I'd like to go off on a tangent (
) and remark on a statement regarding the food chain. Man is on top of the food chain, not within it, and as such we can choose to eat what we want. Man has no natural predator whose diet includes man meat. If we get eaten by an occasional tiger, shark, crocodile, lion, chimp or ant colony, it's merely because of the circumstance we place ourselves.
Thus, it's not a valid argument that because a horny elk can toss us on our keyster without a moments notice, they're our natural enemy - and thus we have the justification to kill them. Don't use their defensive capabilities as a rationale to hunt them.
If you've occasionally eaten deer or squirrel meat you've bagged in addition to the chicken mcNuggets, chili burger or ham and egg breakfast you consume, that isn't a good reason for hunting either. In other words, if you have commercial options for your meat consumption, you don't have to lock and load to fill your belly.
The real reason. Let's call it like it is.... people enjoy the challenge of stalking, shooting and killing animals. There are many rationales for doing so, but they're all peripheral to the main issue, and mostly man-made solutions to man-made issues. Being one with mother nature is fine and dandy - go for a walk, and carry your .44 magnum if you must.
One never can tell about those pesky Blue Jays.
Sherwood