The thing people often forget about "traditional hunting practices" and using modern technology is that in the old days, a loto of animals were wasted because the methods for killing them weren't that effectice (or at least AS effective as what we have today).

As an example, several years ago the Makah tribe in Washington state was allowed to go on a traditional whale hunt and take up to 5 whales. People went out of their minds when they realized that after harpooning the whale and before towing it to shore, they would finish it off with a high-powered rifle. But what people overlooked was the fact that in ancient times, they would lose 5-10 whales after they harpooned them for every one they were able to successfully get to shore - because they managed to get away even while wounded or sank.

I think the exercise of traditional hunting rights among natives has more to do with the meaningfulness of actually doing it (i.e. together, as a family or tribe, with support of their community, etc.) than what you "get" out of it in the end. I think a lot of times when we - as non-natives - criticize it - we're looking at it from the "he-gets-to-harvest-an-extra-X-and-I-don't" attitude. And that's not really the point of traditional hunts, anyway.

The Makah tribe was all about whaling, had historically been whalers, and had a culture and language designed around whales and whaling activities, so the fact that they actually killed a whale paled in comparison to what it meant to the tribe to be able simply have a whale hunt, get people involved in it, etc.

Just my 2 cents.