Remember the good times – and keep trying to convince today’s hierarchies to manage our wildlife heritage in the best possible manner. This article explores the list of endangered animals in Africa – which species are on the list, and just how endangered they are. All of this data points to a downward trend, with threats and pressures that are unlikely to relent – such as habitat loss due to human population growth/land demand. The innovative Bophuthatswana wildlife management policies, therefore, were tossed out the window. In rural areas African villagers persecute leopards, killing them indiscriminately at every opportunity. Subject: The U.S. There is also little information about leopard populations or their conservation status. Hello Koos, In a few years they may need to kill a few back, but not now. They have a hard enough time surviving themselves as it is, without having to compete with wild animals for a place in the sun. Where dassies (hyraxes) occur they are a favoured food. All the thick bush was removed by the superabundant elephants (a vital requirement in black rhino habitat) – and black rhinos were an iconic species in the Bophuthatswana days. We rehome leopards at our big cat sanctuary in South Africa and provide them with lifetime care in spacious, natural bush enclosures, giving them the space and privacy they so desperately need. ), we took off 400 warthogs a year from the national park. Wildlife ACT is officially contracted by the international wild cat organisation, Panthera, to conduct Leopard population surveys within South Africa. When preservation management is applied to both SAFE and UNSAFE populations at the same time, in the very doctrinaire manner that is being here proposed, that action represents the ‘MIS-management’ of all the leopard’s SAFE populations. Please help the world save these wonderful animals. Leopards are at risk of extinction across their African and Asian range, having suffered a population decline in sub-Saharan Africa of more than 30 percent in the past 25 years, in part due to unsustainable trophy hunting by Americans. So, we believe that to have taken so much account of the content of a petition on a wildlife management issue as important as this one is, shows a level of naiveté (or disregard for biological facts) that is unbecoming of a so-called scientific authority (FWS) that purports to be a world leader in wildlife management affairs. What is abundantly clear is that declaring leopards to be a so-called endangered species, and registering them, as such, on the American Endangered Species Act listings, will have not one iota of effect on the behaviour of indigenous rural villagers in Africa or well-to-do commercial farmers. Wait til their numbers recover. Income to the Park from the hunting operation increased. Leopard’s natural predators include humans, lions and hyena. And they look forward to hearing that the Service has rejected this petition on the African leopard. Zululand is recognized as one of the most biodiverse wildlands in Africa, with much of it declared a World Heritage Site. I remember those days well. During the 1980’s and 1990’s we had a hunting operation in Pilanesberg and during that time I was a manager in the Parks system and also a Professional Hunter and I hunted extensively in the Parks system with overseas paying hunting clients for 12 years. These leopards have their own distinct sizes, diets, markings, environments and species classifications, so they're separately known as “African leopards” and “Indian leopards.” What is abundantly clear is that declaring leopards to be a so-called endangered species, and registering them, as such, on the American Endangered Species Act listings, will have not one iota of effect on the behaviour of indigenous rural villagers in Africa or well-to-do commercial farmers. I succeeded in not having the elephant population increased. Male leopards from the coastal mountains of South Africa’s Cape Province are much smaller, with an average weight of 31 kg (n=27). Fish & Wildlife Service Re: The Zimbabwean Elephant Trophy Ban, Controversy Surrounding Hunting, The Captive Breeding of Lions and The Hunting of Captive-Bred Lions, in South Africa. Not only are such wild animals of no value to him, because he can’t use them or sell them, they are actually a liability because they eat his crops and kill his domestic animals; and wild herbivores compete with his domestic animals for whatever grass and edible shrubs are available. If this is repeated during the current century, there will be over 4 billion people living in this same region of Africa by the year 2100. 4, max. Where hunting quotas do not exist (ie. Regarding the Leopard. (notably fish and other wildlife, forests and grazing lands) which support millions of rural communities as well as major industries. All the states of southern Africa were amongst their number. Mark, Agreed! The only plant and animal species that are assured of survival in Africa into posterity are crops like maize, spinach, cabbages, bananas and TAME animal ‘products of the land’, like cattle, sheep and goats. African leopards mate throughout the year, but a higher sexual activity is recorded during the wet season. Pingback: Trophy Hunting Culture – International Wildlife Bond. Whilst they compete well with other predators, in the absence of other big cats they are extraordinarily successful. Lubinda, Thank you for your insight at a local level – there are always knock-on consequences when the eco-system is manipulated by humans (and in the case of leopard hunting, that’s humans seeking fun from killing, nothing more). The Leopard POPULATION in Pilanesberg is by no means threatened or endangered ! These include well-known names such as the Sabi Sand Game Reserve and Timbavati Private Nature Reserve, and collectively are undoubtedly the best places to see leopards in Africa. South Africa) a leopard can be sought out that conjures the illusion of it being a “problem animal that had to be killed by a trophy hunter that happened to be in the area” – thereby, CITES Appendix I protection can be out manoeuvred it would seem by such farcical contrived “problem leopards” and flawed base data. Volunteer With Leopards . I would have thought the FWS knew this! They will also kill leopards in pre-emptive defence of their cattle, sheep and goats, whenever and wherever their presence becomes known. The government of Tanzania , should be forced by the world as a whole to stop hunting of these animals. Therefore, hunting concessions are unlikely to be commercially viable long into the future to ‘save’ habitat, let alone any claimed species sustainability/conservation. The South African Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) has confirmed that a zero quota for the hunting of leopard (Panthera pardus) has been extended to 2017.The department said the decision is based on the review of available scientific information on the status and recovery of leopard populations in South Africa. In response to a petition received by the American US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), suggesting that the Service should reclassify the leopard’s status throughout its range, from ‘threatened’ to ‘endangered’, in terms of the American Endangered Species Act (ESA), on 20 December 2017 the Service issued a document (ID: FWS-HQ-WS-2016-0131-0742) entitled “Endangered and Threatened Species: 90-Day Findings for Five Species”. Reports of stock-killing outside the Park were negligible. Under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), South Africa is permitted to allocate 150 leopard trophy export permits a year. But we have to remember that new regimes do things “differently” to the way the old regimes did things. Man is a dominant part of the animal kingdom and he is subject to the natural laws of nature. So, any reference to leopard population numbers is based on modelled estimates (or guesstimates) – any proposal to base hunting quotas on leopard species numbers is scientifically subject to risk/confidence levels that the source data cannot reliably substantiate. DATES June/July 2023 (12 days) x pre-enroll GENRE wildlife TOUR LEADERS Marsel van Oosten and Daniella Sibbing FEE 9,975 EURO from Johannesburg, South Africa SINGLE SUPPL. The cause of this morph , known as a "strawberry leopard" or "pink panther", is not well understood. So any action to impose a management strategy on a wild animal species as a whole (as in this case, ‘throughout the leopard’s range’) is fundamentally wrong! Even South Africa’s Chinese population of half-a-million is still dwarfed by the 700,000-strong population that is living in Ghana, a country in the West African region where an unusually large quantity of pangolin scales are being found, an indication of the staggering number of the endangered mammals being killed and consumed. The Southeast African cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) is the nominate cheetah subspecies native to East and Southern Africa. A growing religion in southern Africa is posing a threat to the survival of wild leopards. These big cats are of no value to rural folk. He is a vital and integral part of the earth’s food chains and food webs; and attempts by urban man to induce society into believing than modern man can and should be excluded from this reality, are ridiculous. Few rural Africans possess a firearm so they kill leopards with poisons and cable snares, which cause horrible and inhumane deaths. South Africa) a leopard can be sought out that conjures the illusion of it being a “problem animal that had to be killed by a trophy hunter that happened to be in the area” – thereby, CITES Appendix I protection can be out manoeuvred it would seem by such farcical contrived “problem leopards” and flawed base data. This response has been sent to Ms.Janine Van Norman at FWS HQ as requested. Hunting was conducted strictly outside of the tourist zone. By locals and game hunters? The survey work has a direct impact on protecting the leopard population in South Africa. And, in this respect, many progressive African states are getting restless. There is no justification, either, for believing that the species is even threatened. These, however, were extrapolated, which produced a flawed national estimate of leopards of over 14,000. 23,664 leopards in South Africa. How can a predator not be endangered if it is hunted as Leopards are ? Many species of leopards also suffer from traps that livestock farmers leave for them in an attempt to protect their herds. Trophy hunting has little (if anything) to offer in terms of short, medium or indeed long term benefits that are going to help the leopard, or any other so threatened species. There are several animal species that are among the world’s tallest, fastest or even tiniest animals such as the majestic giraffe, the speedy cheetah or the tiny pygmy shrew.. Several animal species are endangered such as the African wild dogs, the oribi or the rhino which is hunted for its horn. 1,950 EURO per single room DEPOSIT 2,500 EURO per person GROUP SIZE min. Male leopards from the coastal mountains of South Africa’s Cape Province are much smaller, with an average weight of 31 kg (n=27). These animals are precious to the eco system and the world , when they are gone they are gone. Researchers from England's Durham University set out to the study leopard population in South Africa's Soutpansberg Mountains over the long term. We sustainably cropped other game for cheap meat sales to the local people, too. By Nicole Conner For Mailonline. When Pilanesberg became a National Park and the animals were protected and conserved, the Leopard population increased and thrived. Several species of trees disappeared. Leopards are currently found in 18 countries across Africa. If this is repeated during the current century, there will be over 4 billion people living in this same region of Africa by the year 2100. b The wide variation in size (and coat colour) of the African Leopard most likely reflects natural phenotypic variation in response to the diverse range of habitats and environmental conditions in which this species is found across its range. Leopards are endangered mainly due to over-hunting and habitat loss. So they, too, will soon become supernumerary because of their easy killing techniques (which will turn them into a wildlife management headache). Leopards enjoy think vegetation and use this as a means of hunting and hiding. Their limbs and head area contain single black spots, while their tails are white-tipped underneath. Leopard in Etosha National Park, Namibia The leopard is listed in CITES Appendix I. The Big 5 and a bewildering array of life can be found on South Africa’s savanna – regions rich in plant, bird, insect and animal diversity protected in parks like Hluhluwe-Imfolozi and Kruger. Hound hunting is the latest fad in South Africa, ... South African hunting out-fits are offering overseas clients the chance to hunt predators, especially highly endangered leopards, with dogs. Leopards have fared slightly better than other big cats, due mainly to their wide distribution and amazing adaptability. I am NOT a ‘trophy hunter’ - and never have been. This approach works best for Africa’s leopards! There is enough content in the correspondence covering this 90 day regulation, for any and all sane people to understand that the Service pays far greater heed to the anti-sustainable-wildlife-use (and anti-hunting) rhetoric of its domestic animal rights brigade than it ever does to the genuine wildlife management needs of the African range states, with respect to multiple species. And wild dogs were introduced, too, and I hear they are using the fence-lines to sandwich their prey animals in order to make easy kills. To put the projected human demand into perspective, Africa has the fastest population growth rate in the world (UN 2015, pp. Their natural habitat is being destroyed with the removal of the natural vegetation along the rivers and streams which lead to a reduction in its population. To designate the African leopard as “endangered,” the law requires that there be substantial evidence that the species is on the brink of extinction in the wild. The argument used that trophy hunting income is essential to ensure local communities are encouraged to tolerate wildlife is scientifically unproven – as little as 3% of hunting income (reference “The $200 Million Question,” Economists at Large, 2013) trickles down to local communities, so wildlife is treated by communities regardless of any such meagre trickle down, sometimes well, sometimes not. The authors of the petition in question are not identified. If the TGA is to succeed with its objectives we need ever more new members! Claws are out! This is what the IUCN’s (International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s) World Conservation Strategy (WCS) recommended in 1980. The South African Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) has confirmed that a zero quota for the hunting of leopard (Panthera pardus) has been extended to 2017. Lairs can be found in a variety of places, including outcrops of granite boulders, old aardvark holes made in the side of termite mounds, or dense thickets at the bottom of deep galleys. Also found in some private nature and game reserves. And it had good people helping me at the helm – people like yourself, Jeremy Andersen and Roger Collinson. They shoot them; they shovel them into a hole in the ground to cover up the evidence; and then they Shut-up. And because of Africa’s massive human population explosion, this reality is of particular importance to the continent. That makes the American ESA a false foundation for any kind of wildlife management deliberation or action. Only cowards go after our big cats as it is more dangerous to hunt a wart hog on foot. And the habitats were stable, too. We believe this is not only an arrogant assumption it is also another indictment on the Service’s professional integrity. See all posts by Ron Thomson. Populations in North Africa, the Middle East and Russia are now Critically Endangered. One may get a thorn in the foot. The TGA wishes to record, therefore, that if the people who drew up this petition are not representative of Africa’s leopard range states, the petition should be declared invalid and be discarded. This represents a 6.5x rate of increase in 100 years. By the year 2000, this number had grown to 622 million. When survival stakes are all that a man in Africa has to think about, which will be the case by 2100, he will not grow beautiful flowers in his garden. You cannot manage wildlife by way of public referendums, and THAT is what a petition is. Practically every other animal species was properly ‘managed’ and cropped via the hunting facility. Man requires the same things to survive that wild animals need to survive. And now, you say, things are being done ultra vires the new park policies – to hide the new regime’s policy short-comings – and swept under the carpet (under the principle of “shoot, shovel and shut-up”)!!!!!! Captive Leopards have lived up to 23 years. For the Nazareth Baptist Church, also known as the Shembe, leopards are seen as … Black leopards are seen infrequently in parts of Africa. Tigers & Leopards . But after 1994 they came in anyway. In July 2016, the Humane Society of the United States, Humane Society International, International Fund for Animal Welfare, the Center for Biological Diversity and The Fund for Animals filed a legal petition with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to extend the full protections of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to African leopards. With the idea of man living in symbiotic harmony with nature not having the elephant population increased thrived! 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