It has been just about 130 years since the Boone and Crockett Club (B&C) was founded, and just about 24 years since the organization made a change this big! B&C has been measuring North American big game since 1895 and publishing its big game record book, Records of North American Big Game, since 1932. Today, the fair-chase-focused group announced that it will be creating a new category in its big game records for javelina (collared peccary, Pecari tajacu). The next step? Creating specific measuring protocols and establishment of minimum scores.
Trophies aren't just about one's name in a record book. The B&C vision of a “trophy” is not to celebrate the success of a hunter, but rather the success of conservation efforts and selective hunting that leads to the presence of larger, older animals on the landscape.
“The decision to add javelina as a trophy species was years in the making and reflects not only the growing appreciation for the species among hunters and wildlife managers, but can bring conservation benefits to javelina and the places it lives,” says Mike Opitz, chair of the Club’s Big Game Records Committee.
In the proposal’s introduction, the agencies wrote: “Collared peccary (Pecari tajacu), also known locally as javelina, are an important big game animal in the southwestern United States and Mexico. They are managed alongside other big game species, including requirements that hunters follow all regulations in pursuit of the animal across all jurisdictions. This is the first step in taking an animal under the “fair chase” ethic; a concept that originated with the Boone and Crockett Club.
"This ethic demands an elevated level of respect for the unique and diverse species of big game on the landscape. We propose the creation of a new javelina category in the Records of North American Big Game, building upon the growing interest in javelina hunting and recognizing this unique North American big game species. There is a feeling of pride from hunters who have taken a “Boone and Crockett” animal. This results in increased desire for conservation of that species and the landscapes in which they live. In this way, the Boone and Crockett Club is a leader in conservation by holding hunters to a high standard of fair chase and recognizing the largest and most magnificent individuals of native North American big game species.”
The general criteria for adding a category to the records program is: there are extensive geographic areas where the proposed category occurs, the animals occur in good number, suitable boundaries can be drawn, the game department(s) managing the proposed category are in favor of setting up the category, and the scientific evidence supports this category. The last time a new category was created was adding non-typical categories for both Columbian and Sitka black-tailed deer 23 year ago, though the last time a new species was added was in 1998 when California’s tule elk were added.
“As we work on establishing minimum scores, we’ll work with the states and Mexico to come up with a minimum that strikes the balance between a mature specimen worthy of recognition and a good representation of a mature javelina across its range,” says Kyle Lehr, Boone and Crockett Club’s Director of Big Game Records. “We need to determine if a mature javelina in, say Texas, is quantifiably different than one in Arizona.”
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