Theunis Botha, who was 51 years old, was a big-game hunter until he sadly passed away. He died because an African elephant crushed him during a hunt. While he was leading a group of hunters in Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe, they came across a herd of elephants. Three elephants charged at them, and Botha shot at them. But while everyone was distracted, a fourth elephant hit Botha from the side. She lifted him with her trunk just as another hunter shot her dead. She fell right on top of Botha.
Death of a Big Game Hunter
Botha started leading hunts in the 1980s to help pay for his Psychology and Anthropology degree. He eventually turned this into his own business called Theunis Botha Big Game Safaris. Their website says they focus on hunting leopards and lions in Africa using hounds. This method involves trained dogs that help bring the prey closer to the hunters. His company often shared pictures and videos of Botha and his fellow hunters with their kills. His business expanded from Zimbabwe to Botswana, Namibia, and Mozambique.
Botha left behind a wife and five kids. After he died, his community shared their condolences on social media. However, these heartfelt messages faced controversy from people who disagreed with his hunting profession.
The Threat Against African Elephants
The International Union for Conservation of Nature states that African elephants are considered vulnerable. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were millions of them in Africa, but now only about 350,000 remain. This decline is mainly due to habitat loss as humans take over their land. This situation takes away their resources and stops them from moving freely across large areas. Climate change also poses a threat to their habitats and their access to food and water.
One more reason for this big drop is the fights with humans. When farmers and elephants clash over crops, it leads to many deaths on both sides. Then there are poachers. The hunting that isn’t sustainable, especially for their ivory tusks, is causing the African elephant numbers to fall sharply. The illegal ivory trade hits African elephants hard, as the World Wildlife Fund says that thousands of elephants are killed by poachers each year.
Trophy Hunting African Elephants to Save Them?
A surprising idea has come up to save African elephants: let wealthy trophy hunters pay to hunt some elephants and use that money for conservation and to help local communities. The idea is that locals won’t have to resort to poaching to make a living.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature backs this plan. They say, “Well-managed trophy hunting can bring in money and encourage people to protect and restore wild populations, keep land for conservation, and safeguard wildlife from poaching.”
Hunting trips in Zimbabwe can cost more than $37,000. Plus, hunters pay around $14,500 for each elephant they kill.
According to Melville Saayman, a tourism and economics professor at North-West University in South Africa, animal populations grow in places where hunting is allowed. The animals are more at risk where hunting is banned.
“From a conservation point of view, wildlife is not doing well, and one of the reasons for this is because hunting creates huge value. People protect what is valuable to them. And if hunting helps them get money and other goods from the animal, it is certainly in their best interests to look after the animals,” he wrote.
Supporting Photography Safaris
However, conservation supporters say that tourists who want to see live animals bring in more money. The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust believes that a live elephant can earn around $23,000 each year.
“It’s not possible to sustainably take from a species that’s getting smaller,” said Sebastian Troeng, who is the executive vice president of Conservation International. “The idea that killing elephants helps them doesn’t make sense.”
Wayne Pacelle, who is the president of the Humane Society of the United States, agrees with this idea. “You shouldn’t be doing unethical things to make money,” he stated.
He also mentions that using money from hunting to help local people and conservation isn’t really true. For example, Zimbabwe’s government has corruption, and its villages are still poor.
“It’s laughable to think that somehow they have strict controls in Zimbabwe,” Pacelle said.
Sources
- “Veteran big game hunter crushed to death by elephant in Zimbabwe.” CBS News. Cydney Adams. May 22, 2017
- “African Elephant Kills Big Game Hunter Theunis Botha By Falling On Top Of Him.” All that’s Interesting. Annie Garau. May 22, 2017
- “Why Elephants Are Under Threat.” Tree Hugger. Russell McLendon. June 18, 2020
- “Is Trophy Hunting Helping Save African Elephants?” National Geographic. Adam Cruise. November 17, 2015
- “Does hunting elephants help conserve the species?” ABC News. Stephanie Ebbs. November 18, 2017
