitat, and buy fish, rabbit, and pheasant stock. His property, as well as the club, and two neighbors have instituted a 4 point on one side antler restriction for bucks harvested. Total combined acres using this system are 3,850 acres. Its hunters and clubs like this and many others like them that not only hunt the wildlife but are the biggest contributor to the insurance of its survival for the enjoyment of generations to come not only for the hunter but for the wildlife enthusiasts as well.
Survival of the fittest is a Law of nature that cannot be forgotten. Every animal has to have a healthy and rich environment in which to breed and live, quality food sources, and predators to remove the weak and keep the numbers in a delicate balance. As human populations continue to grow and take over the land we have to learn to become managers of that balance. If we choose to remove the predators from the land for our own safety, then we must become the predator for the safety and well being of the wildlife.


Dudley Page 5
Works Cited​

Poole, Robert M. “Hunters: For the Love of the Land” National Geographic
Nov. 2011 1-11 Print

“Hunter and Conservation.” National Shooting Sports Foundation, Inc. 5-13 (2009) Print

Fashing, Ben. Owner of Piney Fork Hollow Hunters Camp, Jefferson County Ohio
Personal Interview. 5 Nov. 2011

Hauck, Anthony. “Pheasants Forever Helps Protect Habitat, Create Public Access in SW Minnesota.”
Pheasants Forever. Web. 17 Oct. 2011

“Restoring Quail Habitat.” Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Ohio Department of Natural Resources – Division of Wildlife. Web. 28 Oct. 2011
 

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
Great job, SP. I especially like the points you made on page 2 about hunters being responsible for saving so many species. Ted Nugent said it best, "If you want to save a species, start eating it." It's so true it isn't even funny.

Can I ask, what exactly was your asignment? I mean, what were you asked to do for this essay?
 

saddlepants

Member
1,224
0
central Ohio
Well it was a combination of three essay assignments that really were about simply doing a "research essay" so the first one involved how I fit in my community with an interview and some history. Then #2 and #3 were on different topics related and I chose one of my hobbies which also had to include a personal interview and research. #2 was this same topic but only focused on the introductory paragraph and bibliographical citations (which are stupid and suck BTW) and if you dont know what that is look it up because thats like giving you directions to somewhere...dammit I can take you there but i dont know the road names. I had to do FIVE frii=ggin of those things and then didnt have to include them in this one #3 but they did help me in plager...er... I mean composing this final rough draft. (jk, about the plagiarizing thing, lol). I just chose something I know the most about and liked. Made it easier at this time of year to keep my mind happy.
 

matt hougan

Junior Member
338
0
Dayton area
Page four.....inferior genetics reads better then "weaker gene pools"

Other than some missing puncuation its good.

One thing I was looking for was once the balance is off the effect of over populated deer herds do more damage than to ornamental plants and crops. They also desemate the native browse plants in thier own habitat. Keeping herd populations in healthy balance also helps native plants to thrive.

This could be another topic all together, but think on this for awhile. The wildlife has always been a National treasure. In early years it was needed to sustain human life. Now that most Americans get thier meat from a store the plants and animals in the mountians, plains, forests and waterways are still a national treasure vital to a better quality of life for all Americans. Hunters more than anyone in America know and understand this. They understand that because of past mismanagement we must stand in the gap for American wildlife not simply because they want to hunt them. Todays hunters understand life without wildlife is a poor existence.
 
Last edited:

jagermeister

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
18,060
223
Ohio
Well it was a combination of three essay assignments that really were about simply doing a "research essay" so the first one involved how I fit in my community with an interview and some history. Then #2 and #3 were on different topics related and I chose one of my hobbies which also had to include a personal interview and research. #2 was this same topic but only focused on the introductory paragraph and bibliographical citations (which are stupid and suck BTW) and if you dont know what that is look it up because thats like giving you directions to somewhere...dammit I can take you there but i dont know the road names. I had to do FIVE frii=ggin of those things and then didnt have to include them in this one #3 but they did help me in plager...er... I mean composing this final rough draft. (jk, about the plagiarizing thing, lol). I just chose something I know the most about and liked. Made it easier at this time of year to keep my mind happy.

Like you, I always chose to research and write about topics that interested me the most... usually hunting and whitetails, of course. Yes, bibliographies and works-cited pages suck but you gotta do what you gotta do. Get into gigantic data sets and statistical analyses and you'll really feel like putting a gun barrel in your mouth. LOL One time I ran a research project on the effects of temperature and pH changes on spotfin shiners... Yes, it was as brutal as it sounds. lmao
 

saddlepants

Member
1,224
0
central Ohio
Like you, I always chose to research and write about topics that interested me the most... usually hunting and whitetails, of course. Yes, bibliographies and works-cited pages suck but you gotta do what you gotta do. Get into gigantic data sets and statistical analyses and you'll really feel like putting a gun barrel in your mouth. LOL One time I ran a research project on the effects of temperature and pH changes on spotfin shiners... Yes, it was as brutal as it sounds. lmao

UGFh! This is the last englich class I need - hopefully my majors course dont ask for too much of that crap but Im sure there will be something. *sigh*