Why Is There Controlled Hunting of Endangered Animals?
When a plant or animal is rare or has a declining population over at least a portion of the species' known historical range, it may appear on an endangered species list. What does this mean?
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Who's list is it?
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Endangered species lists are compiled by both state and federal governments. Some foreign governments compile endangered lists as well. Rules, criteria and parameters for listing species vary with each jurisdiction keeping the list.
Where does it live?
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In some instances, a species may be quite rare and protected under endangered species laws in one state while being still plentiful enough to allow a regulated hunting season for the same species in an adjacent state.
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Species and races
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Many species of wildlife are further divided by biologists into subspecies or races. Some subspecies of a similar species may be prospering, while others are quite rare and in need of special protection. There are 6 subspecies of the Sandhill Crane in the US. The Cuban, Florida and Mississippian subspecies are rare and appear on the Federal Endangered Species list. The Greater Sandhill Crane isn't federally listed, but appears on many state lists where they occur. The Lesser Sandhill Crane is abundant and many of the Canadian provinces and prairie states where they occur have regulated hunting seasons.
The federal list
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When a species is endangered throughout its entire range and could be threatened by extinction, it is likely to be put on the Federal Endangered list and given total protection.
Using hunter's fees
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Hunting license fees paid by hunters in areas where hunting is allowed are often used to protect and enhance populations of the same species in areas where they are troubled. Regulated sport hunting has never caused the decline of a species to the extent that it gets placed on an endangered list.
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