Chris Comer, the Director of Conservation for Safari Club International Foundation (SCIF), joins Robbie on today’s podcast to discuss driving the conservation program landscape forward for SCIF, especially SCIF’s important niche of carnivore surveys and population estimates. From Texas mountain lions to leopards in Botswana and beyond. It's exciting to see SCIF, and the direction of Dr. Comer, Dr. Davidson and others really starting to look at where the research gaps are currently in the carnivore space across the world and start plugging them to enhance and improve sustainable use.

Now that Robbie is back from traveling and Ashlee is over another bout of COVID, they got together to bring us all the news fit to print about hunting around the world including a surprise Sunday hunting season in Connecticut - before they even allowed black bear hunting?! An update on the Cheetah project we’ve been pursuing in Africa (complete with Robbie checking on the cheetahs mid-podcast), TX adds public hunting land, the Australian hunting coalition expansion, and much more!

Robbie and Paul first met each other almost 3 years ago when Robbie attended his first Zimbabwe Professional Guides Association meeting in Victoria Falls. At that meeting Robbie was introduced to Paul's extensive knowledge about all things history, anthropology, and natural sciences. Paul is an absolute wealth of knowledge. Paul Hubbard lives in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe and is a guide, anthropologist, archaeologist, and general “knower of all things” as it relates to the history of hunting and hunting culture in Zimbabwe. Today, he and Robbie cover history from Stone Age to Iron Age hunters in Southern Africa in the first of what will be a long running series of podcasts we have here at Blood Origins!

Robbie met Fiona Tande randomly in South Africa on what can only be described as a “crazy journey” tied to the Panyame Cheetah Conservation Project. During that connection Robbie and Fiona had a really solid conversation in the middle of the bush in which Fiona questioned Robbie about hunting. The result of that conversation was Fiona stating - "I had no idea hunters spoke or thought that way." That led to Robbie and Fiona connecting later, on this podcast. As you will see in this podcast - it quickly gets turned on its head with Fiona inquistively questioning Robbie about all things hunting - and will serve as an exceptional educational podcast to others about how to talk and answer someone who is not familiar with hunting, about hunting. Listen to the whole thing as you may be surprised at the outcome ...

Today’s Short Truths question is, “Are elephants in Africa doing okay?” And the answer is different than if they’re endangered or not - because it speaks to the practical nature of wildlife conservation, from the politics of it to the environment and so on. So how does this reconcile with the constant barrage of “save the elephants” messaging we see online and in the ether? Find out from Robbie in this Short Truths episode.

Evan Siembida is a knife maker out of Ohio that Robbie got to know through Instagram. Evan generously provided an incredible custom knife for the Blood Origins silent auction and joins the podcast today for a straight up nerd session about knife making. Stick around all the way to the end for Evan’s contact info if you’d like one of the knives we actually auctioned off in our silent auction at the exclusive ConservationONE event this past spring! He has built 6 of the knives, 1 was auctioned and 5 are still available!!! First come first served!

Robbie travelled to India earlier this year to get an on-the ground perspective of human wildlife conflict in the very remotest and rural places in India. At the second location that they travelled to a subject matter expert, Dr. HS Pabla, joined Robbie and the team. Dr. Pabla was the Chief Wildlife Warden of Mardra Pradesh, an extremely prestigious position, and retired from the Indian Forest Service in 2012. So when Robbie got the opportunity to sit down with Dr Pabla, he took it. This podcast was filmed and recorded in a very small hotel room in a remote hotel in rural India. The discussion with Dr. Pabla unravels the Wildlife Protection Act of India and how the country has made moves in recent years toward a more sensible model of conservation, driven by unprecedented wildlife conflicts between the citizens of the country and wildlife; from herbivores destroying crops to tigers and leopards prowling cities and towns and eating citizens.  It's truly an eye opening podcast from an area of the world that most people know very little about.

Andrew and Katie Leventis are longtime podcast listeners who reached out to pitch their coffee company, a specialty blend for a specific project with Quail Covey Coffee. After listening to our episode about Hunters For Hope, Quail Covey Coffee reach out about doing a special limited run of coffee to raise money for that exact program, complete with a QR code so that donors could raise even more money for the program. The heart of the hunting community around the world truly amazes me - hunters from South Carolina with a small coffee company wanting to raise funds for a Hunters for the Hungry program in Christ Church, New Zealand. It's absolutely incredible and makes all of our hearts sing. Listen to the podcast, then buy some coffee (it's really really good), then buy some for your friends, and when it arrives click the QR Code and send some funds to Hunters for Hope Program!

While searching the interweb for Rhino documentaries, Robbie came across a TED talk by a professor from the Uiversity of Arkansas Monticello called Elena Rubino talking about Rhinos. He was immediately intrigued as its not a place that one thinks discussions around Rhino Conservation and Trade come from. Robbie reached out, and it turns out the Elena did her Ph.D. work on the perceptions of Trophy Hunting, and naturally that was something he wanted to learn about. Robbie is joined today by Dr. Elena Rubino, a professor at the University of Arkansas-Monticello, to talk about a survey she undertook to understand perceptions around trophy hunting. As you will find out the research is fascinating and really provides some science to what society thinks about hunting writ large.

Robbie and Ashlee get into it in this Roundup episode - diving first into some good news about our ongoing Cheetah conservation project, expansion of hunting and fishing on National Wildlife Refuges, then transitioning into a fiery debate about the ecological importance of donuts and their role in black bear management. Robbie and Ashlee come at the issue from two completely different, yet congruently valid perspectives - Ashlee questions the use of bait for black bear hunting from an ethical perspective, while Robbie defends the use of bait from a scientific and management perspective. What do you think?

The Honorable Robert Borsak is a repeat guest on the Blood Origins podcast. He is a member of the upper house of the New South Wales Government in Australia and the leader of the Shooters, Fishers, and Farmers Party there. Robbie wanted to have a conversation with Robert on the heels of the Great Australian Pig Hunt, in which the data showcased how great a job hunters were doing both economically and ecologically for the Australian environment and economy. The two discuss hunting policy in NSW from wild (read: feral) horses to wombats and beyond. A fascinating podcast if you are interested in understanding policy implications and hunting advocacy halfway around the world.

In this week’s roundup Robbie and Ashlee reunite to cover a more “doom and gloom” than usual Roundup. Aside from chaos at the federal level - including proposed land sales and huge cuts looming over key federal agencies for wildlife conservation at Interior - an update on DOGE initiatives affecting conservation and more from budget season. But it’s not ALL bad news! Tune in to get an update on our Cheetah conservation project in South Africa, Sunday hunting, the Alabama breeder bill and more.

Shahid Zaman is the Secretary of Forests, Climate Change, and The Environment for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Province in Pakistan. Shahid has worked for the State Department in Gilgit-Baltistan, Punjab, and KP forging incredible successes in Forestry Conservation as well as wildlife conservation. It's rare to get a glimpse into Pakistan's wildlife conservation journey, and when Robbie got an opportunity to meet Shahid and have a conversation like this, he took it. Shahid joins the podcast to discuss the significant role of hunting in wildlife conservation in Pakistan… a part of the world many in the west probably don’t know that much about. 

Willy Pabst is an outspoken German who fell under Africa's spell as a young man and decided he needed to make it a part of him. Over the intervening years, he found a property called Sango in the Save Valley in Zimbabwe.  He eventually purchased the property, which has formed one of the most important, iconic examples of hunter-led conservation in the world. Willy joins the Our Voice series to discuss what we do in this era where we actually have TOO MANY elephants and too little habitat. Willie discusses his view from the front lines of that debate - and gives us his unvarnished opinion.

Ben “The Vegan Farmer” Hudson and Robbie were introduced to each other when Robbie was tagged into one of his posts where he noted "hunting is not conservation". Naturally, I was curious to this viewpoint and DM'ed Ben and invited Ben to the Blood Origins podcast. I love to have conversations with folks that have different points of view around hunting and have open, articulate and intelligent conversation around it. What we think you’ll find is that Ben is a very astute and intellectual person who’s thought deeply about his morality and ethics. What follows is a straightforward conversation on hunting, animal agriculture, conservation, and beyond. Very appreciative of Ben joining us on the podcast and the great conversation that ensued.

At the same time that Robbie met Ralph and Vicki, he was introduced to RJ and Aubrey. RJ and Aubrey Cianciarulo are the son and daughter-in-law of Ralph and Vicki (if you haven’t listened to their episode, go listen to episode 556 which dropped earlier this week). As the ‘new faces’ coming in behind their stalwart parents to pick up the torch, Robbie talks to them about the state of the industry, and what are they seeing, or not seeing. Given that Rj and Aubrey are at the beginning of this journey into the industry, Robbie shares his advice on how thinking, more than anything else, will save hunting. 

Robbie and Ralph and Vicki have been in each others social circles for quite sometime, but it wasn't until the DSC Convention earlier this year that they connected and really got to chatting. It’s safe to say Ralph and Vicki Cianciarulo are part of the “old guard” of hunting. They started their first TV show, ‘Archer’s Choice’ in 1985 - almost 40 years ago - and join Robbie’s podcast today to talk about the evolution they’ve seen in the conversation around hunting in the 40 years since hitting the air for the first time. This conversation is a fascinating conversation about how things have changed and at times some brutal honesty about things that are a part of the industry today. 

Robbie was fortunate to cross paths with Paul during the initiation of our Panyame Cheetah Conservation project. When Robbie first met Paul - he noted that Paul's name was super familiar to him, and it turns out that Robbie had heard of Paul, and more specifically his PhD work. Paul Booyens, a Wildlife Reserve Manager, did his thesis on the rewilding of lions. Not rewilding of any lions, but rather the rewildling of Captive Bred Lions, aka CBL lions. Lions that essentially had been raised in captivity, have never killed any prey, and were placed in reproductive scenarios in Bomas. CBL is controversial enough - but Paul decides to add a whole new level to it, by trying to rewild CBL lions. Is that even possible? Paul joins Robbie on this podcast to talk about one of the most controversial subjects in South African conservation. CAN a captive bred lion who has been fed carcasses its entire life rediscover its felid nature - learn to hunt for itself, interact with other lions, and be truly “wild”? Find out by listening to this podcast.

Salim Khan, a Pakistani native who has been hunting in the country for 53 of his 57 years of life, is an outfitter who has been involved in the hunting game for decades. He also has an interest in replicating wildlife management models from places like South Africa into Pakistan and reintroducing and rehabilitating native wildlife such as axis deer, black buck, nilgai, you name it. Robbie was introduced to Salim at this year's Wild Sheep Show through Adam Olivas and Arqos Hunting and decided right then and there to record a podcast with him while they were both on the Wild Sheep Show convention floor. Listen as Robbie and Salim dive deep into these subjects and more!

Ryan Darby - who the average listener wouldn’t know from a bar of soap - sits down to explore with Robbie the intersection of mental health and hunting. Ryan Darby is the regional officer at The British Association for Shooting and Conservation.  In this incredibly brave interview, Ryan Darby opens up to say, “I am not okay” and in doing so hopefully gives hope and resiliency to others who may be out there in the same place in the hunting community. Robbie shares a similar experience in this incredibly open conversation about mental health. If you are struggling, it is important to reach out to someone and know that you are not alone. If you want to talk to anyone, feel free to reach out to us.

In this week’s roundup while Robbie is off galavanting again, Ashlee is joined by Fred Bird of the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation. And luckily, in addition to being CSF’s Senior Manager of Eastern States, Fred also serves as the host of CSF’s own Sportsmen’s Voice podcast - because when a catastrophic power and internet failure hits Ashlee’s office mid-recording, Fred is able to step in and finish the episode! Ashlee and Fred discuss legislative news around the country, including the implications of controversial bills like Alabama's House Bill 509, the significance of food sovereignty legislation such as the statute passed in Maine, legal challenges in Pennsylvania regarding the Open Fields doctrine and wildlife management’s ability to enter private land vs the rights of hunting clubs, the legal implications surrounding wildlife & property surveillance, recent legislative updates on the ND Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) bills, and the outline of the plan for the return of bear hunting in Florida. Check it out!

In response to news of a BAN on “exotic animal skins” in London’s fashion week, Robbie is joined by Christy Plott Gilmore, a 4th-generation crocodile and alligator industry specialist whose family has owned a tannery for generations in Georgia. Christy invited Dr. Patrick Aust, the Director of the African Institute of Applied Herpetology and expert in innovative solutions to reptilian management to join this conversation. If you have ever been interested in understanding the world of sustainable use of wildlife then listen to this podcast!

In response to news of a BAN on “exotic animal skins” in London’s fashion week, Robbie is joined by Christy Plott Gilmore, a 4th-generation crocodile and alligator industry specialist whose family has owned a tannery for generations in Georgia. Christy invited Dr. Patrick Aust, the Director of the African Institute of Applied Herpetology and expert in innovative solutions to reptilian management to join this conversation. If you have ever been interested in understanding the world of sustainable use of wildlife then listen to this podcast!

Robbie and the Slots Boys are back with more South African shenanigans that we all love from their latest road trip. From the back of the trusty old rig traveling around South Africa, the boys cover the project they’re sending to the nines in honor of a friend, what they’re up to in Africa, and so much more. This trip the boys have had the highest of highs and the lowest of lows.

Sam “The Trapman” Gibson is a lifelong hunter and trapper out of New Zealand. After leaving a long career with the department of environmental conservation in 2020 due to being disparaged with how they were doing things, he started a project called Eastern Whio Link a hunter-led conservation project that looks to protect native birds (specifically kiwi) and whio (a rare native duck). He discussed both with Robbie in depth in today's episode. The Eastern Whio Link is a project that Blood Origins, through funding by Bergara has invested in. It’s a phenomenal investment from people into ensuring ecosystem health and native New Zealand fauna are looked after.