Archive Archives - Page 16 of 16

Taxidermist profile: Limpopo Taxidermy

Nov 6, 2020 | Archive, News

Contact: (Owner/Manager) Lestie Cloete-Trollip
Mobile: +27 82 667 8675
Contact Email: Limpopo.taxidermy@vodamail.co.za
Website: limpopotaxidermy.com

Tell us a little about your operation

How it started and how we got into the industry…

I am Lestie Cloete-Trollip, Co-Owner of Limpopo Taxidermy in Phalaborwa. My interest in Taxidermy art started in high school already. I did two beginner courses at the Transvaal Museum in Pretoria in a school holiday in my Grade 10 year. After Matric I got a job at Zululand Taxidermy (I feel honoured to have had Coenie Swanepoel as mentor and teacher in this trade) as an apprentice where I was taught the technical side of taxidermy and other tricks of the trade.

How many years have you been in the business?

In October 2004, my father Herman Cloete and I opened our taxidermy in Phalaborwa. We are still a small taxidermy operation so that we can be hands on with the quality of each trophy that our clients receive.

What are your favourite mounts & why?

I really enjoy doing the smaller full mounts like small cats and small antelope. So far my favourite is the Genet! I also enjoyed the times when I had the opportunity to do leopard, cheetah and lion and scarcer animals like Oribi and Pangolin. I like doing shoulder mounts and even a common antelope like Impala stays interesting to do when realising each individual is unique in colour, markings in the face, interesting horn shapes etc.

Current processes offered

Pick up & collect trophies: No. Trophies need to be delivered

Own tanning facilities: NO
Forms -bought in

Delivery time (approximate)

Dip and Pack: 4-6months
European mounts: 6-8 months
Shoulder mounts: 10-12 months
Full mounts: 10-16 months

Trophy Gallery

In pursuit of the king of the Sneeuberg

Nov 6, 2020 | Archive, News

A couple of months ago I was down in Graaff Reinet for a Greywing Partridge shoot with my good friend Tim Van Heerden from Karoo Wingshooting (which is a hunt anyone interested in wingshooting must go and do, but that is a story for another time) and we got to talking about Vaal Rhebuck while we were prowling the mountains in pursuit of those little grey missiles that would flush in front of the pointers noses. I had never hunted, let alone seen a Vaalie (the nickname that we give them) and was really keen on the possibility of hunting one of these small king’s of the mountains.

I got back to my home base in Limpopo, after our very successful wingshoot, and immediately started planning the next trip down for the Vaalie. I had recently purchased a custom built .308 on a Warrior chassis that I had done some load development for and was keen on stretching its legs on a real hunt and not just the range. A friend of mine offered to fly us down at the cost of the fuel and I immediately jumped at the opportunity, as it would make the trip a lot more comfortable. We set the dates and all that was left was to sit back and wait for the days to pass.

It was finally the week of the trip and we were due to fly early Thursday morning to be in Graaff Reinet by mid day to be able to still get in an afternoon hunt, as we knew we would need all the time we could get to have the best chance at success in the mountains. Wednesday afternoon came and the weather forecast for Thursday was not looking promising and I had to make the call to cancel the flight and opted to rather leave at 3am by car to be in Graaff Reinet at the scheduled time. I was very glad I did as the weather was not favorable anywhere along the 10 hour drive and it would have delayed us by at least a day if I had not left by car that morning. Not a great way to start the safari, but I was not discouraged.

I arrived at our accommodation, close to where the Eastern, Northern and Western Cape converge, at around 1pm and immediately unpacked and got ready to head out to the mountains. Tim was already there and had set up a great lunch for us to enjoy before heading out. After we finished eating we left for the farm we would be hunting at for the next couple of days and upon arriving we picked up Ronan, the farmer’s son, who would be our mountain guide for the hunt as he knew the farm inside out. Ronan and his family farm with cattle, sheep and goats. The farm has no high fences anywhere and all the game animals are free to roam wherever they like, making this hunt a truly 100% free range experience that would add to the challenge and allure of the Vaal Rhebuck.

That first afternoon we saw a lot of Vaalies and mountain reedbuck, but nothing worth shooting, at least not on the first afternoon. As we headed off the mountain some very cold weather started to move in and shrouded the mountain in a thick cloud as we reached the vehicle.

The next morning we got up at around 6am and had a quick breakfast, and as we looked outside we saw that the clouds from the previous day were still low in the mountains and there was a very gusty South East wind, which normally brings moisture to that area. Not discouraged by the weather we set off to pick up Ronan again, who wanted to look at a different mountain that he hadn’t been to for a while, but which held some good potential. We left the vehicle at the base of the mountain range and started our hike to the top. We immediately got into some Vaalies, but once again there was no ram worth shooting in the group. This trend went on for the rest of the morning, but I must say that I did not expect to see so many Vaalies in one area. It was truly spectacular to watch them through the binoculars and spotting scope.

As we headed back to the vehicle for lunch some more weather moved in and it started to sleet-rain on us. It all sounds miserable, but how can anyone be miserable when out in “big sky” country pursuing ones passion; the scenery was truly breathtaking. After lunch we decided to drive to another part of the farm where Ronan had seen some Vaalie, but never been able to hunt any. We did see some but they were out of the area long before we could even make a plan to stalk up to them. The Vaal Rhebuck has amazing eyesight and usually spotted us long before we ever saw them, and we usually only spotted their white tails as they ran up the mountain and over the other side. Vaalies don’t stick around for long and definitely don’t ask questions or wait around to find out the answer. Another day with many kilometers of rough terrain under our boots, and even though we still did not have our quarry we were not discouraged as we still had one full day left.

It was now Saturday morning and our final day in the mountains. Again, we got up at 6am and had breakfast. The weather at our accommodation was consistent with the previous day’s weather, but fortunately as we crested over the hills towards the mountains we would hunt, it cleared up and was a very pleasant morning. We decided to go back to the mountain we hunted the Thursday afternoon as we had seen a Vaalie that would probably measure about 7-7 1/2 inches, which is a very respectable trophy in anyone’s books. Having discussed a game plan with Ronan we set off and made our way up the mountain. As we peered over a ridge close to the top of the mountain we spooked a herd of 14 (!) mountain reedbuck, which hightailed it down the other side never to be seen again. We inched our way forward and to our surprise there were two Vaal Rhebuck rams still grazing down in the gully where the mountain reedbuck had come from. We got into a position where I could set up and see if it was a shooter. We judged the bigger of the two rams to be about 6 inches and I must say that I was very tempted to shoot. But after all the effort we had put in so far it did not seem right to shoot a sub-par and still-young animal just to be able to say I shot one. I would rather go home empty handed, but with the knowledge that I did everything I could to get one, than to go home with something I wasn’t happy with, so we let the two of them spot us and move off. We continued on and had reached the other end of the mountain before seeing anything again, and all we saw was the white tails of Vaalies that had spotted us long before we saw them (as usual), disappearing over the edge never to be seen again. We were now starting to worry and get discouraged, as there was no sign of the Vaalie we had seen two days before. Heading back on the other side of the mountain we came across the 6 inch ram and his younger companion, and had a serious look at him again. But it still did not feel right. As we watched them disappear off the mountain to our left Tim spotted something on the highest peak about 1km away.

It was the Vaalie that we had been after. He was laying right on the skyline overlooking his kingdom, and had clearly been watching us all morning knowing that we had not seen him and thus we were not a threat. We quickly made a plan for Tim and I to try and stalk him from the back side as Ronan headed to a vantage point where he would try and guide us to the location of the Vaalie. As we headed around and up the far side we unfortunately spooked some Vaalie females that we had not seen prior, and they ran up the mountain. Ronan let us know that our ram had gotten up to look at what was going on. We rushed to get up the mountain in the hope that we could spot the ram before he saw us, but as we crested the mountain he and his companions caught a glimpse of us and headed down the other side. We hurried to the edge of the mountain in the hopes that we could see them as they stopped to give us one last look before disappearing for good. They stopped at 500m and I picked out the one with the biggest horns and squeezed the trigger. A clean miss! I was devastated! There went my only chance so far and I had not taken enough wind drift into consideration. We were now not far from the vehicle and seeing as it was already half-past-one we decided to go down to the vehicle and grab some lunch. We called Ronan to come and meet us at the vehicle. We were only about half way down the mountain when Ronan, who was coming around the mountain from the bottom, contacted us and told us that he had spotted a large Vaalie, probably 8 inches plus, about 1 km away. This was a ram that we had not seen before and it got us excited. Ronan saw where the ram had bedded down; we could not spot him from our location, and he met us at the vehicle for a quick lunch.

Lunch was gobbled down quickly and we were ready to put a stalk on the bedded ram that Ronan had spotted. We proceeded around the base of the mountain hugging a small ledge that managed to conceal us well from the weary eyes of the Vaalie. Once we got to just below where Ronan believed he last saw it, we told him to go and peek over the ledge so it wasn’t too many people that could potentially spook the animal. He peered over the ledge. Nothing! My heart sank a bit but I was hopeful we were just in the wrong place, and we hadn’t heard or seen anything run away yet. Tim got up on the ledge and looked to the left with his binoculars and dropped to his knees whispering “big Vaalie to our left laying down!” and I leopard-crawled to a rock about 10m from our position to get a better view. Once I was set up I started to hear the Vaalie alarm bark and frantically started looking where it was coming from. These little creatures are so well adapted and camouflaged in their habitat that without movement they are invisible. Ronan helped guide me towards the direction of where the Vaalie was standing, as he was the only one who could see it at this point. I finally picked it up in my scope, it was facing me dead on and I remembered Tim saying that the frontal shot is a very difficult one as 4 inches left or right would be a miss on this small animal. He was starring right at me so there was no time to range him or even wait for him to turn, as he then would surely had disappeared up the mountain. I steadied the crosshairs high on his chest at the base of the neck and let the bullet fly. The sound of the bullet impacting was, at that point, one of the most amazing sounds to hear. The recoil took me off the animal and I lifted my head just in time to see the Vaalie go down after having run just a few meters up the mountain.

At that moment I felt Tim jump on me, congratulating and shaking me! I honestly was a bit in shock and couldn’t believe that we had finally done it. I never got a good look at his horns, however I did see that they were thick and passed the ears, because I was just focusing on getting steady and putting in a clean kill shot. Walking up that mountain for the last time was easier than I thought, and it must have been due to the adrenaline that was pumping through my veins. Getting up to a killed animal always holds a mix of sadness and happiness to me, and I am always thankful and filled with respect for the animal that has just given its life for me. Seeing the Vaalie for the first time up close I could not believe how small they actually are, and when I saw the horns on this one I knew he was something very special. I had never seen one up close before and thus didn’t want to have a go at judging the length but they were definitely above average. The fur is more like a rabbit’s fur than that of an antelope and that probably adds to the fact that they are so well camouflaged. Touching him and holding the horns for the first time felt surreal and only after we had set up for photos and started the walk back down the mountain to the vehicle did it really kick in what we had just accomplished. This is one of the trophies that I will cherish the most and definitely one that I have worked the hardest for. But after more than 40km of hiking in two-and-a-half days we had finally done it!

Tim was singing all the way to the vehicle, which lead me to believe there might still be something else he hasn’t told me yet. We got down the mountain, Ronan carrying the Vaalie on his shoulders, and Tim met us with the vehicles by the road. Tim, who also works for Karoo Taxidermy, wanted to get the innards out of the animal as quickly as possible to prevent hair slip as this trophy definitely deserved to be full mounted. Before we got to that it was time to finally measure our hard earned trophy. As Tim put the measuring tape on the horns and I saw the tape get longer and longer I waited in anticipation to see how long they were. 9 2/8^th – 9 inches in length and 2 6/8^th bases! We were all flabbergasted at what we had just achieved, and I say “we” because it truly was a team effort. Tim admitted to me that he was singing because when he saw the Vaalie laying there on the mountain he had a feeling it would be very close to 9 inches. To put 9 inches (which doesn’t sound like that much) into perspective, a 9 inch Vaalie is like shooting a 60 inch kudu bull! Adding the length and bases of the two horns together put it tied 24^th in the SCI Record Book rankings.

After the entrails were removed and we made our way back to the farm house to skin it properly, I looked back at the mountains which were the Vaalie’s kingdom and I thought to myself how privileged I was to be able to pursue such an amazing creature completely free range in its natural environment. Nothing can beat that experience and it will stay with me for the rest of my life. The king of the mountain had fallen but would not be forgot and will be forever preserved to show him the respect that he deserves and allow everyone to revel in his glory.

Hitting the long road back home I couldn’t help but think back to those days spent in the mountains and as hard as it was, it was also satisfying and nourishment for the soul. There is just something about being out in wide-open country pursuing a quarry that has every advantage over you – eyesight, hearing, smell etc – which speaks to the primal nature in our soul. I believe every human needs to tap into this primal instinct every now and then for our souls to stay healthy and whole, and what better way to do this than to pursue the king of the Sneeuberg Mountains.

Tim van Heerden was born and has spent most of his life in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Apart from being the marketing manager at Karoo Taxidermy in Graaff-Reinet, he offers bird hunting trips to clients from all over the world. He feels most at home in the highlands of the Karoo, especially behind a brace of English Pointers pursuing Greywing Francolin. He also offers Waterfowl hunts, as well as European-style driven Guineafowl hunts in South Africa to discerning clients.

www.karoowingshooting.co.za
wingshootafrica@gmail.com
082 929 5373

Hunting Namibia’s most formidable swordsman

Nov 6, 2020 | Archive, News

Daybreak finds us sitting close to the camel thorn fire, for the morning air is chilly. Soon the kettle boils and coffee is brewed. Another day on the arid hunting grounds awaits. My hunting friend Lance and I have pursued many animals with some success, but it is the gemsbok, Namibia’s most formidable swordsman, which Lance so dearly longs to track, test his skills against, and hunt…

This particular gemsbok has grazed throughout the night to escape the heat of the desert’s scorched lands. It now stands in the direct sun, with burning sand under its hoofs, shifting its weight now and again. It hasn’t had water on its blackened tongue for weeks. It has maintained its diet by scenting out roots and bulbs, and digging them out of the sand with its strong, sharp, heavy hoofs, quenching its thirst by lucky finds of moisture. When Africa is conjured up in the mind, many see lush savannahs and jungles. But the Kalahari and Namib deserts are regions defined by drought, and they test survival on a daily basis, of both man and beast.

Lance and I have left camp early, grateful for the blessed coolness of morning with its refreshing dew. From years of a semi-sedentary life, he has been unable to cope with discomfort and irritation. We walk in a landscape that consists of vast level plains, haunted by mirages, sand dunes, with arid mountain ranges – usually mere piles of bare rock. Soon the sun sucks the last drop of moisture from the air and sands.

We push on. We see some bustards and snakes, and groups of springbok in the distance. We climb to the top of a small dune, lie down and carefully scan the plains from east to west. A faint breeze swirls over our perspiring bodies. While we lie there, a jackal shambles up the steep slope of loose sand and meets us, face to face. It regards us with bewilderment for a second and then dashes back with a yelp. Lance and I exchange glances as we wordlessly share this moment. The heat has now reached full force with temperatures must be around the 40s.

“Let’s push on and forget about the heat,” I try to motivate my friend. The sun beats down fiercely, and the sand over which we trudge burns through the soles of our shoes. On the right, a small thicket of black sticks becomes visible, standing at various angles. The rest of the gemsbok is out of sight, nothing visible but the long and straight horns. But as we near them, the thicket of “black sticks” becomes agitated. It breaks up, scatters and regroups in smaller thickets. Then the herd of gemsbok swings away at a gallop and speeds upwind, leaving a long trail of dust to mark its course and finally melting into the mirage.

Far off, ahead of the herd, the aristocrat of the desert, a lone bull is resting in the mid-day haze under the scant shade of a tree, surrounded by miniature pyramids of dry gemsbok droppings, where he has marked this area as his territory. He left the herd months ago, leaving the females to their fate. They have their own lethal set of horns to defend themselves and their young. He is old and tired, and the natural instinct to pass on his genes for future herds is long lost. He faces the slight breeze, pants, inhales and exhales rapidly through his nose, a nose lined with a network of small blood vessels that are cooled by the air pulled into the nose to ensure that blood enters his brain at a lower temperature.

Lance and I don’t escape our share of hardship. We carry our own water, but that previously cool refreshment has now warmed to a hot tea temperature. Even so, we drink it gratefully. The heat reflecting off the ground and stones is almost unbearable, but we are able to endure it while moving. But the stillness of the desert and the glare from the surroundings is weighing Lance down.

“Shade – coolness – where is it,” he asks. “Even darkness would be a relief.” I realize that something approaching desperation seizes him, and I feel close to calling it a day and turning back. But then I spot a tree in the distance towards the west. As Lance turns to face a slight breeze, he regains some enthusiasm and puts my thought into words: “Wind in your face, sun at your back.” With renewed hope we turn westward and head for the shady tree. Suddenly, and with our sights set on tree in the distance, three gemsbok calves rise at about sixty meters and stare at us.

About three to four months old, they are a most extraordinary sight. Their necks, chests and flanks are covered with long vivid red hair. They have shaggy red manes and big, black, muzzles; their ears are enormous. Lance mistakes them for lion and becomes terrified, until I tell him what they are. Once his adrenaline rush subsides, we are able to continue. The gemsbok calves gallop off in confusion, sweeping left and right, and finally speeding towards the direction where we last saw the big herd disappear. I admire their agile movements in the rocky terrain, which poses no obstacle for gemsbok – the divisions of their hooves, connected by a strong membrane of muscle, expand widely and stretch apart when they tread on a stone, the membrane serving as a supporting spring.

And then, as we look back to the lone tree with its inviting coolness, I spot the slight movement of a white underbelly beneath it, and whisper excitedly to Lance to look at it though his binoculars. Finally, with sweaty fingers slipping and sliding over the warm binoculars, Lance lays eyes on the striking beast. We gaze at the black and white patterns around its legs and underbelly, the iconic facial markings that deflect the heat and make the gemsbok so stunningly beautiful. It is the result of a long period of evolution to make him attractive in the eyes of the females of his species. He is a mere 200 meters away, still facing away from us.

Lance and I swiftly move closer, he crouched low, my head bent downwards, hoping that the gemsbok will not sense us closing in on him. But when, at 120 meters away from the gemsbok I raise my head to take a quick look, it is as if he had read my mind – the famous sixth sense of the gemsbok has already kicked in. He is facing us now. He stands statue-like, defying his enemy, his muscular shoulders and flanks, tense, his wiry hair erect and quivering. His trumpet-shaped red nostrils seem to exude defiance.

I look at his deadly weapon, the long, slim, pitch-black horns shimmering in the sun, and a quick thought plays with my sub-conscience… that the gemsbok, without breaking his stride, can sweep his formidable horns as quick as lightning and impale anything within a meter on either side of him. And suddenly, at this moment I am not eager for Lance to shoot. It is enough to simply gaze at the impassive face. I, the hunter, who with my friend, so much longed to take this formidable swordsman, now just want to revere him.

The hunter’s instinct is one which is most deeply rooted in the mind of man. As Lance slowly lifts his rifle to his shoulder – a second too late, a deliberate moment too long spent scrutinizing the beast before us. The gemsbok turns and trots off, as if challenging us to follow. Lance follows him only through his scope, lowering his the rifle as the gemsbok pauses on top of a dune It catches the evening breeze, and gazes down on us one last time. I realize that Lance had had the same fleeting emotion pass through him.

Day faded, and the dome of stars seemed to be drawn around us. How intensely still it was, how utterly peaceful, where Lance and I seemed to have reached Nirvana.

——————————

The gemsbok has several interesting peculiarities. Namibians think so highly of the gemsbok Oryx gazella, that the national coat of arms depicts two of these magnificent animals representing courage, elegance and pride, on either side of a shield covered with the national flag. If you see these antelope in their desert surroundings you will immediately understand their prominent place in the hearts of Namibians.

The Rhino War – Who will Guard the Guards?

Nov 6, 2020 | Archive, News

A legal market in rhino horn continues to be stubbornly opposed by the South African Government, CITES, the animal rights movement and well-meaning but misguided people all around the world. But demand for rhino horns continues unabated, and the people who want this product have plenty of money. In the absence of a legal market, the horns are simply obtained illegally. And because money is involved, those tasked with protecting the rhino are sometimes themselves sufficiently corrupted to get involved in the illegal trade.

Such betrayal of trust by those who are employed to protect these magnificent creatures is the most nauseating behaviour imaginable on the part of the perpetrators. In September 2020 three SANParks employees were apprehended for rhino poaching in the Kruger National Park (KNP) on the eve of World Rhino Day. Two were caught in the act of dehorning the animal they had just killed. The third suspect is none other than the section ranger of Lower Sabie, who allegedly supplied his two accomplices with the rifle they had used to slaughter the animal. This was reported by Nicolene Smalman in The Lowvelder newspaper.

These fortuitous arrests happened because police and SANParks officials were in the right place at the right time. They were busy with routine operations in the park – visiting old poaching scenes in the Lower Sabie area – collecting DNA and other evidence, when they heard two shots being fired. They immediately went to investigate and made a gruesome discovery. A field guide and the gardener of the section ranger were allegedly busy dehorning a white rhino when the officials stumbled upon them.

They were immediately arrested and a hunting rifle, ammunition, vehicle and poaching equipment were seized. It later emerged that the rifle (a .458 calibre) apparently belonged to the section ranger, who was also arrested. The men were detained in the holding cells at Skukuza Police Station.

Mr Abe Sibiya, acting CEO of SANParks, congratulated the officials who effected the arrests “These send a strong message that officials alleged to be involved in poaching will be arrested and face the full might of the law,” he said. “It is unfortunate that those trusted with the well-being of these animals are alleged to have become the destroyers of the same heritage they have a mandate to protect.”

Even more concerning is that this betrayal of trust seems to extend to members of the South African Police Service (SAPS). Legal Brief Environmental of 4 November 2020 published the following report:

“A Mpumalanga police constable with links to a syndicate allegedly behind ‘massive trafficking’ of poached rhino horns was arrested last week. A News24 report notes that six other suspects, mostly current and former police officers, were arrested in Mpumalanga two days previously. Phenias Lubisi, a former station commander in Skukuza now working at Calcutta; Xolani Lubisi, a former officer at Calcutta; Constable Thembisile Mhlanga, from Skukuza SAPS; Clyde Mnisi, the alleged ‘right hand man’; Petrus Mabuza Mshengu, and former White River SAPS officer Joe Nyalunga, appeared in the White River Magistrate’s Court on charges of theft, conspiracy, illegal buying and selling of rhino horns, corruption and money laundering. The case was postponed.

“The officer arrested last, who works at the Acornhoek Stock Theft Unit, was expected to appear in the Hazyview Magistrate’s Court later in the day. She will face similar charges as her co-accused, Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said. Luxury vehicles, motorbikes, trucks, trailers, generators and equipment worth millions of Rands were seized during the multi-agency swoop. It is alleged that the syndicate operated with almost military precision around the Kruger National Park (KNP), as well as in private and state-owned reserves in KZN and Gauteng. Mulaudzi alleged: ‘These are the guys who organised the snipers. These are the guys who were making millions.’”

When park officials and police officers are themselves involved in the illegal trade in rhino horns, it seems clear that the efforts to prevent the extinction of these beleaguered animals are being completely undermined from within. When will we realise that this war is being lost, and that we need to implement a different strategy? When all the rhinos have been killed? Surely there must be another way to prevent this from happening!

Dr John Ledger is a past Director of the Endangered Wildlife Trust, now a consultant, writer and teacher on the environment, energy and wildlife; he is a columnist for the African Hunting Gazette. He lives in Johannesburg, South Africa.

John.Ledger@wol.co.za

CITES Frustrates Southern African States – Again!

Nov 15, 2019 | Archive, News

By John Ledger

The triennial World Wildlife Conference, known formally as CoP18 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), concluded in Geneva, Switzerland on 28 August 2019. In a press release the organizers claimed to have adopted an impressive list of decisions advancing the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife across the globe. Southern African states were once again disappointed by the outcome of CITES, and certainly not at all impressed by its achievements.

Some excerpts from the CITES Press Release include the following:

“The Conference revised the trade rules for dozens of wildlife species that are threatened by unstainable trade linked to overharvesting, overfishing or overhunting. These ranged from commercially valuable fish and trees to charismatic mammals such as giraffes, to amphibians and reptiles sold as exotic pets.

Noting that giraffes have declined by 36-40% over the past three decades due to habitat loss and other pressures, the conference added the world’s tallest animal to Appendix II.

The Parties established the CITES Big Cat Task Force with a mandate to improve enforcement, tackle illegal trade and promote collaboration on conserving tigers, lions, cheetahs, jaguars and leopards.

In addition, the critical role of local and indigenous communities that live on the frontlines of wildlife conservation and sustainable management, and their need for adequate incomes and livelihoods, was widely recognized. Overcoming a wide range of differing views, the conference asked Parties to begin considering how to best engage indigenous peoples and local communities in CITES decision-making and implementation. The aim is to better achieve the objectives of the Convention while recognizing those people whose use of CITES-listed species contributes significantly to their livelihoods.

The Conference also:

increased quotas for trophy hunting of adult male black rhinos, almost doubling the current quota of five, subject to strict controls; however, proposed trade in southern white rhino horns from eSwatini (Swaziland) and live animals and hunting trophies from Namibia were not accepted.
reviewed the measures for the export of live African elephants to ‘appropriate and acceptable destinations’, whereby exports outside their natural range will be permitted in ‘exceptional circumstances’ only, in consultation with relevant CITES and IUCN bodies, and only if they provide in ‘situ conservation benefits’
did not accept proposals to permit some limited trade in ivory from African elephants, which means that the existing trade ban remains in place.
held a meeting on the African Elephant Action Plan to encourage cooperation among the African elephant range states.

CoP18 was attended by 169 member governments (plus the EU) and some 1,700 delegates, observers and journalists. CoP19 will be held in 2022 in Costa Rica.”

Prior to CoP 18, an African Wildlife Economy Summit was held at Victoria Falls, June 23-25, 2019. Attended by heads of state, business leaders, technical experts and community representatives, the meeting aimed to radically change the way the continent’s nature-based economy is managed. Convened by UNEP and the African Union and hosted by the president of Zimbabwe, the summit was an African-led vision of conservation that linked the private sector with national authorities and local communities to design and finance conservation-compatible investments that deliver sustainable economic and ecological benefits to countries, people and the environment. Over 40 community representatives of 12 countries across Africa met prior to Africa’s Wildlife Economy Summit, to share their experiences of living with and among Africa’s wildlife. They sought a ‘New Deal’ that would recognise the rights of ownership, management and use of wildlife resources.

How pathetic then was it for the CITES conference to have “asked Parties to begin considering how to best engage indigenous peoples and local communities in CITES decision-making and implementation. The aim is to better achieve the objectives of the Convention while recognizing those people whose use of CITES-listed species contributes significantly to their livelihoods.”

They want to “begin considering” something that Namibia has already practiced for some 30 years – empowering indigenous people and local communities in decision-making and implementation of wildlife policies on their land!

The southern African countries that have the best success in conserving elephants and rhinos on the continent were again denied the opportunity to market wildlife products to enhance the value of wildlife resources for those who live with large and dangerous animals.

Clearly angered and once again frustrated by the outcome of CITES, the Tanzanian delegation took the floor on behalf of the following Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries: Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Here is the text of their submission:

This Declaration is made to express the grave concern that the SADC Parties mentioned here have with regards to the implementation of this Convention.

As members of the global multilateral system and democratic, representative governments, we are obliged to ensure that we meet our commitments to all those international agreements and declarations to which we are signatories, as well as responsibilities to our citizens.

Recognizing that CITES is one of the oldest wildlife and trade agreements, we are obliged to give it due consideration but within the context of subsequent and contemporary agreements and declarations to which it bears relevance and to which we are also signatories.

CITES in its Preamble accepted the principle of: “Recognizing that peoples and States are and should be the best protectors of their own wild fauna and flora” and the Convention on Biological Diversity 1992 in Article 3 provides that: “States have, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, the sovereign right to exploit their own resources pursuant to their own environmental policies, and the responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment of other States or of areas beyond the limits of national jurisdiction.”

We contend that CITES, in form, substance and implementation, is not aligned with other international agreements of equal weight and arguably greater relevance to the challenges of today. These agreements emphasize the following principles: – sovereignty over the use of national resources; – inclusive, equitable development through the sustainable use of natural resources; – recognizing that rural communities living with wildlife have inalienable rights over the use of their resources; and – recognizing that in today’s world of rapid changes in climate and land use and the accelerating pace of transformation of wildlife habitat, the survival of wildlife depends on the perceptions and development needs of people living with wildlife. The way CITES is currently operation is contrary to its founding principles.

Today CITES discards proven, working conservation models in favour of ideologically driven anti-use and anti-trade models. Such models are dictated by largely western non-State actors who have no experience with, responsibility for, or ownership over wildlife resources. The result has been failure to adopt progressive, equitable, inclusive and science-based conservation strategies. We believe this failure has arisen from the domination of protectionist ideology over science decision in making within CITES.

This anti-sustainable use and anti-trade ideology now dominates decisions made by many States who are party to CITES. States are increasingly influenced by the dominance both at meetings of the decision-making structures of CITES and in their run up by protectionist NGOs whose ideological position has no basis in science or experience and is not shared in any way by the Member States of SADC and their people.

This conservation model is based on entrenched and emotive rhetoric and discourse, backed up by intense lobbying, as opposed to science. Foremost amongst these motifs now dominating CITES is the unfounded belief that all trade fuels illegal, unsustainable trade, ignoring clear evidence to the contrary.

Examples of this are the attempts by others to impose new trade restrictions for species that are effectively conserved – and utilized – in our States, such as lions and giraffe, while the real threats in those States where such species are in decline due to habitat loss and human-wildlife conflict continue to go unattended.

The Southern African countries have observed, with great discomfort the polarised discussions on African charismatic large mammals at this CoP 18. It is very disturbing to see the North South divide across the African continent rearing its head again.

We are further concerned that positions of some Parties appear to be based on national political considerations aimed at catering to the interests of national, intensively lobbied constituencies, as opposed to proven, science-based conservation strategies. This undermines the SADC States, on whom the responsibility to manage species falls, and our ability to do so effectively.

As it is currently implemented, CITES undermines the rights of people living in rural areas of SADC States to have access to and use in a sustainable manner the natural resources present in their communities that are required to enjoy adequate living conditions and the right to participate in the management of these resources. The consensus expressed through CITES by the majority of States undermines our region in our efforts to secure social and environment justice through the sustainable use of our natural resources. In doing so it is compromising our ability to meet obligations and responsibilities to other multilateral agreements and to our peoples.

The populations of iconic African wildlife species in our region illustrates the effectiveness of our conservation models. Similar examples of successful conservation outcomes have not been forthcoming under ideologically driven approaches to conservation. Yet, at previous meetings of the Conference of the Parties to CITES, efforts made by us to advance and strengthen the same conservation strategies that have worked so well have been rejected.

Those who bear no cost of protecting our wildlife, nor bear any consequence for decisions of CITES on our species, vote without any accountability against working conservation models in southern Africa. To this end, we have had to invoke measures such as announcing a dispute, the first time ever in CITES. As members of the global community we fully appreciate the importance of multilateral negotiations, such as those that take place within CITES, in identifying and collectively working towards solutions for the greater good of humanity.

We have been committed Parties to CITES since its inception or our accession to it and would wish to remain so. But we can no longer ignore these glaring shortcomings and threats to our national interests and to our commitments to the broader multilateral context. Mr Chairman, the time has come to seriously reconsider whether there are any meaningful benefits from our membership to CITES. I thank you.

This constitutes a real threat to the future of CITES, and many would agree that it is time for bold action to leave an organisation that has lost its way and is today dominated by politics, animal-rights, anti-use and anti-hunting lobbyists.

What has happened to the World Conservation Strategy of 1980 which defined the principles of ‘living resource conservation’ as

To maintain essential ecological and life support systems;
To preserve genetic diversity; and
To ensure the sustainable utilisation of species and ecosystems for the benefit of mankind.

If the SADC countries leave CITES, how would the rest of the world react? There would certainly be pressure on all remaining CITES countries not to deal with SADC in wildlife products, but how long would that last in those powerful and rich countries where demand for wildlife products may be temporarily suppressed but never eliminated?

In the declaration by the SADC countries, mention is made of the divisive impacts of CITES in Africa:

“The Southern African countries have observed, with great discomfort the polarised discussions on African charismatic large mammals at this CoP 18. It is very disturbing to see the North South divide across the African continent rearing its head again.”

The big divisive example here was the group of ten countries proposing that the elephant populations of Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe be moved from Appendix II to Appendix I. These countries are Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Kenya, Liberia, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic and Togo.

For goodness’ sake, what are these countries up to? The four countries they targeted have been the most successful elephant conservationists on the continent, with burgeoning populations now decimating habitat and biodiversity in places like South Africa’s Kruger National Park. Kenya’s schizophrenic policies on wildlife have seen its rich heritage start to crumble because of its ambivalence towards the principles of the World Conservation Strategy.

If the SADC countries are bold enough to leave CITES, a key role will be that played by South Africa. This country has an excellent record of wildlife management and conservation, but also hosts the continent’s biggest concentration of animal rightists, and anti-hunting lobbyists, many with ties to rich overseas partners. South Africa also has a new Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries who will be subjected to intensive lobbying by the animal rights activists. South Africa will need very strong leadership to throw its weight behind its African neighbors and raise a unified voice against an organisation that seems to be hell-bent on frustrating those countries that look after their wildlife better than others.

To those who think that the SADC countries will not have the resolve to leave CITES for fear of international excommunication, remember how Japan walked away from the International Whaling Commission in 2018, totally frustrated by the intransigence of the IWC? Has Japan since been ostracised by the world? Hardly – the Rugby World Cup tournament is taking place there right now!

Dr John Ledger is an independent consultant and writer on energy and environmental issues, based in Johannesburg, South Africa. John.Ledger@wol.co.za

Some excerpts from the CITES Press Release include the following:

“The Conference revised the trade rules for dozens of wildlife species that are threatened by unstainable trade linked to overharvesting, overfishing or overhunting. These ranged from commercially valuable fish and trees to charismatic mammals such as giraffes, to amphibians and reptiles sold as exotic pets.

Noting that giraffes have declined by 36-40% over the past three decades due to habitat loss and other pressures, the conference added the world’s tallest animal to Appendix II.

The Parties established the CITES Big Cat Task Force with a mandate to improve enforcement, tackle illegal trade and promote collaboration on conserving tigers, lions, cheetahs, jaguars and leopards.

In addition, the critical role of local and indigenous communities that live on the frontlines of wildlife conservation and sustainable management, and their need for adequate incomes and livelihoods, was widely recognized. Overcoming a wide range of differing views, the conference asked Parties to begin considering how to best engage indigenous peoples and local communities in CITES decision-making and implementation. The aim is to better achieve the objectives of the Convention while recognizing those people whose use of CITES-listed species contributes significantly to their livelihoods.

The Conference also:

increased quotas for trophy hunting of adult male black rhinos, almost doubling the current quota of five, subject to strict controls; however, proposed trade in southern white rhino horns from eSwatini (Swaziland) and live animals and hunting trophies from Namibia were not accepted.
reviewed the measures for the export of live African elephants to ‘appropriate and acceptable destinations’, whereby exports outside their natural range will be permitted in ‘exceptional circumstances’ only, in consultation with relevant CITES and IUCN bodies, and only if they provide in ‘situ conservation benefits’
did not accept proposals to permit some limited trade in ivory from African elephants, which means that the existing trade ban remains in place.
held a meeting on the African Elephant Action Plan to encourage cooperation among the African elephant range states.