North American Model of Wildlife Conservation

The purpose of this article is to provide a brief understanding of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. This is a unique set of principles that guides how wildlife, public lands, and resources are used across North America. There are some very important principles, but it is also essential to consider how they work together. Without one, the entire system may show cracks and lead to less hunting and science-based conservation in the future. 

1. Wildlife as a Public Trust Resource

What this means is that no one person owns wildlife when they are walking, flying, sleeping, or wandering around. You have the same rights and ownership share as anyone who attempts to view or hunt wildlife. For example: If a deer is born and lives its whole life on your neighbors property, but one day gets up and walks where you are legally hunting, you are still allowed to harvest that deer. If that was your neighbor's cow or livestock, it would still be theirs but would happen to be on your land. This is an example of that deer being in a public trust. The same goes for all wildlife species across the United States. 

2. Elimination of Markets for Game

This means that it is illegal to sell game meat. If you harvest an animal like a duck, you are not able to sell the meat of that animal. This was a major issue during the first westward expansion across the United States, as many animal populations declined to dangerously low levels. There have been some exceptions made for this rule in special situations. They all pertain to non-native animals causing harm, with wild pigs as the primary example. 

3. Allocation of Wildlife by Law

This is the essence of why you must purchase a hunting license before you hunt. This gives state and federal agencies the authority to punish those who violate hunting and wildlife laws. Something that is very important, as if there was no allocation of wildlife by law, there would be no punishment or fines for things like poaching. 

4. Wildlife Can Only Be Killed for a Legitimate Purpose

The principle of wildlife only being killed for a legitimate purpose means that you must have a reason and should utilize the animals you harvest. This is why you always have to make an effort and take home the wild game that you harvest. It is not legal or ethical for you to shoot a turkey and leave it in the field to rot. This is almost always written into law in states and territories in North America, again enforcing the allocation of wildlife by law.

5. Wildlife is Considered an International Resource

The way this shows itself the most commonly is through the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the governing source for migratory birds like ducks, geese, and cranes. This means that birds are managed with thought to how they will utilize different countries. The way Canada hunts and manages their migratory birds has an impact on how those in the United States may utilize migratory birds. It is basically just an intentional thought that these animals may cross borders without realizing it, and if too many birds were harvested in Canada, there might not be enough for people in the United States or Mexico to harvest. 

6. Science is the Proper Tool for Wildlife Policy

All that this is saying is that when a decision is made about wildlife policy, that decision will be made on research and science, and not opinion. This continues to drive the purpose for research about wildlife species. There have been many important wildlife researchers in the past and many continue to learn new science and techniques for wildlife research today. If you would like to learn more yourself about the basics of wildlife management, I encourage you to read Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac.

7. Democracy of Hunting

Every citizen has the opportunity to legally participate in hunting, regardless of wealth or land ownership.This is extremely important in history and goes back to the first point of wildlife being a public trust. In Europe, whoever owns the property that animal is standing on owns that animal. When there were kings and queens ruling, almost all of the land was owned by them. This meant if you went and harvested a deer, you would be stealing directly from the king and queen. Fun Fact: The original Robin Hood story was about hunting, not gold! Under the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, everyone has the right to legally participate in hunting. Ensuring all have access to wildlife. 

Funding

This is not a core principle of the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. It is extremely important to talk about. Wildlife management and conservation costs a lot of money. Estimates put the numbers around $1.1 trillion into the outdoor recreation economy, supporting over 575,000 jobs, and adding $76.6 billion to the USA’s GDP. The biggest funder for state wildlife conservation being the Pittman Robertson Act of 1937. This act put an 11% excise tax on firearms, ammunition, and archery equipment. This tax is already built into the sticker price of these pieces of gear so you do not even recognize it when you buy it. This money is collected by the federal government and then sent back to states. States and territories must use these funds to support access for wildlife management, wildlife conservation, wildlife-related recreation, hunter education and development, and the construction and operations of shooting ranges. This money cannot be spent on anything else, which means that state agencies will always have funding for the above categories, as long as the Pittman Robertson Act remains in place.

Written By: Quinn Erdmann, Wisconsin Program Coordinator