Since the beginning of time, man has always had a natural instinct of survival. To do whatever it takes to be successful and to come out on top over the forces of nature. The first way one would survive is to get the nutrients he or she needs. This would be food and water. But how would they get this food?

From the first spear created by the cave men, hunting has always been a part of our nature. Hunting first helped man survive by harvesting the meat for food, and now has grown into a fully adapted sport. But why do people hunt now?

I asked Senior Andrew Holiday why he hunts.

“I was taught by my grandpa when I was young,” said Holiday. “I mainly kill for the meat. The trophy is just a bonus.”

Holiday hunts various game (animals) but mostly likes hunting turkey using either a 12 or 20 gauge shotgun. I asked Senior Henry Manegold the same question.

“It’s a fun way to get outside and preserve nature,” said Manegold, “It’s about beating nature.” Manegold, unlike Holiday, likes to hunt small game such as squirrels and rabbits using a compound bow.

There have been a few common misinterpretations when it comes to hunting that I would just like to clarify. People think that when we shoot the animals, we are hurting them. Now depending on the shot, this could be true but most of the time it’s not. As a hunter, I am harvesting the animal for its meat. Since the animal is giving you something so important, I believe the kill should be as quickly and painlessly as possible for respect of the animal.  With a quick lung or heart shot, that animal will pass away in a matter of seconds and will feel little to no pain.

Another common thought is that we are killing off the animal population and that someday they will be extinct. There actually is overpopulation due to the lack of natural predators in the wild.

This is also false because through the Department of Natural Resources (teaming up with the federal and state governments) rules and regulations are set to keep the population at a healthy rate. Hunters have a bag limit which, in other words, means you’re only allowed to take a set number of that species of animals per person.

So, let’s use deer as an example. Hunters can only take a certain number of does (female, antlerless deer) and bucks (male, antler deer). Hunters also have to buy tags which let the DNR know that you killed this deer and so they can do the math of how many deer have been taken. This, along with some other factors, help determine how many of each can be killed the next year. And if these poachers (hunters who hunt illegally) are caught in the act, they can lose their license, be fined, or even jailed by park rangers, DNR officers, or police officers.

Hunting has been around since the beginning of time. It’s the only reason that the human species is surviving today. Hunting, when following the rules and regulations, has been scientifically proven to keep the population at a steady rate and is healthy for the environment. Without hunting there would be overpopulation and all types of animals would roam wild. So I believe in following our natural instinct of hunting, because after all-It’s In My Nature.