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Subsistence hunting
Posted by bushrat on Dec 21 2005
I'm a subsistence hunter. And I know a lot of subsistence hunters. Some live in the urban areas of Alaska, some in the villages, and a VERY few live, like me and my family, hundreds of miles beyond the villages. What we all have in common is that we hunt for food to feed ourselves and our families. Subsistence hunting does not break down on ethnic lines. One doesn't have to be an Alaskan Native to subsistence hunt. One doesn't have to be economically poor to subsistence hunt. One doesn't have to live in a village to be a subsistence hunter. One doesn't have to only eat meat from game animals to be a subsistence hunter---one can have other food options available and still be a subsistence hunter.
Every meat hunter is a subsistence hunter. That's my honest take, plain and simple.
However, there is another term that is often used to define and qualify levels of subsistence hunting: Dependance. This is where the issue may break down somewhat and cause controversy. In my case (by choice, as many hunters here have pointed out in the past...I "choose" to live so remote---but by inference then, so do the villagers), I am dependant on moose and beaver and grayling and whitefish and bear etc to feed myself and my family every year. Without the food resources supplied by the land and waters, we couldn't make it out here in the bush. As such, I may be more dependant on moose every fall than other hunters from other areas. And this dependance had changed everything for me inre: Hunting. It has totally defined hunting for me for the past 25 years and makes me different (not better) than most every other hunter I know.
For me, because of this, hunting is not necessarily "fun." I don't look fwd to it as many do as a "vacation." As "woods time." I live in the woods year-round, 24/7, every day is woods time. Hunting is for me a "chore," just as cutting and splitting firewood or trapping or gathering berries and wild plants can be a chore. A "job" per-se. It's part of what I do as my overall job for living out here in the remote bush. Hunting for me can often be quite stressful. Being dependant on moose, for example, means I can't come home empty-handed at the end of the season. As the season goes by and we still haven't even gotten our first moose, the stress gets very heavy. I imagine it was the same for Native hunters of the past. A certain desperation of a sorts comes into play. Will we make it through the winter? Will I not see any bulls and be able to get close enough for a good (ethical) shot. (Note: Desperation has never caused me to take chancy/iffy shots---and it never will.) Will it be like that one year we didn't get a moose until December 21st, and went very hungry?
Another aspect comes into play too, and I've complained about it here before: How many more non-res trophy hunters will I pass on the river, their rafts loaded down with antlers and maybe 300lbs of moose meat? How many more float-hunters will I turn into Wildlife enforcement for wanton waste? How much more competition from trophy hunters for this resource will I have? What can be done about it? Should anything be done about it?
Being dependant on game animals for food makes one really ticked off when he sees others "wasting" this resource. The whole notion of trophy hunting becomes one of deep concern for all subsistence hunters when all the meat is not utilized and properly cared for. It's a big issue now in Alaska. I have what I think are some good ideas on how to "fix" part of it, but it would require possible changes in law. I can bring that up at another time.
For now, that's my take on subsistence/meat hunting and how it differs from other kinds of hunting. I want to reinforce the fact that I don't think I am "better" than other hunters. Make of it what you will.
Best to all and thanks for the discussion,
Mark
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