Fair Chase. The Boone & Crockett Club, arguably one of the premier conservation organizations in the Nation, was established by Theodore Roosevelt and others nearly 150 years ago. The Club embraces the concept of Fair Chase and the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. While the Club does acknowledge the use of baiting as appropriate under some circumstances, it defines Fair Chase as the ethical, sportsmanlike and lawful pursuit and taking of any free-ranging animal in a manner that does not give the hunter an improper or unfair advantage over the game animals. Among the seven principles that guide the Model, I suggest the following two are particularly relevant to baiting: 1) wildlife belongs to the people and is managed in trust by government agencies, and 2) the best science available will be used as a basis for informed decision-making in wildlife management. Wildlife should be managed based on science, not personal preferences or conjecture. Allowing carte blanche baiting would be inconsistent with Fair Chase by providing an unfair advantage over the game animal. I've hunted throughout the Great Plains and West with my three sons. Some hunts resulted in harvesting game, others did not. No matter, the memories and the shared experiences always made the trips successful. Hunting is simply much more than harvesting an animal. After 60 plus years of hunting, I've concluded taking an animal over an ephemeral bait pile is not Fair Chase unless a specific management outcome is based on science that has been identified by wildlife managers. Ultimately, quality diverse habitat is the key for sustaining robust wildlife populations and; I believe, should be a primary focus of both the hunting and watchable wildlife communities.Â
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Dave Pieper, Bismarck
