Hunter vision: Why is it different?

Hunting has completely changed the way I see animals in nature - it's one of the great surprises and delights of becoming a huntress.

But today, a non-hunting friend asked me this: Why?

She asked in response to a post this weekend about my day at the lake, but the answer seems to be worth a post of its own.

Here goes: Read more...

Have you ever grown a plant for food? When you grow a plant for food, the interest you take in that plant is different than your interest in other houseplants and flowers, because its success determines whether you get to eat its fruits, leaves or roots. You have a connection with that plant - a vested interest.

You also see other people's food plants differently. Fellow gardeners look at each other's gardens and say things like, "Wow, your heirloom tomatoes are really healthy! I've been having lots of problems with mine this year, so we won't have many to can for winter." Non-gardeners had no idea that the tomato plant was a fine specimen, if they even knew it was a tomato. They buy their tomatoes at the store.

Now, imagine being part of a primitive society and hunting for survival. Every animal you see is a potential meal - sustenance for you, your family and with big game, your whole community.

But you're not just looking at it as meat on legs; you're watching to determine the outcome of your interaction. If you are particularly stealthy, smart or strong, or if the animal makes a mistake, you get dinner. If the animal is particularly wary or if you make a mistake, the animal escapes. You aren't just watching; you have a connection.

Of course, most modern hunters do have other options for meat, so the sense of urgency isn't the same. But the connection is. It's the same competition whose outcome depends on the savvy of one party and the mistakes of the other. (And any hunter can tell you that having a high-powered rifle does not ensure success; hunter mistakes, animal wariness and luck make animals the winners far more often than not.)

Just as gardeners tend to see all plants differently - not just the ones they plan to eat - hunters see all animals differently, even when they're not hunting. Is this animal wary enough to escape hunters - human or nonhuman - or is it careless enough to become someone's meal? And just as gardeners appreciate healthy plants, hunters take delight in seeing healthy, thriving animal populations.

This connection with the animals we hunt also creates a very deep relationship with the food we eat. When's the last time you had any feelings this intense at the grocery store? Your success at the store depends on two things: how well-stocked the store is, and how much money or credit you have to spend. The fate of the animal whose meat you buy was predetermined; you never had to match wits with it.

In an era when humans have become increasingly disconnected with nature, hunting provides an intensely meaningful connection. That's why we go to tremendous effort and expense to get our meat from nature instead of from the store; that's why it changes how we see everything.

© Holly A. Heyser 2010