Anna Seidman of the Safari Club International explained that “Sustainable hunting does not drive species to extinction as many anti-hunting groups would have the world believe. Conversely, sustainable hunting provides economic incentives for wildlife conservation. For example, it was hunting that led to the resurgence of blesbok in South Africa from population lows of less than 2.000 animals in the early 1900s to more than 250.000 today. Likewise, the ability to legally and sustainably hunt white rhinos has allowed their recovery from a handful in 1900 to more than 20.000 today ”.
Anna Seidman presented the case study of Botswana, which pioneered conservation based on local community involvement, with hunting providing the economic incentive for its participation. Nature has flourished and the quality of life of the populations has increased. But in 2014, the president of Botswana banned hunting and the consequences are already being felt. Community-based organizations have failed, jobs have been lost, and sources of income have dried up. Most importantly, people's positive attitude towards wildlife is disappearing.
The president of the Intergroup Biodiversity, Hunting and Rurality of the European Parliament, Karl-Heinz Florenz concluded by saying that: “We learned today that there are cultural and economic factors to be taken into consideration, as well as the needs of local communities, without losing given the principle of sustainable use. CITES offers a solid scientifically based framework for the governance of the wildlife trade, which also recognizes subsidiarity, an important factor in ensuring the support of the countries of origin of wildlife products. We invite the European Commission to prepare a good report, acknowledging the complexities that have been highlighted today, before submitting it to the ENVI committee ”. (Source Face)
Insights
CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) which regulates international exports and imports of specimens of wild animals, including hunting trophies, at sustainable levels. CITES currently has 180 members, including the EU and its member states. International trade in trophies is regulated under this convention, just as hunting is recognized to have a positive impact on wildlife conservation.
In hunting for trophies, the head of game shot is of great value. In Africa, there are high tariffs for trophy species in the face of a low volume of harvest, as part of a program regulated by the government, local community-based organizations, NGOs, or other legitimate bodies.
CITES provides a legal basis for trophy hunting, recognizing the distinction between strictly regulated sustainable use and illegal exploitation of wildlife linked to international organized crime. For example, as a consequence of the conservation benefits of black rhino (Diceros bicornis) as a hunting trophy, CITES allows trophies to be imported and exported, which is the only permitted trade in this species.
In territories where hunting has been prevented, the species have decreased. For example, in Kenya, due to the ban on hunting (and other ways of using wild animals for profit), in place since 1977, the country has lost between 60 and 70 percent of its large wild animals. As a result, the demand can only be met through the illegal market, which is mainly based on the killing of rhinos by poachers for the horns. The 2014 ban on trophy hunting in Botswana similarly highlights an increase in poaching.
Most of the individuals hunted (for example 96% in South Africa in 2012) are often belonging to the most common and abundant species. The authors of the recent study entitled “Banning Trophy Hunting Will Increase Biodiversity Loss,” argue that where political and governance structures are in place, trophy hunting can help address the continuing loss of species. Trophy hunting can also finance reintroductions, such as the black wildebeest (Gnu gnou) and the southern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum simum) in South Africa.
(January 28, 2016)
Hunting Federation