The natural ecosystem and the habitat that supports our game animals are the foundations of the hunting experience.

Experienced hunters understand that a healthy habitat supports healthy game animals. They also know that while a game animal herd can recover from poor management in a matter of years, for our forests and other native habitats it takes far longer (decades). It is therefore critical to do what we can to assist with good game animal management as this will ensure the protection of our native ecosystems while providing for consistently high-quality game animal herds and quality hunting.

A major threat to a healthy habitat is having too many game animals. If a game animal population exceeds the carrying capacity of the ecosystem then food will be in short supply and animals will struggle to gain weight and develop. This leads to a poor-quality game animal herd, poor hunting and an ecosystem in decline.

Responsible hunter-led game animal management that can balance the needs of the herd and its habitat with the hunter’s desire to harvest mature males will ensure a healthy ecosystem, quality meat harvest and many more mature trophy-class males in the future. Feeding brings out the breeding!

Hunters as Caretakers