This has been a really interesting experience for me. Ten years ago, I too didn't believe there were any issues related to lead-based ammunition and wildlife. As a life-long hunter (ongoing)and old gun nut, I figured anything grandpa did couldn't of been all that bad.

Then I started reading about the accounts of various countries, states, and jurisdictions (including private landowners, police ranges, etc.) prohibiting lead ammunition. The lead ban for waterfowl was underway, for Pete's sake! I was perturbed, but also curious. I heard there had been studies, but hadn't read any of them. I started to get educated. What I found is there is an astounding amount of information out there.

Another one of the things most fascinating about some of the members of this board has been their tendency to shoot the messenger... me. And to deny the existence of documented accounts, science, proof, etc., while simultaneously opposing the collection of additional knowledge or science. It is a circular argument... "there is no proof, so we shouldn't collect any..." "there is no proof, so we shouldn't collect any...." There are probably even better terms for what amounts to a mental pathology.

The effort Rob Harris alludes to above is exactly a case in point. Two years ago I was part of an effort along with some other Montana sportsmen to have FWP "study" using both sociological and biological sciences, the state of understanding of the lead-based ammunition issue here in Montana. I know Rob exaggerates about the "hundreds" of sportsmen he imagines he organized to respond to my suggestion, but his effort was in effect saying there should be no further rigorous understanding of the issue in Montana. It sounds a lot like the strategy the WR Grace company used in Libby,MT as they killed half the town. All my effort called for was a "study" and he and others here were dead-set against it.

Now there is a proposal to ban lead ammunition from Wildlife Management Areas in Montana. I honestly had nothing to do with it. The person who did I'd never communicated with about the issue. I found out about it after the fact, and to my knowledge the actual instigator never knew of my previous effort to get some new science done. And here I am being accused by Last Dollar, Daryl and Rob of being the ring leader. If they continue to assert this, just know they are while generally intelligent men, on the issue of my involvement in this WMA initiative spouting absolute ignorant hogwash. And if they are gentlemen, they will recognize they owe me an apology.

I'm going to start posting here some documentation on occurance and effects of lead (primarily ammunition as the source) in non-target wildlife. The studies and documentation will be not only for the U.S., but also other countries.

Walter and Reese, 2003
Our most startling discovery was ingested
shot pellets in 7.1% of 140 non-empty crops (of wild chukar in Oregon). The mean number of ingested lead pellets was
1.7 (s = 0.5, range = 1-2 pellets, n = 8) and 2
crops had 1 and 3 steel pellets, respectively.
Investigation of 123 gizzards also revealed ingested
lead pellets in 7 (5.7%).

Need any more?