Episode 35 - Abundant Wildlife Depends on Hunters: The North American Model

2026-02-20

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If hunting disappears, so does America’s most successful conservation story. At Dallas Safari Club Convention, we sat down with Shane Mahoney to talk about what most Americans overlook: the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation is one of the greatest achievements in this country’s history. Wildlife once stood on the brink. Market hunting, habitat loss, and unregulated harvest decimated populations of whitetails, wild turkeys, elk, and waterfowl. Leaders like Theodore Roosevelt reversed that course, bui...

If hunting disappears, so does America’s most successful conservation story.

At Dallas Safari Club Convention, we sat down with Shane Mahoney to talk about what most Americans overlook: the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation is one of the greatest achievements in this country’s history.

Wildlife once stood on the brink. Market hunting, habitat loss, and unregulated harvest decimated populations of whitetails, wild turkeys, elk, and waterfowl. Leaders like Theodore Roosevelt reversed that course, building a system where regulated hunting and fishing fund conservation through license dollars, excise taxes, and volunteerism.

Today, that system generates over $100 billion in economic impact annually, supports roughly 650,000 rural jobs, and provides 1.5 billion wild game meals every year. From elk hunting in the Rockies to whitetail hunting in the Midwest and waterfowl hunting along major flyways, hunters remain the primary financial engine behind wildlife management, habitat restoration, and scientific research.

Through the Wild Harvest Initiative, Mahoney’s research shows that 14 to 16 million hunters share wild protein with up to 100 million Americans. Remove hunting, and that food must be replaced with domestic livestock production, requiring more land conversion and billions in additional costs.

This is not just about tradition. It is about food security, sustainable protein, and the future of conservation itself.

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Check out Fred’s work at Congressional Sportsmen Foundation:

Check out The Sportsmen’s Voice Podcast:

Check out the IOTR website: International Order of T. Roosevelt | Protect At-Risk Wildlife

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