Wild Animals in S. Africa Reserve Are Going Once, Twice--and Gone

HLUHLUWE UMFOLOZI PARK, South Africa -- The startled giraffes darted nervously around the open-air pen, trying to avoid the gaze of the curious humans outside. In a nearby corral, hippos huddled under the shade of a wooden canopy. Only the white rhinos refused to be cowed, striking a menacing pose in a direct challenge to any overly inquisitive passersby.

The fate of these animals, on display with a variety of other beasts at a recent game auction in this picturesque sanctuary in the eastern province of KwaZulu-Natal, would soon be decided under the auctioneer’s hammer.

Billed as the largest and most exotic pet shop in the world, the annual auction allows the province’s wildlife authority to shed some of its surplus game from protected areas while offering game farm owners and collectors of so-called trophy animals a chance to stock up.

Collecting wildlife is a growing--and sometimes controversial--trend in South Africa as ranchers sell off their cattle and buy exotic herds.

Some purchase the animals to boost the potential of aesthetic and photographic tourism on their private game ranches. Others buy the animals to be hunted, capitalizing on an ever-expanding sector of the tourism industry here.

Rhinos, buffaloes and large antelopes such as nyalas and kudus are among the choice trophy animals snapped up for hunting on game ranches.

“It’s like the flavor of the month,” said Jeff Gaisford, a spokesman for the eco-tourism and marketing department of the KwaZulu-Natal wildlife authority. “A hell of a lot of private game reserves are being established. A lot of farmers are selling off their cattle and stocking [their farms] with game. It’s driven by money and eco-tourism.”

Edmond Rouillard, chairman of the Natal Game Ranchers Assn., said a dramatic decline in cattle prices in recent years spurred many farmers to move into stocking game. In addition, keeping wildlife is less labor intensive than nurturing cattle, which need to be regularly dipped for pests, immunized, fed and fenced off.

Wild animals roam freely within the vast acres of the game farms and feed off their natural habitat.

According to Theuns Eloff, head of the Center for Wildlife Economics at Potchefstroom University in the country’s North-West province, the number of private game farms in South Africa has increased significantly.

In 1993, there were 3,357 such ranches in the nation, occupying about 17 million acres of land. By 2001, the number had jumped to 5,344 farms, occupying more than 27 million acres. The percentage of the country’s agricultural land housing game farms, which are not part of government-owned nature reserves and national parks, rose from 8.4% in 1993 to 13.3% in 2001, Eloff said.

“It’s nice driving around your ranch and seeing giraffe and zebra and whatever else you have there,” said Rouillard, who owns a hunting ranch. “And it’s an earner of foreign exchange, in the long run, if you have trophy animals.”

A special license is required to stock game on a farm, and a so-called exemption permit is needed if wildlife is to be hunted on such ranches. A game farm must meet certain standards, including having ample acreage to allow the animals to run free.

The cost of hunting a beast ranges from $350 for an impala to $700 for a zebra, $1,000 and up for a kudu and $10,000 for a buffalo. The price tag for bagging a trophy is paid in addition to a daily fee of between $350 and $450.

Wildlife and hunting officials estimate that the industry generates about $150 million in profits each year and attracts about 5,000 foreign hunting safari tourists.

An average 10-day safari costs about $10,000, depending on the type and number of animals killed, according to representatives of the hunting industry.

The generally prohibitive price means that more tourists go on photo safaris, but hunting safaris are by far an easier way for game farm owners to make a quick profit.

Gaisford said that although the wildlife authority is often criticized for selling animals it knows will eventually be hunted, the killing of some wildlife is necessary to help manage the game population.

“If we don’t sell them, we’ll shoot them anyway,” he said. “We have to control the number of animals in the park. So it’s a double benefit [to the buyer and to us].”

At this year’s auction, 389 animals were sold from the live displays. Buyers were able to scrutinize the animals in outdoor pens before viewing them on a bank of television screens set above the auctioneer’s head. An additional 1,629 beasts were bought unseen from a catalog, pending the capture of the animals.

The game, which included white rhinos, hippos, giraffes, ostriches, blue wildebeests, wart hogs, zebras, nyalas and kudus, netted about $1.1 million.

The price of a white rhino averaged $22,700. One nyala went for a record $2,600, while five hippos sold for about $4,100 apiece.

Sandra Hassard spent about $41,000 for a male and a female rhino. Her father was among the first cattle-ranch converts, transforming the family farm into a game sanctuary nearly 10 years ago. Although they still herd cattle, the Hassards have concentrated over the last five years on renovating the ranch, called Falaza Game Park, into one of the most upscale game farms in KwaZulu-Natal.

Falaza boasts white rhinos, giraffes, nyalas, impalas, zebras, wildebeests and small duiker antelopes. Leopards, which are natural inhabitants of the region, also have been spotted here. Hippos and crocodiles live in a nearby river.

“Tourism has boomed,” said Hassard, who specializes in photo tours but also allows game hunting on her property. “People have jumped on the bandwagon in order to make money. It’s a great income earner.”

Hassard, whose Falaza ranch covers 22,000 acres, said the average hunting safari tourist at her farm spends more than $5,000 per visit, compared with a photo safari traveler, who spends upward of $500.

At least 75% of her clients come from overseas, she said, with a large proportion from the United States. Of the 4,530 tourists who visited Falaza last year, 30 came specifically to hunt, she said.

Fleur Wales-Baillie took over a cattle ranch in northern KwaZulu-Natal two years ago, as one of three landholders in the Khumbula Thina Trust, which covers about 15,000 acres.

She started stocking her ranch with game, but despite the easy profits, she has vowed never to allow hunting there.

“I won’t allow the animals to be disturbed,” Wales-Baillie said. “When the animals increase, I’ll just expand.” And then she’ll bring in predators, such as lions, to naturally control the numbers of other species, she said.

Her aim is to create a preserve where animals can roam freely and tourists can come to view them. She has already stocked the ranch with kudus, rhinos and bushbuck antelopes. Ten elephants and 34 buffaloes she bought recently are due to be delivered next month.

Wales-Baillie said she supports ranchers’ drive to get into the game reserve industry, but only if the focus is on nature conservation.

“I think it’s wonderful,” she said. “The whole idea should be to have one giant biosphere. It should be about conservation.”

Area game farm owners, however, believe that Wales-Baillie will eventually be forced to cull her wildlife stock as the number of animals grow. Allowing hunting of the surplus animals would be the most reasonable and cost-effective course of action, hunting professionals insist, arguing that those against the practice are simply “misinformed” about the industry.

Those who choose to prey on game say it’s all about wildlife management, and they maintain that there are several benefits to killing animals.

A lack of habitat and vegetation to support all the animals as they breed is the prime reason for reducing their numbers through hunting, the hunting proponents argue. Too much game on too little land causes erosion and other environmental degradation. Hunting industry officials also insist that most of the animals targeted for the kill usually are older bulls, in their final stage of life, that are unable to properly feed or fend for themselves.

“It’s not just a matter of going out every day and blasting everything to death,” said Mark Dewet, a licensed professional hunter with 20 years’ experience.

A professional hunter is required to guide each hunting tourist on safari, with the help of experienced trackers to seek out the game.

“It’s much more humane for an animal to die from a hunter’s bullet than from disease or starvation. An old bull is eventually going to die anyway,” said Jonathan Arn, 28, of Alabama. He visited South Africa on a 16-day hunting safari last month and bagged 17 animals, including nyalas, kudus, waterbucks, wildebeests and a zebra.

But it has not been easy for South Africa’s hunting industry to escape controversy. The recent revelation that the northern province of Limpopo reportedly was considering allowing the controversial method of hunting lions kept in captivity, known locally as “canned hunting,” sparked heated debate.

Animals used in canned hunting are kept in confined areas. Unlike on most regular game farms, the hunting guides often know exactly where to find the prey. In the most extreme cases, the animals are killed while trapped in their cages.

Opponents argue that the element of fair chase in hunting doesn’t apply to canned hunts because animals have no chance of escape.

“This type of hunting shows an extreme lack of respect for life and compassion for the dignity of these animals,” Chris Mercer, who represents a coalition of wildlife organizations, told Johannesburg’s Saturday Star newspaper last month.

But hunters who stalk their prey on sprawling game farms and nature reserves argue that unlike canned hunting, theirs is a clean sport, not slaughter. They insist that they take time to soak up the beauty of the scenery around them and appreciate the greatness of the quarry.

“It’s not just about shooting stuff,” said Arn, who added that he had 50 animal trophies on his wall at home before his visit to South Africa. “We’re also enjoying the outdoors, enjoying the animals.”