[Andsigil]

Originally Posted by Aganzir

When I last brought this up during a meady night at Oxonmoot, somebody proposed that the Elves value life so much as not to take it needlessly.

That depends on the tribe of elves. The Noldor were known for slaughtering even their own kind when it suited their objectives.

Many people also seem to have the gut feeling that they wouldn't hunt for sport, although I don't think there's definite proof of that.

I would go even further than saying there isn't proof, and simply disagree.

Hunting "for sport" can be a subjective term, too. There was always some degree of "sport" in hunting, even when it was done to put food on the table (deer, boar, pheasant, et al) in the age before supermarkets and industrial farms.

What we know about the Sons of Feanor, for example, allows us to infer several things.

We know that Celegorm, Amrod, and Amras were considered great hunters:

and the youngest Amrod and Amras, who were twin brothers, alike in mood and face. In later days they were great hunters in the woods of Middle-earth; and a hunter also was Celegorm, who in Valinor was a friend of Oromë, and often followed the Vala's horn.

And we know that Celegorm was such a good hunter that Orome, himself, gave him Huan as a gift.

We also know that the Sons of Feanor were monarchs in their own rights, ruling the lands in the north of Beleriand. These weren't monarchs of subsistence-level, hunter-gatherer, skin-wearing tribes, either; they were powerful, with steel (or better) weapons, armor, and armies at their command.

Being monarchs of realms which had the capability of fielding armies with the latest and greatest in weaponry, they could, therefore, have gotten meat upon their tables simply by decree. Yet, instead of sitting back and living the good life of being waited upon, they chose to hunt (for "sport", one could say), and received great renown for their prowess.