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With ONE MILLION hunter-raised dollars in the bank, one strategic plan to ensure the conservation of the African lion, and just one year; Safari Club International Foundation awaits the first indications of success with its Fighting for Lions Campaign.
Anticipated in January 2014, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) will announce what protection status, if any, should be assigned to the African lion under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Anti-hunting organizations have petitioned the FWS to list African lions as endangered, and through a set procedure, the government must consider the ESA petition within a limited time frame. If lions are listed as endangered, then the U.S. market is closed to lion hunting which will cause a cascade of problems.
An endangered listing would essentially mean a total loss of U.S. citizen participation in lion hunting. International hunters would fill the void, but they would pay less to hunt. This means African lions would lose economic value. There would be an immediate reduction in revenue for private and government run anti-poaching efforts that protect lions, depredation compensation, and contributions to community development. As a result, farmers and ranchers will no longer have any incentive to protect lions, they would kill lions instead to protect their animals and families.[/su_column]
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Jobs and incomes of local people associated with the hunting industry would be at risk, and at the bottom of the cascade would be the lion. Ironically, lions will suffer most from the very Act that was designed to help conserve them.
For the same reasons, stopping all lion hunting (not just from U.S. hunters), would be devastating for lion conservation. This is the goal of anti-hunting organizations – to end all hunting, everywhere – without regard to its positive benefits. They will likely try to reach this goal by proposing to up-list lions to the maximum protection status at the next Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). African lions are presently protected under CITES, but their populations are healthy enough to sustain international trade. If the maximum CITES protection status is decided for lions, many countries would block their citizens from participating in international hunting and trade.
The Fighting for Lions Campaign represents the hunting community and gives a voice to those who understand the importance of hunting to lion conservation. The campaign’s three approaches to conserve lions across the entire African continent are:
The campaign brings science to the forefront and communicates that lions are absolutely not on the brink of extinction.
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Population Research: Census surveys and organized research are of utmost importance to ensure the FWS and CITES have the correct information to make decisions. SCI Foundation has three major lion research projects underway, all of which are designed to improve lion conservation and management.
Conservation (Human-Wildlife Conflict and Anti-Poaching): With population growth, humans and lions increasingly share the same lands resulting in conflicts. Increased agriculture and livestock production replaces the habitat of lions and their prey, exacerbating the problem. The more lions interact with humans, the more common poaching for bush meat and retaliatory killings becomes. By preventing these conflicts, we can help protect African lions from illegal killings. SCI Foundation is in communication with African governments to learn how we can alleviate human-wildlife conflict.
Outreach and Education: Public opinion impacts regulatory decisions. SCI Foundation has completed public opinion surveys to help explain the impacts of an ESA listing and CITES up-listing to decision makers. Both regulatory mechanisms can have a great influence on hunters investing in the conservation of the African lion. Just like in the U.S., hunting generates conservation revenue in Africa.
An Endangered status or up-listing for the African lion will result in major revenue losses for conservation and less protection for African lions in Zambia, Tanzania, and South Africa, among others.
The first real-world measure for the effectiveness of the Fighting for Lions Campaign starts with the Endangered Species Act. SCI Foundation’s efforts with outreach and communication of lion science will be successful if the African lion is not listed as an endangered species. Future measures include CITES recommendations on how lions should be listed by CITES, ground breaking research being used in lion management, and public awareness of the benefits hunting has to lion conservation.
To make a donation to support the Fighting for Lions Campaign, contact Kimberly Byers at KByers@safariclub.org or call (520) 620-1220 Ext. 322. You may also contact your state representative to show your support to the campaign and SCI Foundation’s wildlife conservation efforts. For a list of your elected officials, click here (http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml).
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[su_column size=”1/2″]The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently finalized a rule that designates an experimental population of wood bison in Alaska. The rule also directs the reintroduction of those wood bison to three locations in the interior of the state. The wood bison regulation breaks new ground for the role that state management and hunting will play in experimental species recovery. For the first time in the history of the Endangered Species Act, the FWS has designated state wildlife managers as the lead authority for experimental species management.
The State of Alaska will be the primary manager of the population and will have full authority to determine if and when the wood bison can be hunted in the future. SCI, SCIF and SCI’s Alaska chapters played significant roles in the success of this effort through funding of the transfer of the wood bison from Canada, maintenance of the herd in a temporary holding facility during the last several years and advocacy of the legality of hunting playing a key role in the species’ restoration. The final rule goes into effect on June 6, 2014.[/su_column][/su_row]
US TV presenter Melissa Bachman recently created a storm over her hunt of a male lion in SA. However industry experts have defended her stating the hunt was legal and the SA hunting industry brings in millions which are then ploughed back into conservation. Hermann Meyeridricks, President of the Professional Hunters Association of South Africa joins CNBC Africa to share his views.