Immerse yourself in the rich tradition of hunting
A COMPANY WITH COMMITMENT
Hunting & Conservation
in South Africa
Did you know that trophy hunting contributes more to the conservation of wildlife in South Africa,
than any other tourism incentives or conservation fees?
BOUNCE BACK FROM NEAR EXTINCTION
“Without hunting there would be no incentive for investing in game, and without hunting many species in South
Africa would already be extinct or on the verge of extinction.” says Kitshoff. “We wouldn’t have white rhino today
if it wasn’t for trophy hunting.” Kitshoff says. Despite the persistent poaching epidemic worldwide, South Africa is
still the country that has the greatest number of rhinos compared to the world’s rhino population.
“Additionally, thanks to hunting, our Sable, Bontebok, Wild Ostrich, Cape Mountain Zebra, Black Wildebeest and many other species have been brought back from the brink of extinction and have successfully been reintroduced into areas where they had become locally extinct.” – Kitshoff. She has compared this country’s current model for sustainable wildlife conservation to that of Kenya, which had imposed a hunting ban during the 1970’s and has lost an estimated 85% of all its game life. “Kenya shows us what happens when there is no incentive for farmers to invest in game.” says Kitshoff.
“Additionally, thanks to hunting, our Sable, Bontebok, Wild Ostrich, Cape Mountain Zebra, Black Wildebeest and many other species have been brought back from the brink of extinction and have successfully been reintroduced into areas where they had become locally extinct.” – Kitshoff. She has compared this country’s current model for sustainable wildlife conservation to that of Kenya, which had imposed a hunting ban during the 1970’s and has lost an estimated 85% of all its game life. “Kenya shows us what happens when there is no incentive for farmers to invest in game.” says Kitshoff.
GOVERNMENT-OWNED PARKS VS PRIVATE PROPERTY
South Africa has an estimated 20.5mil. game animals, which is approx. 16mil. game on private property and the
remaining amount on government-owned parks. This means that the amount of game killed through trophy
hunting in 2013 was an insignificant 0.002% of South Africa’s total wildlife population, according to the latest
statistics provided by PHASA.
The country’s whole wildlife population is increasing at a rate of 30% annually, says the Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA). Roughly fifty years ago, a headcount of all of the game in the entire country would have amounted to about 500 000 animals. “To put it into perspective, private enterprise owns three times more land and four-fifths of all the game, managed under hugely successful and effective conservation programs, than all the state-owned parks and reserves combined,” says Kitshoff.
“Hunting is an extractive part of ecotourism and it is for this reason that it is often argued by some members of the public, opposed to hunting, that photographic tourism is a non-consumptive activity and that it is, therefore, better than hunting. This is a myth. On the contrary, photographic tourism is a consumptive activity – it affects the natural footprint,” – According to a speech done by a former South African National Parks (SANParks) CEO, Dr David Mabunda, during 2011.
“There are people who criticize hunting but have little knowledge of its contribution to conservation. Hunting is a component of modern wildlife management and it is often used to maintain a healthy population of animals where reserves are too small to allow natural regulation of populations or where hunting is a key part of the financial objective of the area.” Says Mabunda. He states that the contribution of hunting to South African’s protected area network, both formal and informal, is remarkable, and that hunting is a key financial incentive that has provided the initial short-term capital to help build photographic ecotourism. He also mentioned Kitshoff’s viewpoint about private land ownership and its contribution toward conservation in South Africa.
Mabunda says, “Currently, more than 15 million hectares of private land is registered and set aside for conservation and another 15 million hectares is also used for mixed wildlife and cattle farming. This means registered privately owned land is three times more than the efforts of the state.”
The country’s whole wildlife population is increasing at a rate of 30% annually, says the Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA). Roughly fifty years ago, a headcount of all of the game in the entire country would have amounted to about 500 000 animals. “To put it into perspective, private enterprise owns three times more land and four-fifths of all the game, managed under hugely successful and effective conservation programs, than all the state-owned parks and reserves combined,” says Kitshoff.
“Hunting is an extractive part of ecotourism and it is for this reason that it is often argued by some members of the public, opposed to hunting, that photographic tourism is a non-consumptive activity and that it is, therefore, better than hunting. This is a myth. On the contrary, photographic tourism is a consumptive activity – it affects the natural footprint,” – According to a speech done by a former South African National Parks (SANParks) CEO, Dr David Mabunda, during 2011.
“There are people who criticize hunting but have little knowledge of its contribution to conservation. Hunting is a component of modern wildlife management and it is often used to maintain a healthy population of animals where reserves are too small to allow natural regulation of populations or where hunting is a key part of the financial objective of the area.” Says Mabunda. He states that the contribution of hunting to South African’s protected area network, both formal and informal, is remarkable, and that hunting is a key financial incentive that has provided the initial short-term capital to help build photographic ecotourism. He also mentioned Kitshoff’s viewpoint about private land ownership and its contribution toward conservation in South Africa.
Mabunda says, “Currently, more than 15 million hectares of private land is registered and set aside for conservation and another 15 million hectares is also used for mixed wildlife and cattle farming. This means registered privately owned land is three times more than the efforts of the state.”
HUNTING BAN EFFECTS
South Africa’s present situation is the opposite to that of Botswana. In Botswana, large areas of wilderness and
national parks are spread over most parts of their country. South Africa’s national parks and game reserves have
a restricted amount of space available for animals, while human-populated areas continue to expand.
If South Africa were to ban trophy hunting, private landowners would no longer invest in wildlife and rather focus their interests to cattle, farm crops or more financially viable activities. Banning hunting in this country would add more to the deterioration of certain animal species, than it is unfortunately commonly believed hunting does.
The position of South Africa’s wildlife is currently surprising compared to 100 years ago, and conservationists believe that this incomparable growth is greatly ascribed to the impact of trophy hunting.
Amongst the Big Five game, prices are rather expensive, which means that there are not too many people queuing to shoot these game animals. Except for Buffalo, the other Big Five animals (being Rhino, Leopard, Lion, and the Elephant) may only be hunted in South Africa by individuals who have the required permits.
If South Africa were to ban trophy hunting, private landowners would no longer invest in wildlife and rather focus their interests to cattle, farm crops or more financially viable activities. Banning hunting in this country would add more to the deterioration of certain animal species, than it is unfortunately commonly believed hunting does.
The position of South Africa’s wildlife is currently surprising compared to 100 years ago, and conservationists believe that this incomparable growth is greatly ascribed to the impact of trophy hunting.
Amongst the Big Five game, prices are rather expensive, which means that there are not too many people queuing to shoot these game animals. Except for Buffalo, the other Big Five animals (being Rhino, Leopard, Lion, and the Elephant) may only be hunted in South Africa by individuals who have the required permits.
