Trophy hunting isn’t nearly as bad as the media makes it out to be, it plays a significant role in saving endangered species. It sounds may sound counterintuitive to some, but it’s what countries that allow (and heavily rely on revenue produced by it) trophy hunting and advocates for it’s advantages have been saying all along.
Though the news isn’t new, a report from the University of Kent shows that trophy hunting of lions could play a big role in saving the species.
The study, which focused on the region of Tanzania, reveals that one of the largest threats lions face is due to their natural habitat being slowly diminished. It’s expensive to manage these areas, which is why trophy hunting (which is also very expensive) is able to produce enough revenue in order to assist in conservation efforts.
The study discovered that long-term designated blocks of land were much more effective at protecting lions from overhunting than short-term blocks. The reason for this is that short-term blocks placed less of an emphasis on keeping lion quotas between 0.5-1 lions killed per 1000 km2 than long-term blocks did – long-term block off take of lions was within the recommended quota of .92 lions per 1000 km2.
For trophy hunting to prove succesful in helping endangered species, long-term blocks of land are necessary.
Here’s more information on why trophy hunting can benefit animals from the team over at College Humor:
