After Cecil, some air freight carriers still accept animal trophies

In the wave of public outrage over the killing of a Zimbabwe lion by an American trophy hunter, Delta and American airlines both announced recently that they would no longer transport animal trophies.

The carriers added their names to the list of airlines and air freight companies banning the transportation of hunting trophies, including Emirates SkyCargo, Air France, KLM, British Airways, Lufthansa, Iberia, IAG Cargo, DHL Express and Qatar Airways.

The outrage was fueled by the death of a lion known as Cecil that was allegedly lured from a protective preserve with bait and wounded by the American hunter with a bow and arrow. The lion wandered for 40 hours before the hunter shot it dead with a rifle.

Still, the world’s two largest air freight companies, FedEx and UPS, have not changed their policies on transporting animal trophies.

In a statement, UPS said it is opposed to the trafficking or trade of endangered species but “accepts for shipment taxidermy items that are legally obtained and appropriately documented.”

FedEx said it does not ship full animal carcasses but will ship animal parts for taxidermy that are legally obtained.

“Our shipping policy allows acceptance of taxidermy finished specimens if they satisfy applicable regulations and our shipping guidelines,” the company said in a statement. “Our priority is to ensure we abide by laws and regulations for all shipments.”

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