After two years of virus-related restrictions, they are back in the high season in Styria: bat hunting. Necessary, animal cruelty or hostage to the non-hunting society?
Rudolf Winkelmayer was a hunter himself for many years, but is now a fierce critic of this status – finding very clear words: “Nobody needs hunting, not literally. Let me be clear: they are pure lust to kill. Decimating the hunters first the predators, such as foxes or badgers, by shooting them down – so that in the autumn they have a sufficiently high hunting density of pheasants and co. for themselves.This is an insidious, easily transparent system.”
For Winkelmayer it is clear: “Nature would in principle regulate the balance itself – without harming a farmer or a culture.”
State hunt master Franz Mayr-Melnhof does not understand the criticism of driven hunting and explains the position of the hunters in the “Krone” interview.
“crown”:Mr. Landesjägermeister, after the Corona years, will hunting be back on the usual scale this year?
Franz Mayr-Melnhof: Yes, they’re back this year, they’re a legit way to regulate stock.
As for the pheasants, the hunters argue that they must be shot to control the population. At the same time, however, releases are being conducted in the wild because the population is so low – is something wrong?
There are always pheasants in game drives, but there are also hares and, increasingly, wild boar. It is a resource we need and a legitimate right.
Why do you need such a tool that always makes a lot of noise when neighbors complain that they, their children, the pets have to barricade themselves inside the house – while outside, even on their own property, “all hell breaks loose”?
Because it is better if there is unrest in the forest in one day than many – after all, we have a shooting plan. However, when it comes to the subject, one point is always forgotten: the hunter maintains and creates habitat for the animals, which takes a lot of effort. The hunt is pretty much “the reward” for it, we want to eat the animal too, a natural product. Otherwise no one will do this anymore and even more living space will be lost.
So no review?
As habitats shrink, the number of these hunts will decrease anyway.
Activists have been fighting with clubs for years
David Richter of the Association Against Animal Factories has long opposed the common practice – and with undiminished courage. He looks at battues – and counts dead animals with a shudder. There were 50 pheasants at a single event over the weekend near Graz – in “a relatively small area criss-crossed by roads and already totally minimized as habitat”.
He also doubts the always quick death that the hunters always carry before them. “Recently, a pheasant was given to a veterinarian – he had a lead bullet in his spine, which can only come from the previous hunt. That is, the bird fought to death for a week. How many animals are shot and then dying miserably cannot be quantified, each is one too many.”
Killing for “pure fun” must stop, says Winkelmayer: “Even though there is hardly any interest in that, because the hunters can be found in all social and political circles. But that is not ethical, not current and no longer acceptable!”
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
