MAINE SUNDAY TELEGRAM • January 30, 2022
The “New World” was teeming with a seemingly limitless bounty of fish and game. The growth of urban centers and specialized labor created increased demand for food, which was supplied by fishermen and commercial market hunters. Not all were in it for profit. A growing number of hunters and anglers sought fish and game as a source of recreation and sport. They recognized the bounty was not limitless. They began lobbying. Their pleadings eventually prompted governments to take action. The modern conservation movement was born of hunters and anglers. The intent was to ensure resources remained sustainable and equitably available to the public. Once they were merely consumers in pursuit of recreation and food. Increasingly more are becoming good stewards of the land and the wildlife through groups like Ducks Unlimited and the National Wild Turkey Federation. ~ Bob Humphrey