The Australian Greens party has once again shown its blatant ignorance and disrespect for our nation’s hunters as its annual Animals in the Wild photographic competition finishes for another year. Billed as a competition that “encourages animal lovers to connect with nature and to shoot animals with a camera, not a gun”, this year’s winners did not include a single animal that any law-abiding hunter in Australia would actually hunt.

Notorious anti-gun advocate and New South Wales Greens MP David Shoebridge attended the awards ceremony in Coffs Harbour on October 31 to spruik his hatred of the shooting sports. Also in attendance was local councillor Sally Townley who openly declares her support for the Greens party, going against the apolitical stance of many councillors Australia-wide.

“While most of the images celebrate the beauty of native animals, we also show the deadly reality of the minority hunting and killing culture,” Mr Shoebridge mused as photos of bird species such as the fan-tailed cuckoo and rare owls were awarded prizes. “The exhibition perfectly expresses how appreciating animals, and being in the Australian bush, means shooting animals with cameras, not with guns or bows and arrows.”

Self-described Greens councillor Ms Townley showed her detachment from the reality of the harshness of the Australian bush by adding, “It’s also been fantastic to have the Animals in the Wild exhibition in Coffs Harbour to encourage animal lovers to shoot with a camera, not a gun.”

The SSAA is proud to represent Australia’s sports shooters and recreational hunters and will continue to educate the community on the importance of feral and pest animal control in protecting farmers’ properties and our native landscape from further destruction.

We also encourage members to send in their photos of their hunting expeditions, along with their name and a short description, for possible publication in our Australian Shooter or Australian Hunter magazine.