The traditional New Year's Eve party of the Mountain Hunters Club took place on 12 December. It was a record turnout, with nearly 170 Club members and guests from various regions of Russia, as well as Bulgaria, Belarus, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and South Africa.
To date, the Club's online community unites about one and a half thousand people.
More than 160 Club members take part in the rating by registering their trophies.
During the current year, the number of Club members has increased by almost 200 people. 98 Club members have registered new reports this year. 61 people have been nominated for Club awards.
The President of the Club, Eduard Bendersky, addressed the guests with a welcome speech. He spoke about the opening of the Shooting Club 7.62, a unique sports and leisure complex in Moscow. The club has a 300-metre gallery, a 50-metre gallery for training with long-barrelled weapons and moving targets, and three 25-metre galleries. It can host training sessions for all levels, as well as themed and corporate programmes.
Bendersky drew the attention of all Club members to an article by Arsen Dotsev published in the December issue of the Russian Hunting Journal. It describes the results of research on biological samples collected by Club members at the Federal State Scientific Institution "Federal Research Centre for Animal Husbandry - VIZh named after Academician L.K. Ernst". One of the first projects of the Club since its foundation was the project of collecting samples of tissues of mountain ungulates during hunting expeditions to the most inaccessible places. More than 300 samples were collected by members of the Club. Based on the results of their processing, scientists have clarified the classification of a number of mountain animal species. The aim of the project is to create a national 'gene bank' of mountain horned specimens.
It was during this work that the genetic difference between the snow sheep of the Kharaulakh mountain range in Yakutia and other sheep subspecies was identified. As a result, it was decided to include the Kharaulakh Snow Sheep in the MHC rating tables and it was given the official scientific name OVIS NIVICOLA ERNSTI.
Thanks to close cooperation between the Club and the Institute, research is currently underway to clarify the taxonomic status of Marhur populations in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Full genome genotyping was carried out on 6 samples from Tajikistan (Shurabad and Darvaz districts) and 11 samples from Uzbekistan (Surkhandarya region). As a comparison group, 4 samples of marhur from Pakistan belonging to different subspecies were included in the study: Suleiman (n=2), Kashmir (n=1) and Gilgit or Astor (n=1). The analyses showed that populations from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan formed their own clusters. This suggests that each of these populations has its own genetic identity. It should also be noted that samples from Tajikistan were phylogenetically closer to samples from Pakistan than samples from Uzbekistan.
Eduard Bendersky encouraged Club members to continue collecting samples during their hunts and to submit them to the Club administration for further study at the Institute of Animal Husbandry and the creation of a 'gene bank' of horned specimens.
The Club continues to implement environmental projects.
A programme for the study, conservation and rational use of a new subspecies of snow sheep in the Kharaulakh mountain range and a project to restore the numbers of Caucasian chamois and Bezoar goat in the North Caucasus.
Such large-scale conservation projects would not be possible without the financial support of the Club's benefactors, project sponsors and participants in the Club's annual auction. Guests at the evening's event were treated to hunting trips from the Club's partners, mountain hunting equipment and works of art. The Dikiy TV channel, in support of the Club, provided one of its members with the services of professionals to make a film about the hunting expedition, which will later be shown on the channel. Participants of the evening had an opportunity to get acquainted with unique developments of Russian companies - carbon fibre chassis for carbine, innovative muzzle brake of closed type. The Excelsior chassis from Raven Arms was of great interest to the evening's attendees. It features a precision folding mechanism and additional locking of the bolt and trigger in the folded position. The folding mechanism is completely free of backlash and has a tremendous service life, and the option of instant one-button adjustment of the buttstock or cheekpiece is important for quick and responsible shooting in difficult mountain hunting conditions. The weight of the chassis complete with folding mechanism and buttstock adjustment is 1600 g.
No less interest was aroused by the new model of Magnum closed muzzle brake developed by NEOTEC Moderators, a Russian company specialising in the production of moderators for hunting weapons that meet the highest requirements in terms of quality of manufacture and use. The company's production is located on the territory of the Russian Federation.
The Club President thanked the Club's new patrons and presented them plaques:
Razzhivin Sergey - silver level benefactor
Oleg Yukhnevich (Chairman of Belarusian Safari Club) - Bronze level benefactor
This year 61 people became nominees for prizes and awards of the Club. As usual, at the end of the evening there was an exciting hunting awards ceremony.
Tatyana Aramileva, President of the Russian Union of Hunters and Fishermen, took the floor to award the Club members with the "Magnificent Seven" and "Mountain Five" prizes. She congratulated the participants on the coming New Year and wished them tenacity in achieving their goals and reaching new heights in mountain hunting. She noted the contribution of trophy hunting to the protection of wildlife and its habitat.
Then Edward Bendersky, President of the Mountain Hunters Club, presented the club awards.
Everyone at the event commented on the warm and friendly atmosphere of the evening. Time passed unnoticed in the emotional communication of old friends, and many people found new like-minded colleagues. Traditionally, the organisers set a black tie dress code, which added to the solemnity of the evening.
