Hunters will often tell you that they are the ultimate environmentalists. That they, more than anyone else, know and feel the risks of unsettling the natural world.
So a trend among hunters to use something other than lead ammunition is something to be admired and emulated.
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources has launched its Hunters Helping Condors program. It offers hunters $50 worth of ammo made of copper or something else other than lead.
That matters, and is labeled as being good for condors, because even when nobody is trying to shoot condors, that protected species is particularly susceptible to lead poisoning suffered when it feeds on the remains of other animals felled by lead bullets.
One of the few such birds living in Zion National Park apparently suffered a slow death due to such lead poisoning. A sibling condor narrowly avoided the same fate when it was rescued and restored to health.
Utah hunters should embrace this program and be willing to spend their own money to shift away from lead ammo. Encouragement from the state that amounts to more than a mere $50 each would be wise.
Good hunters, after all, hit what they are shooting at, and don’t cause a lot of unintended collateral damage to wildlife. Especially to protect species such as the California condor.