Waiting for a game animal to appear can sometimes take hours. There are no cell phones to answer, no document deadlines, and no meetings to prepare for. For that reason, individuals find it can be very therapeutic to sit among the sounds of nature and let the gentle rush wash over them as they develop a deep connection to the land. The more connected they are, the more they will try to save the environment.

Hunters often walk for miles off the beaten path to get to a blind or well-hidden spot in the shrub. In addition, they must carry a weapon (usually 10 or more pounds), food, water, and personal gear. Not only does the walk improve their stamina, but the trudging about on uneven ground also lets hunters become aware at the first sign of any problems with the flora or fauna within their area. Without this information, disease and overpopulation could run rampant.

For hundreds of years, parents have taken their sons and daughters out into the wilderness to teach them to hunt. While the action can be physically exhausting, it can also create a bonding as few other experiences can. Walking along with family or friends gives individuals teaching moments that are far away from the hubbub of city life. When bonding occurs within the confines of outdoor spaces, that environment becomes important to all participants, and the ecosystem must be protected.

Many hunters treasure the time they spend in nature during their hunting expeditions. They may complain about the rain, snow, and cold, but when pressed to explain why they make the trip out into the wilds every year, hunters will almost unanimously explain that they love the peace and relaxation the hunt provides. With the intake of all that almost pure air, it would be difficult not to relax in the pristine areas hunters seek. Why wouldn’t they want to protect that environment and help develop more areas just like it?

Hunting game meat is typically the quest of the hunter, and that means bringing home food that is free of man-made chemicals and antibiotics. That is why wild game meat is considered healthier for consumption than commercially bred meat. For those seeking a lean-meat hunt, protecting the environment becomes an important part of their daily life in order to protect their future hunts and their food source.

Although it can be difficult for some to understand, there are individuals who push themselves to survive off the land. Their desire is to take responsibility for their own food by hunting the animals they eat. Those individuals do not like the separation found between the grocery store and the table. Peace comes to them when they take down that buck or bear on the land they strive diligently to protect and improve.

Hunters often believe they have a kinship with wildlife. Many even have rituals they perform to honor the life given up by the animal at their feet. This doesn’t make them silly; it reconnects them with our ancestors who performed those same rites long ago. Those hunters don’t leave debris after a hunt, because they respect the land and want to improve it. They also bury the carcass or take it with them instead of polluting the land.

Hunters wander through trees, scrubs, waterways, and worn paths. They venture into rain, snow, and dangerous winds. They choose to take these adventures because they want to create the next chapter of their life instead of letting someone dictate how they can spend their next hours. Hunters are strong individuals who want to be their own persons and improve their environment while doing so. For them, knowing the pristine area will be there next year is as essential as their next breath.

Maintaining animal population control is a key component in maintaining a well-balanced ecosystem. An example is the elk in North American that became overpopulated and upset the ecosystem by stripping the available vegetation. As the natural grasses disappeared, so did other populations of smaller animals. By removing the excess number of deer, the smaller creatures were able to return and bring nature back into balance.

Many times throughout history, humans have unknowingly added invasive species of animals into nature. The results are often devastating. Hogs, pythons, and rabbits are all examples of good intentions gone wrong. Without the culling of these dangerous, quickly multiplying predators, the balance of nature would be broken, and many at-risk species would disappear.

As man expands, the uninhabited spaces available for wild animals slowly disappears. But hunters must purchase licenses and pay special taxes that provide much-needed monies to continually support and rebuild wild animal habitats. This helps maintain the balance of the ever-shrinking ecosystem.

Because each hunter must purchase a license, the area being hunted is traced, as is the species being tracked within the hunt. Additionally, all hunters do not get animals during their allowed hunting period, but those who do must report which animal they shot, and where. This helps conservationists to track herds and limits hunting in areas seen as unbalanced.

When a population of any animal gets out of control, the first sign is what some often call “road kill.” These are animals that have been killed by speeding vehicles. As populations grow, the need for food expands, and human roads get into the way of the herd’s food source. Millions of dollars are spent each year to repair vehicles damaged by large and small animals that are hit crossing busy roads. Sometimes those accidents can become fatal. Hunters can help reduce the population sizes and thus keep the animals in secluded habitats. By doing this, they can also protect human life.

Sometimes populations grow so rapidly that the animals can do excessive damage to homes, crops, and stored food supplies. This is true of elephants, rabbits, and mice. While hunters don’t search for mice, the money they spend each year does maintain habitats for the predators of both rabbits and mice. The healthy and abundant habitats for elephants are also important to protect both human life and food.

As populations of animals grow, so do their appetites, and the grasses, flowers, and herbs that allow the increase of birds, insects, and small animals are quickly depleted. As the grasses disappear, the rains can cause severe soil erosion and even landslides. By keeping animals in check, the land’s grasses are allowed to take root and protect the soil.

Hungry animals can deplete a field of wildflowers within hours. As the wildflowers disappear, so do the bees and butterflies, and with their disappearance comes implications about human survival. In a viscous circle, the smallest of creatures pollinate our food to keep us alive, so hunters work to keep them alive.

Hunters often travel far from home to find that special animal. That means they often need somewhere to sleep, food to eat, and entertainment. Small towns near popular rural hunting sites can benefit greatly by the influx of hunting money.

Hunters receive information and permission to hunt from state and government agencies that employ park rangers, guides, game wardens, and numerous other specialists who help keep the ecosystem in balance. The agencies also employ analysts, forecasters, and specialists to account for the numbers of animals in various habitats.

Hunters need equipment such as bows, guns, tents, blinds, tree stands, fishing poles, and camping gear. Of course, each of these items must be manufactured, which means employment. As each of these employees becomes curious and aware of the natural world, they will understand how it is affected by humans and that it must be protected.

As previously mentioned, hunters pay taxes. These excise taxes are used for animal surveys, wildlife studies, animal management, habitat rebuilding, and sanctuary development. Last year the tax amounted to over $800 million in the United States alone.

Hunters donated $250 million to conservation groups last year in an effort to develop strategies to protect endangered species. Whitetail deer, grouse, pheasants, and ducks are among the many species that have had their numbers depleted. This donation money helps to focus on the health and populations of those depleted animals.

Hunters have donated enough money in the last decade to restore 45,000 acres of wetlands. They have also helped replant forests, restore grasslands, redevelop watersheds, and purchase property to establish protected environments for wildlife development.

In 2017 officials, paid by hunter’s donations, were able to oversee 200,000 volunteers who focused their time and energy in helping with efforts to protect endangered wildlife. These same officials were able to go to schools, non-profits groups, and religious meetings to educate non-hunters about wildlife conservation and the need for hunting programs.

Hunters provided the government with enough money to purchase and maintain 4 million acres in the United States. Also, 40 million acres have been set aside by private individuals as wildlife habitats. This is about the size of the state of Washington and has allowed for ducks, deer, wild turkeys, and buffalo to come back from the brink of extinction to herds of millions.

State wildlife agencies get approximately 60 percent of their funding from hunter-paid taxes, fees, and licenses. With this money, trees are planted, waters are protected, and dwindling animal populations are renewed.

Bears, wolves, coyotes, and cougars often keep to themselves and exist in their ecosystem. As their populations explode, they can harm humans. Hunters keep predators under control by regulating their food source; therefore, their numbers rarely surge out of control anymore.

Hunters are not spectators; they are participants in nature. While out there in the wild, they learn how to track, what scat means, how to read the land, and which animals are active when. They learn to observe, listen, and feel. They can tell the difference between the rustling wind and a scurrying rabbit. All this comes by expanding a sense of acuity. As their acuity grows, so does their need to protect the precious area and animals they have grown to love.