Non-Lead Ammunition: Good for Wildlife, Good for Hunters

Lead is indisputably toxic. This includes the lead in your ammunition.

As they expand, lead bullets scatter fragments well beyond the point of entry. These fragments can, in turn, be ingested by wildlife when they scavenge leftover carcasses and gut piles or prey on other animals that have ingested the fragments. Even small amounts of lead can cause multiple health problems and death, and birds, such as bald eagles and other raptors, are particularly vulnerable to poisoning.

While not causing population declines in Vermont, lead ammunition does leave the door open to accidentally taking more than your intended game. In addition, lead is also a human health concern and particles in game meat are often too tiny to detect by sight, feel and taste.

Fortunately, there’s an easy fix: the voluntary use of lead-free ammunition.

Biting the Non-Lead Bullet is Easy

• Non-lead bullets are factory loaded by most manufacturers, in most popular big game calibers.
• Solid copper and copper alloy bullets offer consistent expansion and excellent weight retention and, as result, deliver deep penetration.
• Less fragmentation = less meat loss.
• Non-lead bullets are longer. Consider reducing bullet grain size by 15–20% for comparable performance to your current load.
• Highly frangible (brittle), non-lead small caliber bullets are available for both centerfire and rimfire cartridges.
• Required for waterfowl hunting for over thirty years, non-lead shotshells now cover everything from woodcock to wild turkey. This includes .410.

To learn more about switching to non-lead ammunition and for tips to finding the right non-lead ammunition visit: http://www.nonleadpartnership.org and https://huntingwithnonlead.org.