108 http://www.africanhuntinggazette.com
O
ne trend that has popped up over
the last couple of years is the
issue of long-range “hunting”.
Advances in technology and manufacturing
techniques have put rifles capable of extreme
long-range accuracy in the hands of many a
hunter and shooter. The different long-range
shooting disciplines are extremely popular,
have a massive following and are growing
exponentially. This is undoubtedly fantastic
for the firearms and related industries. In a
world where our passion for firearms, shooting
and hunting is under severe pressure from a
(largely) uninformed public and a few radical
minority anti-gun groups, not to mention
liberal politicians, development and growth of
the shooting sports is an encouraging sign and
should be welcomed.I say this with reservation though... I
do not consider myself and old-timer or
extreme conservative, but I have to question
certain practices as far as it relates to what is
considered ethical and what not. I can almost
hear the cries of “Oh no, not the ethics debate
again!”, so I will not even attempt to suggest
a suitable definition of the word ethical as far
as hunting goes. I will leave that one to you.
I will, however, ask you to think about a few
things and I suppose, talk about them in your
gunroom or around your campfire.
The development of hunting in Southern
Africa has a lot of parallels to hunting in the
USA. Our forefathers arrived in these areas
at roughly the same time and used the same
weapons of European origin. Their needs were
mostly the same – hunting to stay alive was anecessity. In America, Mountain men trapped
fur and traded skins to make a living. In
South Africa, Boer farmers trekked north to
rid themselves of the English yoke and into a
continent blessed with an abundance of species
and game numbers, hunting for the pot along
the way. They too became skilled hunters and
marksmen, even with the extremely limited
advantage a muzzleloader gave them. The
writings and adventures of skilled naturalists,
hunters and adventurers brought these exploits
to the general public and the rest, as they say,
is history.
The advent of smokeless propellant,
“modern” cylindrical bullets and bolt action
rifles were major developments that presented
an aspiring hunter with almost limitless
possibilities. Thus armed with a suitable caliber,A pack of specialized pig hounds about to be put to work in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. Bushpigs are a real menace
here and cause extensive damage to most crops. As a result, controlling their numbers is crucial. Many hunters frown upon hunting
with a pack of dogs – even if they are just used for locating the pig.Over the last two decades, the huntingandshootingworldhasseen a revolution in technology
like never before. In a world where outcompeting the opposition is crucial to survival the
technology race has truly entered the realm of the hunting world and shooting sports.
Unfortunately, like with any technology pushing the boundaries (think artificial intelligence
for instance), our readiness and acceptance, and therefore response and application of new
technology does not always keep up. This could lead to questionable practices and behavior
being accepted as normal or even being encouraged.Keeping it Real
By Francois van Emmenes