DIF&W is encouraging hunters to use non-lead ammunition, for good reasons. They have sent out two posts with lots of good information about this issue. Here are a few things they said.
We know that non-lead alternatives are not just safer; they’re just as effective as lead (or more so) at a very similar price.
While lead bullets can lose up to 40% of their mass into tiny fragments, potentially straying up to 18 inches from the wound channel, copper bullets retain between 95-100% of their mass. This produces a smaller wound cavity, minimal fragmentation, greater weight retention and more kinetic energy to drive the bullet, allowing for a greater impact and quicker, more ethical kill.
When an animal is shot with a lead bullet, as much as a third or more of the bullet’s total weight will be fragmented into hundreds of tiny pieces upon impact and remain inside as much as 18 inches from the pathway of the bullet. Lead bullets fragment even if it passes all the way through the intended target and is independent of hunter skill or where the animal’s body is shot. Some of these lead fragments are so small they are not visible to the naked eye but are clearly present in x-rays.
You can access all DIF&W’s information here:
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgxwJXfpqXVvVfpjRRqttzkcXmMxC
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgxwJXpNbpXHrrhhtNJjSvjPHtMJJ