A tale of two souths

Abstract

Use of large caliber repeating rifles makes large birds and mammals vulnerable to overharvest or simply mass destruction. This lesson was unscored when unregulated use of firearms caused the local extinction of nearly every species of large mammal and bird in the southeastern United States by the beginning of the twentieth century. During the same period in southern India, restricted access to firearms and a culture of respect for wildlife allowed large mammals and birds to co–exist with a large human population. The survival of megafauna rests on the will of a society to stop uncontrolled killing.