Pack of wolves in Wisconsin game camera
The late, great wildlife biologist and expert on animal behavior, Valerius Geist, noted the tremendous benefit which hunters create for other people who use wild country. He call it "freedom of the woods". A short version is included in this Wolf Essay.
4. There is a great Public Good that hunters give to society at large, which I may call here the “freedom of the woods.” It is based on the fact that an armed person acts quite differently from an unarmed one when meeting predators, and we have reason to believe that the predators notice the difference via sight, sound and smell. A confident person is quite intimidating to carnivores, while a fearful one merely encourages predators to confront people. Therefore, unarmed people in the backcountry encourage misbehaviour in predators to the detriment of predators. Secondly, and of great importance, is that inefficient hunting of predators conditions the animals negatively so that they avoid humans. Subsequently, hikers, campers, and picnickers can go into the woods in safety as carnivores stay away from humans. The Achilles heel of carnivores is being stalked systematically, just as they prey on smaller or weaker members of their own species. Carnivores are cannibalistic; and grizzly bears and wolves are no exception. Consequently, being stalked is very likely a terrifying experience to bears or wolves. Hunted carnivores negatively conditioned will coexist splendidly with humans. That’s the big lesson from our history where we lived together with carnivores in North America (or in Siberia). Where large carnivores are de facto protected, where they may multiply unimpeded, livestock, pets and eventually humans become their victims—let alone game animals.
Dr. Geist explained the concept in great detail in his paper: Habituation, Taming, Social Dominance Assertions, and “Freedom of the Woods”. Essentially, armed humans in the woods teach predators to be wary of humans. Once this caution is established, even unarmed humans are safe from nearly all predators in the woods.
Some of the new worshipers of nature state one of the major reasons they want bears to be protected is because they want to experience areas where humans are not at the top of the food chain. They are not referring to the highly technical definition of "food chain" theoretical biologists have contrived. They are considering which animals are afraid of which other animals.
"Top of the food chain" is a short-cut for who is dominant. Some neo-pagans wish to visit areas where people are not dominant. Another way to consider this is to see it as a desire to reduce human power below that of top predators.
Since the invention of effective weapons, most particularly cartridge firearms, humans dominate every other species on land. It is only when humans are disarmed or otherwise restrained by their own species, that land predators do not learn to be wary of humans.
Dr. Geist's essential point is apex predators such as bears, wolves, and mountain lions learn to fear and respect humans when humans act as the top predator because they are armed. His contention, as one of the foremost authorities on land animal behavior, is apex predators are intensely aware of how other animals act in the woods/wilderness. Humans which act as an apex predator act confidently and unafraid. This is why people are advised to stand their ground, to not run, to not climb a tree as a means to escape, when confronted by predators. Running or climbing a tree, in effect, signals to the predator the human is below it in dominance. These actions signal the human is not dangerous.
If enough humans wander about the woods armed, acting as if they have little to fear from other denizens of the environment, apex predators learn to reflexively avoid humans. This is the effect Dr. Geist observed directly in his studies. This is how the myth of the "harmless wolf" was created in North America.
Assumed in Dr. Geist's thesis is the understanding of apex predators as inherently dangerous to humans. To project confidence as the top apex predator, humans need to be able to protect themselves from other predators. Being armed with a firearm which can be used in effective defense against large animals results in the necessary confidence.
Regulations and legislation which prohibit humans from being armed in national parks are counter productive. They were initially created to protect the animals in the parks. Carrying arms for self defense is not the same as hunting or poaching. The small number of predators which are killed in self defense situations eliminate a few excessively aggressive predators, with no significant effect on predator populations. The death of those predators amplifies the perception of humans as dangerous in the remaining predator population. Other predators don't have to witness the actual event. Scent on the scene is like a bill board of what happened to other predators.
When you are in wild areas, go armed. Virtually any handgun will give you more confidence than hiking with bear spray. Use a good holster and practice. This will improve your confidence, and aids in the ancillary use as protection against aggressive humans. Your actions translate to higher levels of safety for those who chose to be unarmed, whether you ever fire a shot or not. Your actions help to create the "freedom of the woods".
©2025 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
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