Getting the Lead Out: Making a Case for Copper Bullets

Kaatscast: the Catskills Podcast

Nov 22 2022 • 24 mins

Whether you're a human who enjoys venison, or a bald eagle that scavenges a hunter's kill, lead = poison. And as it turns out, common lead bullets fragment on impact into hundreds of pepper-sized flakes that can be devastating to wildlife (and not so great for humans, either!).

Michael DiBenedetto is a lifelong Catskiller, a longtime hunter, and a passionate advocate for copper bullets. If his experience rehabilitating lead-poisoned eagles isn't reason enough to make the switch, there are plenty of other motivating factors, as he explains in our interview; plus, a convincing experiment for any hunter who wants to see first-hand how lead and copper bullets "hold up" in the wild.

Bullet photo courtesy of Jeremy Roberts © Conservation Media, LLC

Check out these short videos produced by Conservation Media for huntingwithnonlead.org, and see what happens when lead and copper bullets are shot into ballistic gel.

Thanks to our sponsors:

The Mountain Eagle
Central Catskills Chamber of Commerce
Briars & Brambles Books

You Might Like

Stuff You Should Know
Stuff You Should Know
iHeartPodcasts
This American Life
This American Life
This American Life
Freakonomics Radio
Freakonomics Radio
Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher
Criminal
Criminal
Vox Media Podcast Network
The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe
The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe
The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe
We Can Do Hard Things
We Can Do Hard Things
Glennon Doyle and Audacy
The Ezra Klein Show
The Ezra Klein Show
New York Times Opinion
Shawn Ryan Show
Shawn Ryan Show
Shawn Ryan | Cumulus Podcast Network
The Why Files: Operation Podcast
The Why Files: Operation Podcast
The Why Files: Operation Podcast
The Record Room
The Record Room
Jaden Green
Am I the Jerk?
Am I the Jerk?
youtube.com/amithejerk
Literally! With Rob Lowe
Literally! With Rob Lowe
Stitcher & Team Coco, Rob Lowe
Behind the Bastards
Behind the Bastards
Cool Zone Media
The Viall Files
The Viall Files
Nick Viall