tylerduce
09-26-2022, 10:41 PM
RyoTHC asked a great question and many of you chimed in.
“You’re hunting last light, shoot an animal and are confident you made a good hit but it runs away, you decide not to pressure it and pull out for the night, returning the next morning and tracking down the animal. When do YOU personally cut your tag if in this situation?”
I thought I would start a new threat with my answer at the top because I put a bit of time into researching this and I hope the answer helps fellow hunters and outdoorsmen (pretentious of me, I know).
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The Crown has ownership of all wildlife in the Province. (Wildlife Act [RSBC 1996] Chapter 488 s.2(1))
No one can own or possess wildlife, except under limited circumstances. (s.2(2))
One exception is for hunters.
Hunting is an approved method of acquiring a property right to wildlife. (s.2(3)) This right is reserved for those who abide by the statutes and regulations governing hunting and have proved competency in the CORE and PAL programs.
When you get a tag (LEH or GOS) you are actually receiving permission from the Crown to acquire a future right to a specific animal in a particular region, during a narrow timeframe, of a certain sex, with certain physical characteristics, with a specific weapon.
When you walk around with your license and tag(s) in your pocket you are carrying proof of your right to pursue a future property interest in wildlife that is otherwise off-limits to others.
The regulations hunters must follow are not meant to simply restrict your success for the purpose of making it more difficult. Regulations articulate and make clear exactly what property right in wildlife you may obtain. It's similar to when you purchase a home. You don’t sign a Contract of Purchase of Sale with the seller to just buy “any piece of property”. Property has a Parcel Identification Number (PID) and your lawyer reviews the title and ensures you are acquiring the right piece of land in a certain town and neighborhood at the certain time with certain conditions from the correct seller at the right price.
One of the most fundamental requirements of securing your property right is to pursue the specific wildlife in accordance with the regulations and the specifics of the tag. Once that has been done you MUST also possess the wildlife.
The Federal Canada Wildlife Act defines possession as
(a) a person has anything in possession when the person has it in their personal possession or knowingly
(i) has it in the actual possession or custody of another person, or
(ii) has it in any place, whether or not that place belongs to or is occupied by the person, for their own use or benefit or for the use or benefit of another person
Scenario. You pull the trigger and you kill the animal. You see it run 20m and drop. You are high fiving your buddies. The animal is 250m away. At this moment you do not possess the animal. You have possession once you are at the animal and have it controlled (dead) and in your actual custody. You may have heard the common adage that “Possession is 9/10th of the law”. This expression refers to the idea that it is difficult to prove, maintain, or enforce a property right unless you possess the thing in question.
To conclude this part of the discussion, your property right to that wildlife transfers from the Crown and solidifies in you at the moment that you satisfy two criteria. First, you have pursued and killed the wildlife in accordance with the various and specific regulations that accompany your particular tag. Second, you possess it.
Now to the main question.
You kill an animal on the last day of the season and recover it the next day, when the season is over. What effect does cutting your tag have? This scenario hinges on the definition of what it means to “hunt”.
The BC Wildlife Act defines hunting as: shooting at, attracting, searching for, chasing, pursuing, following after or on the trail of, stalking or lying in wait for wildlife, or attempting to do any of those things, whether or not the wildlife is then or subsequently wounded, killed or captured,
with intention to capture the wildlife, or
while in possession of a firearm or other weapon;
According to the Act, searching and pursuing wildlife that is wounded or killed with the intention to capture it (to possess it) is hunting. If you hunt outside of the season prescribed by your tag you are committing an offence.
Cutting your tag without possessing the wildlife appears to be symbolic, at best.
These are a few thoughts based on my strict reading of the law. In practice COs might follow a more common sense rule and allow you to retrieve the animal on ethical or compassionate grounds.
I would expect a competent lawyer could make a convincing case for a different interpretation.
Thanks for reading. Would love to hear your thoughts.
“You’re hunting last light, shoot an animal and are confident you made a good hit but it runs away, you decide not to pressure it and pull out for the night, returning the next morning and tracking down the animal. When do YOU personally cut your tag if in this situation?”
I thought I would start a new threat with my answer at the top because I put a bit of time into researching this and I hope the answer helps fellow hunters and outdoorsmen (pretentious of me, I know).
************************************************** ********************************
The Crown has ownership of all wildlife in the Province. (Wildlife Act [RSBC 1996] Chapter 488 s.2(1))
No one can own or possess wildlife, except under limited circumstances. (s.2(2))
One exception is for hunters.
Hunting is an approved method of acquiring a property right to wildlife. (s.2(3)) This right is reserved for those who abide by the statutes and regulations governing hunting and have proved competency in the CORE and PAL programs.
When you get a tag (LEH or GOS) you are actually receiving permission from the Crown to acquire a future right to a specific animal in a particular region, during a narrow timeframe, of a certain sex, with certain physical characteristics, with a specific weapon.
When you walk around with your license and tag(s) in your pocket you are carrying proof of your right to pursue a future property interest in wildlife that is otherwise off-limits to others.
The regulations hunters must follow are not meant to simply restrict your success for the purpose of making it more difficult. Regulations articulate and make clear exactly what property right in wildlife you may obtain. It's similar to when you purchase a home. You don’t sign a Contract of Purchase of Sale with the seller to just buy “any piece of property”. Property has a Parcel Identification Number (PID) and your lawyer reviews the title and ensures you are acquiring the right piece of land in a certain town and neighborhood at the certain time with certain conditions from the correct seller at the right price.
One of the most fundamental requirements of securing your property right is to pursue the specific wildlife in accordance with the regulations and the specifics of the tag. Once that has been done you MUST also possess the wildlife.
The Federal Canada Wildlife Act defines possession as
(a) a person has anything in possession when the person has it in their personal possession or knowingly
(i) has it in the actual possession or custody of another person, or
(ii) has it in any place, whether or not that place belongs to or is occupied by the person, for their own use or benefit or for the use or benefit of another person
Scenario. You pull the trigger and you kill the animal. You see it run 20m and drop. You are high fiving your buddies. The animal is 250m away. At this moment you do not possess the animal. You have possession once you are at the animal and have it controlled (dead) and in your actual custody. You may have heard the common adage that “Possession is 9/10th of the law”. This expression refers to the idea that it is difficult to prove, maintain, or enforce a property right unless you possess the thing in question.
To conclude this part of the discussion, your property right to that wildlife transfers from the Crown and solidifies in you at the moment that you satisfy two criteria. First, you have pursued and killed the wildlife in accordance with the various and specific regulations that accompany your particular tag. Second, you possess it.
Now to the main question.
You kill an animal on the last day of the season and recover it the next day, when the season is over. What effect does cutting your tag have? This scenario hinges on the definition of what it means to “hunt”.
The BC Wildlife Act defines hunting as: shooting at, attracting, searching for, chasing, pursuing, following after or on the trail of, stalking or lying in wait for wildlife, or attempting to do any of those things, whether or not the wildlife is then or subsequently wounded, killed or captured,
with intention to capture the wildlife, or
while in possession of a firearm or other weapon;
According to the Act, searching and pursuing wildlife that is wounded or killed with the intention to capture it (to possess it) is hunting. If you hunt outside of the season prescribed by your tag you are committing an offence.
Cutting your tag without possessing the wildlife appears to be symbolic, at best.
These are a few thoughts based on my strict reading of the law. In practice COs might follow a more common sense rule and allow you to retrieve the animal on ethical or compassionate grounds.
I would expect a competent lawyer could make a convincing case for a different interpretation.
Thanks for reading. Would love to hear your thoughts.