Penguin Hunting

Penguin Hunting

Back in the early 1800’s it is believed that penguins were often hunted as a source of food. This was especially true in colder regions where the supply of food was limited for most of the year. Yet the number of people in the area was quite low and they didn’t have sophisticated tools to hunt them. Generally they hunted only what they needed and this didn’t tend to upset the balance of things in the wild for penguins as a whole.

In the late 1800’s penguins were often hunted to use their oils. They have a gland that allows oil to be created from the tail. They use it to preen their feathers with. This oil helps them to swim and to keep the water running off of them instead of being absorbed. As a result they are able to maintain their body temperatures with ease.

Many people have the misconception that Eskimos frequently hunt penguins. This isn’t true and their way of life has never included hunting them for food or other resources. There are many ideas about why this is. Some believe that Eskimos respect that penguins mate for life. They don’t want to remove a mate from the other. It is also believed that they feel penguins are sacred birds and they don’t wish to bring bad things to their people by harming penguins.

The idea of penguin hunting isn’t one that too many people think about. Yet for those with a desire to do it, this can be a fun event. Thanks to conservation efforts though it is no longer legal to take part in such activities. When penguins are hunted their numbers drop drastically. They don’t mature sexually until they are from 4 to 8 years of age so that means if they are killed early there are less offspring to continue to the population.

At the same time, when adult penguins are killed their young are left to fend for themselves. They may not be old enough yet to swim in the water or to be out in the sunlight due to their thin feathers. As a result these orphans will surely die because other penguins aren’t going to step in and provide food or shelter for them.

Even though it is now illegal to hunt penguins, this continues to be something people engage in. Some do it as a way to have food to eat because other animals and food items are so scarce in their own environment. There are those that hunt penguins though for their own selfish desires. They love the fact that doing so is against the law and so that concept fuels some type of excitement for them.

Other problems with penguin hunting occur when humans want to use those locations for something else. They may feel that they have the right to just go in there and hunt all of the penguins in that area. Once they have done so, they feel free to use that land for their own desires. Some in boats continue to hunt penguins under the pretence of hunting for other types of water creatures. They know there is a very good chance that these penguins will find themselves tangled up in the nets and other types of devices that they use to hunt with.

It is important to report any events you are aware of when it comes to the hunting of penguins so that law enforcement can look into the situation. When someone is legitimately hunting something else, they should immediately report it if they accidentally kill a penguin. If the circumstances show it was definitely an accident they won’t be in any trouble for it.