2007 BIRD SHOOTING



High volume pigeon shooting $350 day.

High volume dove shooting $300/day.

Shells at $10/box.

Waterfowl and upland over pointing dogs: $400/day and shells at $12/box.

The hunt includes lodging, food and drinks in the field and at the lodge, guide, transport to and from the airport and to and from the fields, assistance with gun entry forms. Does not include hunting license, airfare, and tips.

*group rates: For groups of 7 or more there is a 15% discount on daily rates.








LIST OF EQUIPMENT


FOR DOVE SHOOTING:

- SUNSCREEN
- EYE PROTECTION
- HEARING PROTECTION
- SHOOTING VEST
- SHELL BAG
- SMALL CAMERA
- SHOOTING GLOVES (YOU WILL NEED THESE, REALLY)
- SHOOTING HAT
- TAN,BROWN, GREEN OR CAMO CLOTHING,
- GUN CLEANING KIT (or we will clean guns for $5 each)
- TWO SHOTGUNS EACH IS RECOMMENDED



LIST OF EQUIPMENT

FOR WATERFOWL SHOOTING:
- EYE PROTECTION
- HEARING PROTECTION
- GORETEX CLOTHING AND HIP BOOTS
- SHELL BAG
- SMALL CAMERA
- GUN CLEANING KIT






A FEW WORDS TO THE CONCERNED

I can understand that some people would feel bad that millions of birds are being shot by sport hunters every year in Argentina. I understand because I realize that it is their nature and their instinct. I hunt for the same reasons, because it is in my nature and instinct. Let me however put into perspective the impact on dove as a species without entering into the morality of the thing. Morality is in large part a product of the culture we are raised in you know.
In Argentina there is no season on dove and no limit to how much you can shoot. There is a reason for this. The number of dove and the rate at which they reproduce is such that they pose a serious threat to the livelihood of many people. When they descend on a grain crop they will destroy around 50% of that crop. This understandably upsets the farmers who before the dove shooting industry flourished, would poison the roosts where the doves live and breed. The goal of the farmers was complete eradication of the dove. The poisoning of a large roost resulted in the killing of several million birds and the poison runoff would affect a great many other species. Since the dove shooting industry flourished in Cordoba, mass poisoning has stopped. The farmers recognize in the dove a viable source of income. A lease on a good dove roost costs what an average argentine worker makes in a year, and that is just for the shooting rights. An entire year of dove shooting by the estimated 4000 shooters who come here will kill less birds than the poisoning of just 4 roosts. In addition many major dove roosts are being saved from destruction by the dove lodge operators themselves, who purchase them, thus avoiding the cutting down of the trees and clearing of the land for agricultural use. When the dove lose their habitat they will be no more. There are easily over 300,000,000 dove in Cordoba. They nest 2 to 3 times a year and lay 2-3 eggs each time. The only real danger to them is the destruction of their habitat and poisoning. It is impossible to endanger them as a species by means of recreational hunting. As has happened many times before with many other species, recreational hunting is in fact saving them. Another factor to take into consideration is the spread of diseases in which the birds act as a vector of transmission to humans. The explosion in bird populations that results when the dove have large tracts of agricultural land to feed on, puts the human population in danger of diseases like some forms of encephalitis and flu, both quite deadly to humans. Control is a necesity, not an option.