Think before you write a bad lodge review

Imagine an idyllic, ten bedded lodge in the African wilderness. Before you booked your safari you might have seen images of the accommodation and you have seen pictures of the game drive vehicle. You probably also have seen photos of the food that gets presented. All in all you have a pretty good idea where you will be going and what to expect. And of course you had a sniff of the wildlife that you are going to see.

The manager(s)

If you happen to book an accommodation that belongs to a chain of lodges, chances are slim that you get information about the managers that are running the place.
So here you arrive and for the first time you meet your managers while checking in to your accommodation. The majority of them are nice. But it depends on the qualities of the managers and your expectations whether you get satisfaction out of your bush experience. In order to understand what I mean I have to give you a brief breakdown of the skills a lodge manager in Africa needs.

(S)he needs:
- People skills (yes, safari guests can be very demanding)
- Technical skills (those fridges and generators do break down in the bush)
- Staff skills (many lodge staff hardly had any education and need guidance)
- First-Aid skills (guests do get heart attacks in the bush)
- Cooking skills (African cooks do well but often need supervision)
- Housekeeping skills (your lodge is basically a small hotel)
- Logistical skills (transportation of goods and people is expensive and needs planning)
- Wildlife skills (guests expect a manager to know the difference between an elephant and a zebra)
- Photography skills (talking angles and light and explaining new cameras is part of the routine)
- Bookkeeping skills (when to order what and keeping track of costs is important)
- Socializing skills (guests expect to be entertained)

Seeing this list it is not strange that safari companies are often looking for couples to run their accommodations since the workload can be shared. There is however another important aspect about employing a couple: how many people would want to work in the bush when their partner sits in civilization many kilometers away?
To summarize the above, lodge managers need to be doctor, wildlife guide, psychologist, bookkeeper, electrician, referee, barflies and on top of that manager. Needless to say that it is basically impossible to find people that are good in all these qualifications.
This means that companies will look for couples with some knowledge in every field and that a safari company can only be very happy if one of the two excels in a particular field.

The safari guest

So what do you expect from the managers? ‘Nothing more’ than that you have no complaints or are you the one that expects the managers to host you all the time and act on the snap of a finger? Do you want to be treated as if sleeping at the Waldorf Astoria in New York or do you realize that you are in the African bush? I know you paid (a lot of) money for the trip, but looking at the above list clearly shows that your managers have quite a bit on their plate and a lot can go wrong. Entertain yourself during the day and interact as much as possible with your guide. Every minute you spend with your manager should be seen as a bonus. And remember, lots of managers work 2-3 months in a row before getting leave, so they are sometimes tired.
Oh yes, before I forget. Be careful when referring a lodge to a friend purely because of management. The workload is tough and many managers and couples won’t last much longer than 3-4 years and might have left by the time your friends arrive!

I am very curious to hear what you find most important in a manager during your stay in Africa….

Feathered doesn’t mean boring.

On average not a hell of a lot of people are interested in birds when they start their safari and unfortunately it is always the Big 5 that seem to take centre stage. You as a tourist will quickly find out that if you only have to rely on the Big 5, that your safari is going to be a pretty dull one. And that is when our feathered friends come in and can spice up your safari experience with colour, action and music.

It was tough for me to learn about African birds when I tried to become a safari guide. Hundreds upon hundreds of birds are flying over the African continent and in the beginning I perceived them as animals that are just flying (most of the time!). How wrong could I be..

Over time as I got to know more and more birds, my interest in these truly amazing creatures grew steadily. Not only was I curious about their names, also colours, behaviour and calls proved to be of utmost importance during my career as a safari guide and many times birds indicated happenings of a bigger magnitude by guiding me towards kills or in detecting hidden leopards and snakes. I discovered that if I would start to point out only the colourful (big) ones and the ones with a specific behaviour, that my guests would change from ‘not interested’ to ‘curious’ and from ‘curious’ to ‘reasonably interested’. That is all I wanted, to teach them that there is a lot more to the wilderness than four-legged mammals.

To wet your appetite for birds I have written down some tips:

1. Ask your guide to stop if you see a particularly colourful or big bird.
2. Let him tell you what it is, how it lives and what it eats.
3. Although I am not a fan of tick-lists, use one if it helps you to remember birds.
4. Once you get to know the obvious birds, move on to the smaller chaps.
5. Make sure you carry binoculars to help identifying birds. It can be great fun.
6. Oh yes, a bird-guide is of big help and allows you to still have a look if the real bird has flown.

As a small introduction I have added some video footage of some interesting birds. Enjoy!

Excels in colour!

Excels in colour as well!

Excels in pointing you towards a kill!

Excels in fishing techniques!

Excels in Colour and size!

Excels in numbers and housing!

Excels in ‘Grandeur’!

Overlooking the direction where the money is coming from!

Price hikes of safaris

Last month it was announced that the VAT in Botswana gets raised from 10% to 12%. Still not bad if you live in a country where one pays 19%. Yet, there is an outcry from the international tourism industry about this announcement by the Botswana government. Why?
It is quite simple actually.
You are a tour-operator doing your utmost in these difficult economic times to keep your head above water and you try to minimize your expenses to the extreme. You get prices from the local operators, you negotiate rates, decide on how to publish your competitive prices and you are ready when (amongst other tools) your brochure is printed. Than disaster strikes.
The African country that you focus on decides to hike its VAT with 2%. Not a big deal I hear you say, since 2% is not that much. But hang on, there is more to it.

Consequences

You as an operator might as well take your printed brochures back home and light the fireplace with it. All the work that went into developing it is down the drain since prices are not correct anymore.
The administrative system of the tour-operator has to be adjusted and all online prices will have to be changed accordingly. This all requires hours of manpower and therefore (lots) of money.

Example 1:
Client: “Good day. Here speaks Mr(s) X. I had a look at the brochure that you sent me and I would like to hear more about that 10 day safari to Botswana for € 5600,-“.
Tour-operator: “Good morning Mr(s) X. Let me start by saying that this particular trip, due to a VAT increase from the Botswana government, is not € 5600,-, but unfortunately € 5712,-”.
Client: “But your brochure says that the price is € 5600,-, surely you have to give me that trip for the price that you advertise it for? And I would like to come with a family of 5, that makes a difference of € 560,-!”.
Tour-operator: “We are very sorry about…….etc, etc.

Example 2:
Tour-operator: “Good day Mr(s) X. I am calling you with regards of your Botswana trip that you booked  two weeks ago and for which we still have to receive payment. Unfortunately I have to tell you that the invoice that we sent you is, due to an unexpected VAT increase in Botswana, not correct. We will send you a new invoice, which will unfortunately be € 560,- higher”.
Client: “What? Are you guys out of your mind? We have a verbal agreement on the price that we discussed…..etc, etc.

The result of the VAT-hike will be a very unhappy client and a very unhappy tour-operator. Since that client doesn’t know anything about Africa or Botswana, it is the tour-operator that looks like a fool and looks unprofessional. Clients are clients and it is not strange that if we confront them with a price DE-crease (like the price reductions in Kenya after the 2008 violence), that they don’t mind and become all ears. But price IN-creases are seen in a completely different light.

Are price increases right or wrong?

The fact that African countries increase their prices or their VAT percentages is not a problem in itself. In difficult economic times we do the same in the western-world. But what is a problem is the timing. If, in the case of Botswana, a reasonable time-frame could be implemented and the international tourism industry would get a warning that in six month time this and this is going to change, a  lot of anger, unbelieve and mis-communication could be avoided. Not only would that benefit safari clients and the oversees operators, but also the image of the African countries themselves.

If you think you gonna lose weight, forget it.

Food. Not only is food a necessity in our lives, it is also something that we seem to be most worried about when we are to book a safari. Images of starvation and death unfortunately still reflect the general state of Africa and this is most likely the reason for tourists to ask what they will eat during their Africa trip. Rest assured, you will be surprised what you are about to encounter and I can guarantee you that you are going to consume more calories than staying at home.

Food variety

The fact that a big part of the African population has a rather monotonous diet, does not mean that the continent has nothing to offer. On the contrary: there are many areas in Africa that are very fertile and that are very capable of producing not only good quantities but also very good qualities of a wide range of products.
The cooks that are employed on your camping trip or at the lodge where you are going to stay are in most cases well trained. Not only are these cooks well trained, they also have access to most items which are unaffordable for the men in the street. Not so strange if you realize that the tourism industry is one of the mayor income sources for African countries and that the demands from tourists are high.

This can also create problems. Since the demands from tourists are high, it often means that the best fresh products are taken out of the supermarkets first (by the supermarket staff) for tourists and that the dented, bruised and stained products are left behind for the local supermarket visitors.

What you will eat on safari

Of course it depends on the kind of safari what the quantity and quality of your food will be. On an overland safari the food is normally not as decadent as in a five star lodge, although the quality in almost all cases is very good. To give you an idea about what to expect when you visit a star-rated lodge in Africa, I give you an average food breakdown that you can expect during the day.

Breakfast ( 06.00h)

The eating machine inside yourself is fired up by presenting you eggs, serials, fruit-juices, sausages, bacon, coffee/tea, freshly baked bread, yoghurts.

Coffee break during your morning drive (09.00h)

To make sure that the flame keeps burning you can chose from coffee and tea and a variety of biscuits or freshly baked scones.

Lunch (12.00h)

It is nearing midday and since by now you are ‘almost starving’ you get served warm or cold dishes that are accompanied by salads, pastas and desserts like cake or cheese. Of course you can finish off with coffee, tea, juices or alcoholic drinks. Eat enough since you have to wait another 3,5 hours before you get something again!

High-Noon-Tea (15.30h)

To make sure that you will not go out with an empty stomach (imagine that!), you have to possibility to stuff yourself once more with fruits, cakes, pies, cheeses and again juices, coffee, tea or alcoholic drinks. (I know that piece of cake is too big, but you are on a holiday so eat it. Can you feel it getting stuck in your esophagus? No wonder, your stomach is still full….)

Sundowner time (18.30h)

During the best part of the day, when the sun is setting, you are being served (alcoholic)drinks of your choice. And wait, what is that noise? A rumbling stomach?
Snacks will get unpacked and you can fill up the holes that start to appear in your stomach.

Dinner (20.00h)

To make sure you get through the night, a sumptuous dinner is being served. Often starters and desserts make your dinner a three-course one. Oops, and don’t forget to top of the day with a little night-cap.

Your problem on safari should not be what you are going to eat, but how much you are going to eat. The most heard complaint is therefore the enormous amounts of food and the impossibility to resist it. We are not even talking about the fact that during your safari you sit 90% of the day…….

My tip: resist the temptations of eating too much. A bloated feeling gives you bad eyesight and that is something you need on every safari!

Image Steve Bailey

It is the first of March and today I am going to make someone happy!
A while back it was announced that ‘a canvas image of your choice’ could be won amongst the subscribers of the PlanYourSafari blog.

It is my pleasure to announce that Melody Rutkowski from the USA has won the draw and that she will be able to choose an image of her liking from professional photographer Steve Bailey, which will be printed on canvas. The canvas will be shipped from South Africa to her home address. The winner has already been notified by email.

I wish to thank all subscribers of the blog for following all the blog posts and I hope you will remain doing so in future. It would even be better if you tell your friends and family about the PlanYourSafari blog. As you did yourself, they are able to subscribe and receive all articles by email by filling in the subscribe form on the blog homepage.

News!

Safari Forum

With excitement I can already tell you that I am working on a Safari-Forum which will become live in the next two weeks. The forum will enable you to put forward your questions and give you the ability to participate in (safari)discussions. One of the features will be that you can ‘befriend’ other forum users and that you can create your own profile.
I really think that this forum will give you the opportunity to actively get involved in topics that have to do with African safaris and I am looking forward to meet you there!

Art Gallery

Apart from the forum I am working on a new category called ‘Wildlife Art’. In this category I will feature professional artists that create amazing paintings and that have a very strong affinity with Africa and its wildlife. Once this Gallery is completed you will be able to enter it through clicking the appropriate button on the right hand side of the homepage.

Announcement

Due to the work that I have to do on the site and due to other activities, you will receive fewer articles in the coming two weeks. After that the normal routine should be back into place.

Once again congratulations to Melody Rutkowski!

Cheers to you all and enjoy your day,

Johan Knols

Environment should bring safari parties together

This morning I read an article about the tourism company &Beyond opening a semi-permanent camp in the Moremi Game Reserve. Big deal I hear you thinking. But hang on, there is a lot more to it than what meets the eye.
Moremi Game Reserve receives three different kind of guest: Those that visit the permanent lodges, the ones that participate in ‘mobile (tented)safaris’ and the ones that choose to do a so called ‘self-drive safari’. With all these tourists wanting to see one of the most spectacular areas of Africa, Moremi is the busiest protected area in Botswana. This means that strict rules and regulations had to be drawn up in order to maximize the income out of tourism and to protect the environment at the same time. No more permanent lodges were to be build in the Game Reserve and the amount of public- and private campsites had to remain stable.

Public campsites

Botswana is very popular with people that rent their own vehicle and make a trip on their own. The fact that in the northern part of the country Moremi Game Reserve and Chobe National Park are linked together makes it extremely suitable to spend several days on end in the wilderness, especially after the public campsites were revamped and the facilities were upgraded.
But over the years Botswana has become a victim of its own success. The demand for spots on the public campsites increased rapidly and the terribly under-equipped department of Wildlife and National Parks could not longer deal with the work-load. Add to this that so called ‘tag-along’ safaris made their appearance (a safari where a leading (foreign tour-operator )vehicle takes out tourists that drive their own vehicle) and the result became too many people camping in one spot, over-bookings or bookers were sent away because campsites were ‘full’, as in reality they were not. The fact that there is no policing at all in the reserve only aggravated the situation.
But the public campsites had to deal with more than only self-drives. The demand from the cheaper mobile safari operators also increased. Camping on the private tour-operator sites is more costly than camping on the public campsites, so the operators that wanted to offer more affordable safaris also started to look at the public campsites. Needless to say that they think that they have right of way over self-drives from foreign countries. They pay taxes in Botswana, employ local staff and the spin-off effect of their operations remains in the country. The Department of Wildlife and National Parks and the Botswana Tourism Department are now faced with the question who has priority when booking a public campsite: The local safari-operator or the tag-along-selfdrive tourist. And although the outcome is not official as yet, it is clear from the e-mail below who will get priority in the future. This email was send from the Botswana Tourism Department to a foreign operator who organizes self-drive safaris.

“Good afternoon,

Thank you for email regarding the above. Kindly be informed that the government of Botswana is still to decide on the matter. However, such a measure if taken is only for the reasons to safeguard the environment from degradation by uncontrolled movement of visitors as well as to reduce the influx of visitors in the same area at the same time. This measure, if finalized by the authorities, will be to empower locals in the tourism industry as a way of employment creation and improve the lives of the rural community.

Please note that the issue is still discussed and the situation still stands as it was before until we the final word from the officials. Self-drive visitors are still welcome in our beautiful country.

Kind Regards
Clement Nsala (Botswana Tourism)”

Although I am in favor of supporting the local operators, it is clear that the self-drive segment within Botswana’s tourism has had its longest time.

Mobile Operator Sites

For those tourists that can afford a more expensive camping experience, the option is available to book with a company that is a member of HATAB (Hospitality and Tourism Association of Botswana). Instead of camping on the (very) busy public campsites, they have the luxury of camping on a private spot in the bush without facilities. This means that the safari-operator has to truck in everything, from tents, tables and chairs to toilets and showers.
The private spots can be found throughout the reserves and parks and the idea is to facilitate the mobile operators in creating a string of private sites that make traveling and moving camps possible. Again due to the popularity of Botswana as a destination, did HATAB request an increase in the amount of sites. An increase that has always been turned down by the Botswana government.
With pressure on the existing camp-sites mounting, HATAB created a code of conduct and those companies that don’t apply with those rules and regulations can be expelled from the organization by a decision of the other members. The whole idea is that members control themselves and that the impact on the environment is being reduced to a minimum.
Amongst others, there are two clear rules that are important:

“1/  Mobile Operator Sites may NOT be used for the sale of individual bed nights.

2/ The guide (s) and guests on a Mobile safari must all travel together. The equipment or back up crews must follow the same or similar itinerary as the guests. No equipment may remain in an area ( defined as a grouping of MOS in an area of the National Parks or Game Reserves under the current HATAB reservation system ) on a semi-permanent or permanent basis. Only Mobile Operators who fit this description will be able to use the MO sites. Any operator who is perceived by the HATAB mobile sector to be erecting or operating any form of permanent or semi-permanent camp will be removed from the MO sites and disciplined accordingly”.

It is very obvious that &Beyond is violating these rules. Nevertheless have they already announced their new program ‘Moremi Under Canvas’ online as well as offline.
Where normally the HATAB members deal with their own problems, I now foresee a very complicated issue: the company involved has violated a rule, is going against the whole mobile safari ideology, but might get protection from above since it is big and influential.
It is very likely that the minister of tourism has to intervene and since it is clear how he thinks about the mobile safari sector as a whole, it means that more dark clouds are gathering above the mobile safari sector of Botswana and that its future is even more uncertain than it was before.

Safari Lodges

The prices of the Botswana safari lodges belong to one of the highest in Africa, but the demand for rooms is still high. This is the reason why the government decided to give the go-ahead to create more of the same and pump-up its tourism revenue. Licenses were handed out to safari companies and more lodges mushroom out of the dry Kalahari sands.
So what is happening to the ‘low-volume-high-cost’ principle? That is of course perfectly in place. If the emphasis is on expensive lodges that mostly have 16 beds per lodge, nothing is wrong. But it is a known fact that many government officials have shares in the tourism companies that are so eager to build.

The future

So what does all the above mean for the (near) future?
If the government sticks to the principle of ‘low-volume-high-cost-tourism’, something has to change and the easiest way to release the pressure on a vulnerable environment is to cut down on the self-drives. The big question is whether the mobile safari industry will be the next victim if the government would have to intervene in the problems of HATAB. Would the company that offers one night safaris get what it wants, than I predict that more mobile safari companies will follow its example. This certainly means that the mobile safari industry also had its longest time and that Botswana will become only a place with lodges for the wealthy and rich. But that might well be in the interest of the government officials who already have a steady finger in the lodge-pie!

There is a snake in the grass and I show you where!

If you book your safari through a travel-agent or tour-operator, the chances are almost 100% that insurances come up. Not in the first place because your travel advisor wants you to return in one piece, but more because they get a very nice piece of the cake (up to 30%!) for everybody that takes out an insurance.
You get confronted with  Travel Insurance and Cancellation Insurance and it is my advice that you take both.

Cancellation Insurance

Cancellation Insurance is important, simply because making a safari is quite expensive and it would be a pity to lose that money because your mother in law decided to get an electric shock under the hairdryer and needed to be hospitalized. You don’t want to lose money because of her, do you? Apart from her, there could be a million other events that could prevent you from travelling, so take this insurance. And yes, I know it hurts paying for something that might never happen. But then again…

Travel Insurance

Your Travel Insurance is normally a bit more comprehensive as it covers your luggage, (local) medical expenses and maybe even flight expenses to bring you back to your home country.
I want to focus on the medical expenses in the rest of this article, and in particular what happens when you are in the bush and something unfortunate would happen to you.

Medical coverage

So now you have taken out a Travel Insurance and you are under the impression that nothing can happen to you and when it does, everything will be taken care of. Yes, that is normally the case. But what is of utmost importance here is TIME.
Normal procedure is that, in case you need medical assistance, your tour-company, African lodge owner or anybody else needs to contact your insurance company for an airlift clearance. Depending on where you are on safari, which is normally in a remote place with little infrastructure, this could take way too long. Bad telephone lines, miss-communication or simply head-offices of tour-companies that are closed at night, could mean a life-threatening delay. So even though you have a travel insurance, there is no guarantee for swift action. And here we have the snake under the grass.

There are three ways to avoid the above scenario. Either you always travel with a gold-card and you know that, no matter the medical- and flight costs, you are able to afford them and then later try to get it back from your insurance company, you travel with a company that is also the owner of its own aircrafts and they guarantee airlifts OR you enquire if the (African) company you travel with has an additional insurance for emergencies. The last option is the one that I want to bring under your attention.
I know that in Botswana smaller companies can take out an insurance that deals with the time-delay. Instead of trying to contact the insurance company oversees, the patient will be flown out (of the bush) immediately, so the crucial first 10-50 minutes will not be waisted.

So next time you travel to Africa, enquire with your local operator if the company in Africa is insured against air-lifts.

Happy traveling and stay healthy!

Bird-and mammal checklists

Checklists can be found everywhere. In the room of your safari accommodation to the game drive vehicle that takes you out on safari. Most of the time these pieces of paper are need and clean, sometimes they are wrinkled and greasy from having been opened but not used. What is this obsession with lists that we have and what is the thrill of using them? Do they actually add something to your safari experience?
An overview.

Using lists

Put a checklist in anybody’s hand, anywhere in the world, and that person undergoes a complete transition from  being relaxed, social and approachable to high-strung, pre-occupied and absent. For some funny reason we are programmed in such a way that we can’t find ease as long as the whole list has not been ‘seen’ and not ticked off. The fewer ticks are needed for the completion of the list the more obsessed we seem to get.

Advantages of using lists

If you are the unlikely kind of person that is eager to look up things after a game drive, the lists can be a good help in reminding you what you have hopefully seen and direct you to the right bird or mammal in reference books. Most of the times the checklists also give you the Latin name of the specie, which in the case of bird identification can be extremely handy. If you are in the possession of a bird or mammal reference book yourself, I would advise you to make notes in those books instead of using the checklist. I once saw a guest carry a bird book that he took on every safari. In front of the species he had seen he had put the date and the location where the bird was spotted. I thought that was great!

Disadvantages of using lists

Most times the lists are not used as a reminder or tool but they become a distraction. The urge to find that last bird or mammal on the list becomes so strong that anything other than the missing specie becomes a disturbing factor in our hunt for the ultimate success of being able to say ‘we saw everything’. It is not anymore about the beauty and behavior of a new specie or of that of species we have already encountered, it is only about being able to make the tick.
Funnily enough, when you ask someone that completed the whole list if they remember what a specific bird or antelope looked like, that they can only shrug their shoulders. The fact of ticking off the specie was more important than actually having a close look at it and taking it in.

What to do with the lists after a safari?

Good question! Other than sticking it in a photo-album together with your safari images, I have no idea. And who makes albums nowadays? Most of the time images are stored on a computer anyway. So unless you have a fine purpose for your lists after a safari, I would not even consider taking one with on a game drive. Rather sit back, ignore doing something that feels like a task and enjoy the beauty of Africa without getting distracted.

Happy spotting!!

And how to avoid it

Numerous times I have seen it with people who for the first time enter the African wilderness: The contagious excitement when they encounter their first wildlife…. and the fierce battle for their cameras that follows.
Even when you tell them to keep cameras at hand, those things always seem to be in difficult to reach places, as if they lead a life of their own. The damn thing is always in the wrong spot at the wrong time.

The ‘bum-shot’

By the time the cameras are focused on the desired subject and your game drive vehicle looks as if a bomb exploded, it dawns on everybody that they are dealing with a living thing that tends to have a habit of moving. And always in the opposite direction!
Since everybody in the car made a great effort to get all the camera gear in position and everybody is under the firm impression that they will not see another animal for the duration of their safari, pictures are taken anyway. After the ‘shutter-speed-smoke’ has cleared the disappointment becomes apparent when the freshly made digital images are viewed back: impala bum, lion bum, zebra bum……. . Bums left right and centre. You can’t even see if the damn thing has a horn or a trunk!

Some facts

Especially when you are a first-timer, it takes a while and some practice to spot wildlife in time. You will find out that after a few days you notice a lot more and you will start to notice it earlier. This obviously increases your chances of shooting great images tremendously.
Don’t panic if you missed a chance. In most national parks wildlife is abundant and by making a group effort, you will see another impala. Trust me!

Guide to avoiding bum-shots

-          Have your camera gear ready at all times.

-          Place your camera within easy reach.

-          Make sure your favorite lens is attached.

-          Don’t yell at your guide/ driver to “STOP!” ( a bum-shot is guaranteed!)

-          Don’t ask your guide to drive up to the subject fast.

-          Start using your camera early while approaching the subject. You can always delete images.

-          This might sound harsh, but keep your mouth SHUT!

-          Don’t make noises to get the subject’s attention.

-          Be patient. Let the subject get used to the vehicle and find its normal routine again.

Since a lot of people reading my blog have been on safari before, I would love to get  your BUM-SHOTS. You can add them to the post by uploading an image via the uploader under the comments-box!!

This is my second post on this subject, please read the first one if you are just joining this discussion.

As a recap – “canned” lion hunting (defined as a “hunter” shooting a trophy lion from a captive bred source) is a big industry in South Africa. The breeders provide the animals, they are put in a fenced enclosure, and the “hunter” is then given the opportunity to blast away. Alternatively, the lion is drugged, driven to a “wildish” area (the hunter doesn’t know where he is anyway, looks like Africa to him…) and then he is given the same opportunity. Or she, quite a lot of hunters are women.

The practice of “canned hunting” of lions came under recent review in South Africa – the former Minister of Environment took a bit of a stance against it, the breeders complained, it went to court. The initial case was upheld by the courts, but was subsequently overturned by a court of appeals. So the practice will continue for now, perhaps with a few, a very few, controls.

I decided to do a bit of further research on the subject. CITES, the international regulatory organization that is “supposed” to regulate international trade in endangered (and vulnerable) species by issuing permits for export and then tracking where those exports go, has provided figures that make up this next graph of exported trophies from wild lions shot as trophies in South Africa versus “canned” lions.

Unfortunately, published numbers are only available until 2005. The CITES record keepers need a wakeup call maybe? Anyway, you will see that “canned” lion hunting trophy exports started in 1994, and have gained in popularity since. This is probably because “canned” lions are made available to the trophy hunter at a much reduced cost compared to the expense involved in embarking on a wild lion hunt. A “canned” lion, if you are a canny hunter, can probably be supplied for roughly $20,000 versus a wild lion costing at least three or four times that. Of course a female lion goes for a real bargain price, you are forbidden to shoot a wild one these days.

Why 1994? Look at the trend of increase in wild lion hunts in South Africa before that year. Someone had a bright idea that spread rapidly…

Remember, these are export figures. Nobody keeps records of lion hunts sold to trigger happy South African citizens who want a wall decoration.

So, where do these “canned” exported lions go? By far the most significant importing country was the United States, followed by Spain, and in lesser numbers (not in any order) brave hunters living in Portugal, Germany, Norway, Poland, Russia, Austria, the United Arab Emirates, and…the UK.

So what can we extract from this? I have a few choice conclusions, maybe you could add more.

• Hunters from the United States basically want a lion served up on a plate. They care little about “ethical hunting” and opt for the take-away shortcut. This is despite the fact that a bill called the “Sportsmanship in Hunting Act of 2005”was introduced in the US Senate to restrict canned hunting. One of the provisions reads as follows: “Whoever, in or substantially affecting interstate or foreign commerce, knowingly transfers, transports, or possesses a confined exotic animal, for the purposes of allowing the killing or injuring of that animal for entertainment or for the collection of a trophy, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both” (note that this does not prohibit anyone from “collecting” a confined animal from abroad – bit of an oversight?).
• Canned hunting has been banned in 20 US States. The other 30 could probably not be bothered, one of them being New York.
• The Safari Club International, a prominent pro-hunting lobby in the United States and abroad, accepts lions killed in “canned” hunts for inclusion in record books as well as in award categories! “Look honey, I got a prize for shooting a big one in an enclosure!”.  SCI is a hard-driving bunch of individuals, membership includes former US Presidents for example. They push hard for the “right” to shoot lions in Africa, and employ scientists to back their claims of high numbers of lions remaining in Africa. Strangely, they also espouse the concept of “ethical” hunting, and the concept of a “fair chase” where the animal has a chance to escape the hunter. I guess that could mean the “canned” lions could theoretically have the opportunity of burrowing under or jumping over the fence, or maybe quickly shaking off their administered drugs?

So what can we do about this? Well, the first thing is to publish and disseminate this information. If the US bans canned hunting at home, they should do so abroad as well. I suppose that if you come home with a “canned” lion trophy and then get locked up for a year, it might just deter a few US hunters – maybe. The European Union is lagging behind in any kind of “canned” hunting import legislation. While the South African courts hem and haw, import regulations would render their strangely inappropriate deliberations meaningless.

These are the pressure points we should perhaps be applying? So here is your challenge – instead of expressing your outrage in terms of comments on blogs, take individual action. Walk away from your computer and into the office of your congressman, member of parliament, senator, whatever. The internet cannot match the impact of your knock on their door.

Additional sources:

Wikipedia

Animal rights Africa