In today's modern era that is often driven by social media, where photographs and verbal blurbs can go viral by simply pushing "send," it has become apparent that the practices which characterize our hunting community are under the microscope for the world to see. I suspect we are all too familiar with the dramatic attention that Cecil, the lion, received a few weeks ago. There's only one other occasion that I recall where a hunting-related matter created as much attention as Cecil. I continue to hear "qualified reports" on what actually took place, who's at fault, whether lawful boundaries were breached, etc., and let me make it clear that the nature of this editorial is not to cast judgment on what took place.

 

Regardless of whether you, or I, think that the whole Cecil matter is a crock, I do think there are some take-home lessons to be learned from Cecil; for the hunting community to think otherwise, is perhaps burying our head in proverbial sand. Hunting and wildlife cultures vary immensely from one country to the next, so certain lessons to be learned from Cecil that apply to one part of the globe, may have little or no merit within other international cultures.