Prince William has faced backlash after making comments in support of trophy hunting in some circumstances.
As the president of United for Wildlife and a patron of the Tusk Trust, it’s not surprising many people who didn’t understand the importance of hunting would criticize him.
He told ITV News that commercial hunting is important in helping to save some endangered species.
“There is a place for commercial hunting in Africa as there is around the world,” he said. “It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but the arguments for regulated, properly controlled commercial hunting is that the money that goes from shooting a very old infirm animal goes back into the protection of the other species.”
The Duke of Cambridge continued to explain what the process would look like.
“So when one is infertile, he’s at the end of his life, if somebody out there wants to pay that money – and it wouldn’t be me – but if somebody did, then as long as that money goes back into protection of the species then it is a justifiable means of conserving species that are under serious threat,” he added.
Nothing he said goes against his desires for conservation. In fact, they help it by allowing more animals to have a chance from the help that money from trophy hunting funnels to the people who protect them.
Dr. Pieter Kat, the director of Lion, a UK-based charity, was sad to hear about Prince William’s stance on hunting. “We’re very sad to hear Prince William state that ‘there is a place for commercial hunting in Africa as there is around the world.”
He continued, “with likely less than 15,000 wild lions left in Africa there is NO place for commercial hunting of lions. With an estimated 1,500 wild male lions in existence and with current offtake for trophy hunting of 300 per annum, continued trophy hunting cannot be deemed as sustainable. A lion of six years of age is not ‘post reproduction’ in fact it is just coming into his maturity, yet it is at this age most African Countries offer these prime males as trophy.”
Kat’s comments just go to confirm what William had already said – there needs to be better regulation within the hunting industry concerning these endangered animals.
