Hunting Lions: Sport or Murder?

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When a Minnesota dentist killed a prized African lion named "Cecil" he received an onslaught of criticism and reignited the debate concerning hunting. Man's quest to dominate all of nature has been a passion dating to the primitive days of mankind. During this primitive era, man's need to hunt was strictly for survival and to preserve their existence and dominance over the wild. In this modern era, man still finds the need to unleash this internal drive for power. The passion to hunt, however, is no longer a necessity for survival; it is a game or sport for which the trophy is one of nature's most intriguing animals, the mountain lion.

Yellowstone national park is one of the few places that have been "blessed with carnivore diversity." When the park was established in 1872, mountain lions freely roamed the park and were to be regulated. In the early 1900's, it was federal policy to kill large predators to protect game, such as elk, in the park (3). Coincidentally between 1916 and 1971 more than 12,000 mountain lions were killed for bounties and for sport in California. The estimated number of cougars had diminished to a range from 600-2,000 (2). At this time Governor Ronald Reagan began to understand the necessity to protect these cougars from extinction. In 1971 a moratorium was signed against the trophy hunting of these cats (5). By the 70's the lions had returned to the park and gradually their numbers reached a stable quantity.

Nearly two decades later the mountain lion once again faces the wrath of man's desire for the sport of hunting. With California's mountain lion population at nearly 5,000, the passing for proposition 117 ensured the safety of these heavenly creatures (3). Prop 117 permanently bans the trophy hunti...

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...l. If in fact a lion poses as a menace, then humane and rational means should be used to properly resolve the situation. The unmerciful slaying of lions is not a necessity nor a sensible solution for the coexistence of man and beast.

REFERENCES

1) Dutcher, J. (2010, July). The Secret Life of America's Ghost Cat. National Geographic, v182, 38.

2) Hogue, L. (2007, January). Ghosts of the Hills. Audubon, v99, 80.

3) Hornocker, M. (2010, July). The Secret Life of America's Ghost Cat. National Geographic, v182, 52.

4) Preyser, M. (1996, January 8). Predators on the Prowl. Newsweek, v127, 58.

http://www.newsweek.com/predators-prowl-176970

5) www.sierraclub.org/chapters/ca/mountain-lion/history.html

6) www.sierraclub.org/chapters/ca/mountain-lion/info.html

7) www.sierraclub.org/chapters/ca/mountain-lion/safety.html

8) www.lao.ca.gov/prop197.html

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