About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

3 Envtl. L. 23 (1973)
Who Owns the Wildlife

handle is hein.journals/envlnw3 and id is 37 raw text is: WHO OWNS THE WILDIFE? WHO OWNS THE WILDLIFE? CARL D. ETLING* The environment has been described by some as a global problem and by others, since the exploration of space, as a universal problem. The term environment covers a very wide scope. It has been defined as the complex of climatic, edaphic, and biotic factors that act upon an organism or an ecological community and ultimately determine its form and survival.1 This article will deal with a segment of the biotic factor, wildlife (ferae naturae), its ownership, management and regulation in the United States of America and in the State of Oregon. About one-third of the land in the United States and about one- half of the land in the State of Oregon is publicly owned.2. Most of this land is owned by the United States government and is in National Forests, National Parks, Bureau of Land Management, etc. From these figures it is apparent that the United States govern- ment is host to a substantial part of the wildlife. But who owns the wildlife and who has the right to regulate and manage it? HISTORICAL OWNERSHIP OF WILDLIFE In BLACKSTONE'S COMMENTARIES on the Law of England it is stated that By the original grant of the Creator, all men had a right to take such animals, and may still do so, unless restrained by law. When so seized, they become, while living, a man's qualified property, or if dead, are absolutely his own, so that to steal them becomes some- times a criminal offence, and in other cases, a civil injury. The restrictions laid on this right in England relate principally to royal fish, as whale and sturgeon, and also to game, the taking of which belong to the prince or to those to whom he has granted such privilege.3 *Judge of the District Court of Oregon for Multnomah County, Dept. No. 4 until his death in 1973; J.D., Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College (1934). Member, American and Oregon Bar Associations. National Director, Izaak Walton League of America. 1 WEBSTER'S SEVENTH NEW COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY 278 (1965). 2 REPORT TO THE PRESIDENT AND TO THE CONGRESS, PUBLIC LAND LAW REVISION COMMISSION, Appendix F, 327-334 (1970). 3 BLACKSTONE'S COMMENTARIES ON THE LAW, 454 (B. Gavit ed. 1941). SPRING 1973 Page 23

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most