Christian Gerzner wrote:

> > I wonder how many fish that are caught in line tournaments are thrown
back.
> > Personally, if it's legal and edible, I'm likely to keep it.  I've
thrown
> > back an occasional fish that's on the small side, but it's not the rule.
>
> I was really referring to fish below the legal limit in this case.

Of course, the responsible spearfisherman, even one in a tournament, does
not shoot illegal fish.  Our laws here, include minimum size and numbrer
limits for most fish considered at risk and some that are decidedly not at
risk.  They also include maximum size and seasonal limits for species where
there is a need to support breeding patterns.  The program seems to work
except when commercial fishing is allowed to take pretty much what it
pleases.  Thankfully, there's not nearly as much of that as there used to
be.

> I'll take the opportunity to expand on the rather politically careful
> statement made by that Game Warden in an era when politically careful
> statements were not really the norm. He was referring to "rogues", in
> Sri Lanka's case leopards, in India's case also tigers. Those animals
> which (almot inevitably) because of some disability, often a gunshot
> wound which went bad, meant that they learned to "hunt" something
> easier than their preferred game, ie humans. I have, as a very young
> man, shot, from a hide, a leopard who was such. The rule I learned in
> the jungle was that if you wounded the game, why, you followed until
> you killed it. That particular leopard had a badly knitted, uh, port
> side rear hip, courtesy of a bullet. The poor bugger couldn't jump
> properly any more and his proper game was therefore no longer
> available. Ergo human fare, as in repast.

I didn't even consider wounded animals or those whose behavior has been
dangrously altered by humans.  We have the highly endangered Florida
Panther, a few bob cats and, while very rarely seen, a fair number of bears.
None of them are, or in my memory, have been a problem.  Alligators, Racoons
and, sadly, Foxes are a different issue.  South Florida is full of canals
and lakes.  Some were dug for drainage and some for fill.  It's a very low
state.  The lot my house resides on was filled to bring it to 8 feet above
sea level.  Alligators tend to go where they like, particularly when they
have lost their fear of humans, usually because they have been fed (illegal,
but it still happens).  When they are in proximity to people, they are a
significant danger to pets and small children and a lesser danger to adults,
particularly those that are foolish enough to feed or otherwise approach
them closely.  When possible, they are captured and relocated.  When that's
not possible, they are destroyed.  Racoons and foxes are a very different
problem.  They have adapted well to human occupied areas.  They're not much
of a problem under normal conditions, but, with increasing frequency are
being found to have rabies.  Slowly but surely, frequent encounters with
rabid animals have moved south.  Most recently, the northern portion of my
county was added to the list of dangerous areas, and I'm only 2 counties
from the southern tip of Florida.  I'm not sure what alternatives will be
found to destroying these animals, perhaps none.

> In those days it was, I suppose, exciting. Today I'd like to shoot the
> original shooter in *his* left hip. That is *exactly* the reason, if
> you were a hunter as such, why you were *always* supposed to finish
> the job, quite apart from the suffering of the wounded animal.

The shot you describe says a lot about the responsible, or more to the
point, irresponsible person.  If you are a responsible hunter, and most are,
you don't take a shot that will not result in a clean kill and, as you note,
you pursue a wounded animal until you are sure it is dead whenever possible.
Mistakes will happen, but they should truly be mistakes and infrequent.

> Today I literally step around ants if I see them in my path.

I'm not that eco friendly, but I do save lizards from our cat.  I don't know
how they keep getting in our house, but we have to save one or two a week.
The cat things it's great fun to catch them, chew the feet and legs off and
then bring them to us as a gift, usually when we're in bed.

> Mosquitos? AAAArrrrrrrggggggghhhhhhhhhh!!!! KILL, KILL, KILL :-7

Various parts of the U.S. are having mosquito problems now.  Louisianna, in
particular, is having problems with the mosquito borne West Nile Virus, a
disease that can be fatal for the elderly and those with damaged immune
systems.  Florida has had problems in the past, both with the virus and with
AIDS scares.  I'm not positive that you can get AIDS from an infected
mosquito, but the chance is scary enough to make me worry, particularly
since I'm an outdoor kind of person.  There's just no avoiding mosquitos.

Lee