Kangaroo Hide Drum Heads.

Chris Whitten said:
There is also the killing native animals aspect to consider. I'm happy with the offerings from Remo and Evans.
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I did contact the manufacturer before making this episode to clarify a few things about the Kangaroo culling program. There is currently 25 million people in Australia and the kangaroo population has blown out to 50 million and this has sadly decimated some natural areas.

But you are right they are from the culling program and yes it IS YOUR choice to play or not to play a drum with a Hide head strapped to it and yes 2019/2020 was a horrible year for Australia bandits wildlife as it has decimated so many species and some are now extinct.

Personally I prefer mylar heads just due to their tuning stability.

An ethical choice
The hides we use are the ethically sourced by-product of a culling program overseen by the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage. This program ensures that the kangaroo population in eastern Australia remains healthy and at a sustainable number. Harvested animals provide consumers with an eco-friendly alternative to consuming beef or lamb and in using the hides to produce drumheads, more of each animal is used, resulting in less waste. The kangaroo is one of Australia’s national animals, and the highest level of consideration and care is taken to ensure that our hides are procured in an ethical and sustainable manner that serves to benefit the species.
 
As the resident vegan I obviously won’t be hopping down this particular dirt track, laden with the unnecessary deaths of countless sentient beings...I can see and understand why chaps who enjoy eating corpse or shooting innocent creatures would have a completely opposing view though so not hating on anyone; just thought I’d pop by in the interests of balance and because I really enjoy your videos. :D (y)
 
Natural Animals do not just decimate natural areas. Dis placement due to human activity is the main reason for population " blow out" .. While I'm not completely opposed to the use of animal hides I am sceptical of such claims.. Such claims give false reason for Government departments to justify culling or deforestation as an Environmentally healthy activity.
 
Al Strange said:
As the resident vegan I obviously won’t be hopping down this particular dirt track, laden with the unnecessary deaths of countless sentient beings...I can see and understand why chaps who enjoy eating corpse or shooting innocent creatures would have a completely opposing view though so not hating on anyone; just thought I’d pop by in the interests of balance and because I really enjoy your videos. :D (y)
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Those are your voices and core values, if that's who you are I'll support it.
 
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paradiddle pete said:
Natural Animals do not just decimate natural areas. Dis placement due to human activity is the main reason for population " blow out" .. While I'm not completely opposed to the use of animal hides I am sceptical of such claims.. Such claims give false reason for Government departments to justify culling or deforestation as an Environmentally healthy activity.
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There are absolutely booms and busts in natural populations that have nothing to do with humans. Disease, starvation, and predators are how nature deals with such population booms. That’s been going on for hundreds of millions of years.
 
booms and busts maybe but not blow outs. I think you will find us humans have a great capacity to unbalance natural populations more than nature itself.. humans build more and more houses , animals migrate to farmland farmer kills animals.. drummers makes skins.. go ahead it's your decision.. maybe if we gave Kangaroos some guns it might be a fair fight..or is that too balanced? Just introducing hooves animals into Australia has devastated the Landscape and that's only one human impact..
 
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paradiddle pete said:
booms and busts maybe but not blow outs. I think you will find us humans have a great capacity to unbalance natural populations more than nature itself.. humans build more and more houses , animals migrate to farmland farmer kills animals.. drummers makes skins.. go ahead it's your decision.. maybe if we gave Kangaroos some guns it might be a fair fight..or is that too balanced? Just introducing hooves animals into Australia has devastated the Landscape and that's only one human impact..
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Forget the "hooved animals" , it's the cane toads, rabbits and feral cats (all introduced by us silly humans) which have had the greatest impact on the local fauna in Oz.
 
paradiddle pete said:
booms and busts maybe but not blow outs. I think you will find us humans have a great capacity to unbalance natural populations more than nature itself.. humans build more and more houses , animals migrate to farmland farmer kills animals.. drummers makes skins.. go ahead it's your decision.. maybe if we gave Kangaroos some guns it might be a fair fight..or is that too balanced? Just introducing hooves animals into Australia has devastated the Landscape and that's only one human impact..
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Well unless you want to start criticizing all the older players here who started out on calf heads, and all the hand drummers who use natural hide heads, I don’t understand why you have decided to pick this exact moment to preach. Care to share the thought process behind that, Pete? lol
 
Al Strange said:
As the resident vegan I obviously won’t be hopping down this particular dirt track, laden with the unnecessary deaths of countless sentient beings...I can see and understand why chaps who enjoy eating corpse or shooting innocent creatures would have a completely opposing view though so not hating on anyone; just thought I’d pop by in the interests of balance and because I really enjoy your videos. :D (y)
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Proud vegan who espouses the same values ❤️
 
paradiddle pete said:
I'm not preaching, If you read my posts I'm not opposed to animal hides for drums, but I am opposed to BS that justifies needless natural destruction just to make money.. toddmc get's it..View attachment 105128View attachment 105129How 'bout some Eagle skin heads?
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I feel I should tell you we're also the only country in the world (that I know of) that eats both animals on its coat of arms.

I can only imagine how many bullets would come your way as an American if you tried to chow down on a bald eagle! 😬😬
 
With all due respect to everyone here--no matter what side of the fence you're on or where you fall on the spectrum--a well run and legally enforced conservation program is one of the best things that can help to ensure a healthy animal population. Where I grew up there was a clamp down on conservation efforts on deer herds for over a decade. The deer population exploded way beyond what the natural food sources could sustain and when a brutally severe winter hit it pretty much wiped out the remaining starving deer herds. Mother Nature can be the worst taskmaster ever.

I think Steele Turkington (Kentville Drums) is likely walking a moral tightrope here with some of his customer base. But Steele is an exceptional craftsman and he offers a viable product that in my eyes is ethically harvested, and the hides are being put to good, productive use rather than being wasted. I plan on picking up some Kentville Drum Kangaroo Hide Heads stateside if they are available at the next drum show I'm able to attend.

Here's a great assessment and video listed below of the product for those who are interested. And for those who aren't, realize I respect your position and beliefs.


 
103065167_648040302446287_6204449431197692271_n.jpgKangarroo's have lived in Australia for between 5 and 15 million years.. Some say even up to 30 million..They are perfectly evolved to suit their environment.. Just one fact among many that should be considered before justifying their removal for any reason.. Fact Checking on how they behave and survive helps to understand the facts, not Grazier Justification ( Government Licence to Harm Kangaroo's ) seen as a last resort if over grazing becomes a problem. Kangaroo's by their very nature do not overgraze because of their teeth and ability to hop to better grazing land covering vast distances with minimal impact to the vegetation unlike heavy hooved animals..if not hemmed in by fences .. ..if you really want to understand what these " Keystone " animals should represent to Australia it's not as simple as 200 years of colonisation..
 
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Just a FWIW....
The main impact the kangaroo population has on modern Australian society is eating the grass farmers grow to feed livestock. That is the number one reason for the culling program. I used to live in a dairy area and there really wasn't a regulated culling program, but the farmers would either go out at night with floodlights and shoot the animals themselves, or allow friends to tour their properties shooting kangaroos (for fun, for sport).
Large parts of Australia are remote, with no police for miles around. Away from the urban areas you can pretty much do what you want with impunity - which includes demolishing historic buildings that are scheduled for protection, draining already stressed river systems, clearing areas of ancient native forest that are supposedly protected.
Beyond that, Australia has one of the worst species extinction rates of any continent, mostly due to human activity and human introduced non-natives like foxes and cats.
 
Australia is a very big land, many ill thought out introductions of animals and fauna have exploded out of control.. ( Cane Toads ) come to mind.. I don't think whining is the right choice of word to describe concerns about the environmental damage caused by these introductions.. The sheer size and remoteness of the country makes it difficult to right the wrongs so to speak.. Camel Heads could be a more helpful product maybe?
 
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