by Sfourie » Thu Nov 08, 2012 6:18 pm
Daividc, I do not assume that hunting is wildlife management, it is a wildlife management strategy and a damn successful one at that. It is only because of the uninformed perceptions formed by the public, who prefer to classify wildlife management strategies on a like and dislike basis, that its value to conservation has remained misunderstood or completely ignored.
The expected outcomes of hunting as a wildlife management tool are not dissimilar to the expected outcomes of culling i.e. to keep the animal numbers below the ecological carrying capacity of the habitat. If a habitat’s ecological carrying capacity is exceeded the habitat will start to degrade. This will lower the ecological carrying capacity. Read the wildlife management priorities above. This makes perfect wildlife management sense!
In areas where there is not intense predation there may be too many males. The males will fight with each other to such an extent that little or no mating takes place. Remember males leave the maternal herds to either become solitary or form smaller bachelor herds this makes them more prone to predation. The male to female ratio may be 1:1 at birth but after just a couple of years this may be 1:4/5. Hunters more often than not select old animals that have passed on their genes, thus leaving the path open for the males who are still reductively active. This also makes perfect wildlife management sense.
As said before it is the commercial value of wildlife that has ensured their protection and that of their habitat and all the other species of fauna and flora in them. Hunting is many times more profitable than culling. For example let’s take a Kudu bull. An average Kudu bull has a live weight of 300 kg. Dressed carcass (innards, head, skin and hooves removed) weight will then be about 170 kg. Of that weight 40% will be skeletal weight. You should get around 90kg of meat of out of that Kudu bull. The average price of meat is around R30 per kg. Let’s also sell the skin for which you will probably receive R250 – 300. In total a culled kudu bull will bring in around R3000. Now if you would want to have your kudu bull hunted it would be considered cheap at R4500 – R5000. Average price is closer to R6000 – R7000 (R15 000 in some places if not more. Day rates of about R300 per day are also applicable). This money can be used to upgrade fences, build water holes, reintroduce game species that used to inhabit the area or manage your animals’ genetic diversity by introducing animals of the same species from elsewhere. This once again makes perfect wildlife management sense!
Earlier this year a rhino was hunted in KZN Hluwluwe. In fact back in 2004 CITES granted both South Africa and Namibia permission to hunt 5 black rhinos a year so long as the rhinos hunted were past their reproductive use. In rhino society two thirds of all the bulls will be dominant bulls with well defined territories. The other third is called “satellite bulls” and their presence in dominant bulls territories are tolerated as long as they remain submissive. When a rhino is usurped and loses his territory at an old age his days are numbered. All the bulls including the satellite bulls will continuously attack him. Hluwluwe received R960 000 for their rhino. This money is used by the reserve (presumably) to upgrade their fences, increase anti-poaching methods, introduce new rhinos to preserve their genetic diversity etc. This too makes perfect wildlife management sense.
Wildlife Management strategies such as hunting should not be classified on a like and dislike by the public but rather on a basis of what works and what does not. We as a forum advocate the use of education to change people’s perceptions in regards to reptiles particularly snakes. We give them all the relevant information and allow them to form an educated perception. As such, we should apply this to all facets of life, not just for what is convenient.
If it is your consensus that hunting has no value as a wildlife management strategy then I wonder whether you have taken all the relevant facts into account. Please do not take offence from my post, this is in no way meant to be an attack on you.
Regards
Stefan
A Shangaan legend states that any man resting or sleeping in the shade of a baobab will become eccentric and forever be enslaved by Africa and its wilderness, guess it's too late for me.