Hunting

We've got an awesome event coming up: Steve Rinella, TV host and hunter, will be talking to Paleo NYC about his new book, Meat Eater. It's on Tuesday, October 2nd at 7pm. Admission is simply buying a copy of the book. You can get more details and RSVP here. 

Steve will talk about his new book for 20 or so minutes, then we'll open it up to Q&A on anything from hunting for beginners, how to cook squirrel, ethical meat-eating, and more. Don't miss it.

Here is Rinella responding to a vegan at a recent event.

A number of African endangered species are now thriving in Texas -- for hunting.  Of course, this drives animal rights activists wild -- who as you'll see, don't use logic, and would rather see species die out than be hunted.  By lobbying federal bureaucracies, these ideological radicals are getting rule changes to disallow hunting of certain species without a federal permit, which will be difficult to obtain and which inevitably will lead to the decline of these endangered animals.

60 Minutes reports:

Let's me be as clear as day: radical animal rights activists are the enemy.

Link via Alex Tabarrok.

This is an awesome paper:

The worldwide association of H. erectus with elephants is well documented and so is the preference of humans for fat as a source of energy. We show that rather than a matter of preference, H. erectus in the Levant was dependent on both elephants and fat for his survival. The disappearance of elephants from the Levant some 400 kyr ago coincides with the appearance of a new and innovative local cultural complex – the Levantine Acheulo-Yabrudian and, as is evident from teeth recently found in the Acheulo-Yabrudian 400-200 kyr site of Qesem Cave, the replacement of H. erectus by a new hominin. We employ a bio-energetic model to present a hypothesis that the disappearance of the elephants, which created a need to hunt an increased number of smaller and faster animals while maintaining an adequate fat content in the diet, was the evolutionary drive behind the emergence of the lighter, more agile, and cognitively capable hominins. Qesem Cave thus provides a rare opportunity to study the mechanisms that underlie the emergence of our post-erectus ancestors, the fat hunters.

Our big brains are expensive.  Fat is the most efficient source of fuel.  Elephants are the best source of fat.  We hunted the elephants until they were gone.  And then we were forced to adapt to hunting faster, more elusive sources of fat.

I'll be posting more on this paper.  Full text here -- well worth reading in full.  Thanks to Allison for the link.

During most of my hunting experience last week, I was focused on the hunt and blended into nature.  (More on that soon.)  But just before going in for lunch, I turned on my phone and started live tweeting the hunt -- A GLOBAL FIRST (unverified).

• Live tweeting my hunt for a bit
• Been up in a tree stand since 6:40am, no deer yet today
• I am using an old Sears, Roebuck, and Co. branded shotgun. Paul Revere carried this very model on his midnight ride.
• No bucks. I am going to start tweeting like a doe in heat and see what happens.
• Ehhhh beh ehhhh bghhh aahheeehhhh
• The only thing I've ever wanted for Christmas is a blunderbuss. All I get are sweaters.
• An 8 point buck just DM'ed me after my "doe in heat" tweet
• On twitter, nobody knows you're not a doe in heat. Thats why it is a revolutionary technology. Also, #arabspring
• Just so you know, I am keeping my trigger hand warm while I tweet. In case you were worried
• I'm a righty, but play pool and fire shotguns left-handed. But you already knew that from my match.com profile
• There's a version of the universe where I just shot a 12 pt buck from 125 yards using a blunderbuss. Not this version
• Wait, is that a deer?!
• Nope, just a stick
• I got within 5 yards of a small blue jay but didnt fire. Waiting for a larger one
• Deer-hunting isn't at all what I expected it to be like: Big Buck Hunter.
• I look good in blaze orange. Just saying
• I'm getting hungry. You'd think that would motivate me to hunt. But it does just the reverse, because I have a fridge with food in it
• I haven't had this much fun tweeting since the last time I went fishing
• Can you imagine if humans went into rut? Nobody could go into the office
• Just heard a gunshot. I hope my species won!

In summary, I do not recommend turning on your cell phone while you're hunting.

Not sure why I look so angry.  Because I'm really looking forward to opening day tomorrow.  Hung out with an awesome group of guys tonight.  Early day tomorrow.

If you are a hunter in Michigan, and if you plan on going hunting in November, and if you don't mind me tagging along, drop me a line.  Email john [at] hunter-gatherer.com.  Thanks.

These may be my favorite lines from Robb Wolf's The Paleo Solution.  While your first impulse may be laughter OR revulsion, may I suggest we all just read it and let it sink in for awhile.

"Plant sources of protein, even when combined to provide all the essential amino acids, are far too heavy in carbohydrate, irritate the gut, and steal vitamins and minerals from the body via anti-nutrients.  Remember that whole chapter on the double-edged nature of grains and legumes?  Beans and rice, nuts and seeds, are what I call 'Third World proteins'.  They will keep you alive, they will not allow you to thrive.  Your protein needs to have the following criteria:

1. It needs a face.

2. It needs a soul.

3. You need to kill it, and bring its essence into your being.

4. Really."

1. The Voluntary Human Extinction Movement (so much self-loathing, it's hard to read)

2. Skinning a deer with obsidian (not gross, but they are skinning a deer)

3. Vitamin D deficiency and the benefits of sun exposure (finally getting some mainstream recognition)

4. Devastatingly even-handed criticism of the China Study, the vegetarian/vegan holy book, courtesy of Dr. Michael Eades