By Pope & Young Staff
Technology in hunting is ever evolving, and as it does, Pope and Young continues to to lead the discussion ensuring technological advancements are not violating bowhunting fair chase ethics. Bowhunting is a privilege, not a right. With any privilege the ethics and perception of the activity to the greater public must be preserved.
Pope and Young is the voice for bowhunters not only when it comes to attacks on our passion for bowhunting, but working to draw those lines in the sand, to help ensure we are following the rules of Fair Chase, ethical bowhunting.
In the past, the policy was that if an animal had a picture captured on a camera that then transmitted the picture to the hunter, it was not eligible for the record books. “Obviously, as technology increases, the cellular camera gained popularity,” said Justin Spring, Executive Director of Pope and Young. “It got to the point where technically, if you looked at that rule, if I get a picture of a fawn, in essence, per fair chase rules as it reads, that deer is basically safe for its entire life from ever getting entered into the records book, which obviously wasn't the intention. So that started the conversation between both Pope and Young as well as Boone and Crockett, that what we are really trying to avoid is the idea of “on-call hunting” where somebody's sitting in their basement watching cameras, sees a deer out in front of stand six, they sneak out there and shoot it.”
Trail cameras are an incredible tool that can be used for gathering information about a lot of things beyond just the targeted animal. So, both organizations began to look at how to modify this wording that that still gives the animal a fair chance to elude you, while at the same time, not prohibit the use of technology that can be quite useful if not abused. Our goal is to get hunters to consider if they are relying solely on the technology for “on call hunting,” or if they are just using it as a useful tool to better understand the deer, and their movement on the land.
“The cellular technology is helping make us more informed hunters,” stated Mark Olis from Moultrie Mobile. “If we are more informed, there is a conservation aspect to that. If you are aware of what mature bucks are on your property, and what upcoming bucks you have that might be more of an intense breeding age, you are better able to make decisions for the betterment of the wildlife management. But we do agree, we are humans, and with any technology it can be abused. But there are also going to be guys who use the technology correctly and become a more informed hunter by gathering information on the wildlife that are on their properties.”
“That is the type of stuff that the cellular camera is great for, to teach the hunter, and help them learn the species, learn the habitat, learn what else is going on,” said Justin Spring. “The hunter just needs to ask themselves, am I using this a crutch? Am I getting a picture sent to my phone and it causes me to take an immediate action in killing that animal, or am I just using this technology to become more informed, a better hunter?”
Justin Spring and Mark Olis recently joined Dylan Ray on The Typical Sportsman Podcast to discuss the ethics of using cellular trail cameras, how they should be used properly, how they can be abused, the changes that Pope and Young has made to the policy, but also talk about the states that are banning the use of them, along with how and why they should be banned in those said states. Tune in to hear the full story on Spotify, Apple, or watch on YouTube.
About Pope and Young:
The Pope and Young Club is North America's leading voice and supporter of bowhunting and related conservation issues and projects. If you are a fair chase, ethical bowhunter, and you care about preserving, protecting, and promoting the culture and future of bowhunting, then you should belong to the Pope and Young Club. Join today at www.pope-young.org.
