This was a legitimate hunt, or else he would have been charged with a crime already. (They were talking about charging him because he had a permit to hunt polar bears, not grizzlies.) Polar bear populations are robust in certain areas, I assume these areas are where they issue hunting permits. I could be wrong, but I don’t think a hybrid was intentionally shot, I think they thought it was a polar bear.

Surely if this guy and his guide were bona-fide hunters (ie interested and concerned for the animal they hunt) they would have known about the Red Listing and state of the species long before it was plastered all over the world news?

The guide makes a living so his objective is clear (short term personal gain like a dynamite fisherman) but what is the client thinking??

Remember:
Grizzly bear = dangerous
Polar bear = very dangerous
Bi-polar bear = extremely dangerous.

Matt Bille

Hunting, real hunting, is a means to provide food on your table, not some gross way a wealthy man can get his rocks off. (with a little help from some wilderness guides).

I’m not some animal advocate or anything but I was disgusted by this news.

Of course your analogy ends at people - we don’t exploit one person for the benefit of a “lot of families” - that’s called slavery.

But my uncle is a taxidermist and pays his bills and feeds his family from the money guys like Martell spend. Likewise, of that $50K he spent a small amount went to licenses and tags, that pay for conservation, and the bulk went to the guides and trackers and outfitters and others who helped get him there and back.

That is a LOT of dough spread around to a lot of families for ONE animal. A lot more than the average farm family gets for a cow, for instance.

You can find hunting morally repugnant if you like, and I personally wouldn’t spend that much to harvest a “trophy” (shoot, I haven’t even hunted since coming to Texas because I won’t pay to access someone’s land), but there is no need to insult individuals who make their living as guides and outfitters. These people have found a way to continue living close to nature making MUCH less impact that they would by logging, mining, etc.

Also, as the people out there in the field every day, they are the most likely to see new cryptids and to recognize them as such. We would be wise, as a community, not to alienate such people by insulting their profession.

Always shooting first and asking questions later.