Opinion Editorial Archives - Africa Geographic

CEO note: Lions | lions | lions

CEO note: Hope 4 elephants | Mundari | safari tips

CEO note: Lions vs giraffes | parrot voodoo | Gorongosa

CEO note: Elephants – good & bad news

CEO note: Makeup monkey + elephant hunting

CEO note: ‘Problem’ lions + Africa’s 11 dog species

CEO note: Question: Largest mammal migration on Earth?

CEO note: More shades of grey + Laikipia + jumbo ID

CEO note: Just in case + fences & elephants

Do fences stop elephant migration in Botswana?

Dr Erik Verreynne discusses the claim that fences are an underlying cause of the elephant mortalities in NG11/12 in 2020 in Botswana. His assessment, based on observation of elephants, the habitat and the actual state of the fences, concludes that there is little evidence to suggest fences stop elephant migration in Seronga or that they had a measurable effect on the 2020 die-off.

CEO note: Diamonds, rhino horn and elephant auctions

CEO note: Epic images + livestock loss compensation

CEO note: Hukumuri – the furore

CEO note: A poached rhino carcass & the takeaway food wrappers

CEO note: Those dead elephants + hyena shenanigans + best pics

CEO note: Kruger rhinos crash + best pics

CEO note: Gold rush + sordid past + ancient walled kingdom

CEO note: Best pics + Africa’s rarest parrot + jumbos from space

CEO note: A story about perspective

CEO note: Boycott Africa + elephants vs villagers

Boycott Africa – good intentions with unfortunate consequences?

Boycott Africa! is the demand by some who dislike the wildlife policies adopted by some African countries. Is boycott bad for conservation?

Key Questions for Human-Elephant Conflict Research

Managing elephants amongst rural villages is challenging where elephant populations are increasing due to successful conservation practises

CEO note: Extinction business + 2 success stories

CEO note: Frack the Okavango + arch enemies + Gorongosa

CEO note: Crafty strategy + great news + rhino facts

CEO note: Free at last + Hwange + the edge

CEO note: Reality check + another ‘problem’ elephant killed

CEO note: Captive-bred lion hunting not ‘fair chase’ + Lost & found

CEO note: Perfect storm alert + Mana Pools

CEO note: Strawberry leopard + here be dragons + living next door to a poacher

Ignorant complicity amongst some safari guides

This refreshingly honest opinion editorial looks at eco-ethics amongst safari guides as they go about finding animals for guests

The great elephant balancing act

Elephants are amazing animals and a favourite for holidaymakers on safari. BUT meeting an elephant at night near your home can be terrifying

Lion farming – Lord Ashcroft submission to South African High Level Panel

Lion farming presentation by Lord Ashcroft to the High-Level Panel looking at the management of lions and other species in South Africa

Lion trophy hunting – we interview Craig Packer

We interview researcher and conservationist Craig Packer about lion trophy hunting – with a focus on Tanzania, his former home

Rhino poaching stats 2020 – more shades of grey

Rhino poaching for 2020 is lower because of the COVID-19 lockdown – although SA Minister claims the victory for her team

Kruger roan antelope deaths by neglect – more of the same, says informant

Roan antelope in Kruger breeding camps are dying due to neglect, with reasons varying from dehydration to disease – here are the facts

Change is coming to the safari industry

This story is about how technology and human nature are shaping the future of your dream hand-crafted safari – is that a good thing?

Lion cubs to bones – we interview Lord Ashcroft about ‘UNFAIR GAME’

We spoke to Lord Ashcroft about his book UNFAIR GAME – a must-read exposé of South Africa’s morally bankrupt captive lion breeding industry

Can CITES be fixed? Practical suggestions that make sense are being ignored

CITES is failing to protect species from too much international trade. Here are some practical solutions to CITES problems

Battle for the soul of conservation – compassion vs biology

An academic war of words has been waged in the field of conservation science over the seemingly innocuous term ‘compassionate conservation’

COVID-19 safari during lockdown: we test-drive

What will a Covid-19 safari be like under South Africa’s lockdown rules? We test-drive a lockdown safari in Timbavati, Greater Kruger

Rhino horn trade – Tourism & conservation leaders lobby SA minister Creecy

Rhino horn trade: submission to the advisory committee of South Africa’s Minister of the Environment Barbara Creecy about trade

Safari lodges – surviving the Covid-19 lockdown

Covid-19 lockdown: We spoke to several African safari lodge owners to better understand the economic impact and their future plans

Kevin Richardson, the ‘Lion Whisperer’ – hard questions and frank replies

Kevin Richardson, AKA ‘Lion Whisperer – some hard questions and frank replies about his public shows of affection for his captive lions

Farming wild animals – is China the model for South Africa?

Farming wild animals is a big industry in South Africa but not near the Chinese scale. Should SA follow China’s lead, as it seems to be doing?

NEWSDESK: Blanket wildlife trade bans + SA venison market & zoonotic disease + call to halt big cat bone trade

Newsdesk: Blanket wildlife trade bans + SA venison market & zoonotic disease + call to halt big cat bone trade

Coronavirus has finally made us recognise that illegal wildlife trade is a public health issue

The global Coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic may prove to be an important moment in the attempts to address the illegal wildlife trade.

COVID-19: Will African governments now crackdown on illegal wildlife trade?

With COVID-19 killing people and wrecking economies, will African governments at last treat wildlife trade as a serious issue?

Latest rhino poaching stats: shades of grey

Rhino poaching stats released by South African government do not tell the true story of how dire the situation is, say STROOP team

Trophy hunting: rural communities respond

Opinion: Rural communities are the custodians of African wildlife and deserve to have their voices heard in the trophy hunting debate.

Victoria Falls drying up? Fake news versus fact

Victoria Falls is not running dry, despite what some international news media keep telling us. Here are the facts.

Communities delivering conservation impact & wildlife recoveries

Opinion: Communities are delivering significant conservation results equivalent to those of government parks and reserves.

Elephants in Majete Wildlife Reserve, Malawi

Conservation needs diversified approaches – opinion

Scientists suggest alternative land-use models to trophy hunting – models that are more inclusive of local people.

Leopard hunting: CITES quotas not sustainable, say researchers

CITES trophy hunting quotas for leopards are arbitrary and not sustainable, says research. Read here to find what the 3 researchers recommend.

Smoked baby chimpanzee on hotel menu, says NGO

Smoked baby chimpanzee on the menu at prominent DRC hotel, says NGO.

Opinion: Zimbabwe’s shameful export of baby elephants under the guise of ‘sustainable use’

Opinion: Export of baby Zimbabwe elephants to China in defiance of CITES is shameful, and makes a mockery of ‘sustainable use’.

Katavi National Park takes radical action on hippos

Opinion by biologist: Controversial dam being built in Tanzania’s remote Katavi National Park to save hippos may have negative environmental consequences.

Opinion: Trophy hunting is not all black and white, says conservation biologist

Trophy hunting: Conservation biologist explains the complexity of the situation in a remote area of Tanzania, calls for reason and practical solutions that work on the ground.

Opinion: How hunting black rhino contributes to conservation in Namibia

Black rhino hunts benefit conservation of our rhinos – opinion post by conservationist, on behalf of 64 Namibian conservation organisations.

Crunch time as Zambia’s Lower Zambezi NP comes under mining threat

Will Lower Zambezi National Park in Zambia be mined? The courts will decide soon whether to allow the proposed controversial open-cast copper mine inside the park. The decision on whether it will go ahead will be handed down on 14 October by the High Court of Zambia in Lusaka.

Opinion: Approval of citrus farm on Greater Kruger border puts the region’s Protected Area Expansion Project at risk

Citrus farm approved on the border of Greater Kruger. Concerned protected area managers believe that this will threaten the entire region.

Minister: How many wild rhinos do we have left?

How many rhinos do we have left in our National Parks? An open letter to South African Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, Barbara Creecy.

OPINION: Rhino horn trade – designing a sales mechanism should international trade become legal

Rhino horn trade: If the international sale of rhino horn was legalised could it be more successful than the previous legal sales of elephant tusks?

Elephants and ivory – CITES CoP18 and what the opposing countries want

Battle lines are drawn at the CITES CoP18 conference which starts this weekend, and elephants and ivory are the controversial issues at play. Here is an opinion post from three organisations about each of the proposals on the table.

Scientists write letter to Botswana president about elephants

Prominent elephant scientists write to Botswana’s President Masisi about strategy to manage elephants and reduce conflict with humans.

Poor fencing has devastating effects on roaming elephants

Elephants are being shot because poor fencing results in elephants roaming into communal lands outside of Songimvelo Nature Reserve in Mpumalanga, South Africa.

Opinion: The untold story behind hunting in Botswana

Hunting in Botswana: Human-wildlife conflict scientist takes a deeper look at whether the historic hunting ban was good or bad for elephants and people.

Yes or no – boycott tourism lodges in Greater Kruger because of neighbouring trophy hunting operations?

Does it make sense to boycott tourism lodges in the Greater Kruger because of trophy hunting on neighbouring properties? Our CEO answers the question.

Life with elephants

Botswana elephant debate: We speak to the MOST important people in this equation – those living with elephants. Beyond the politics and ideologies, what do rural Batswana feel about elephants? Read more.

Opinion: Selinda Reserve in Botswana was not hunted out, say former owners in reply to Dereck Joubert

Previous leaseholders of NG16, also known as Selinda Reserve, respond to Dereck Joubert’s article on the state of the Selinda concession.

Opinion: Europe first plundered elephants for ivory – should Western countries preach to China?

The Elephant Protection Initiative takes a long view and considers the changing role of China in the illegal ivory trade.

Opinion: Trophy hunting in the Greater Kruger versus broader conservation priorities

Trophy hunting in the Greater Kruger – biodiversity conservationist provides perspective, and suggests that well-funded groups opposed to hunting have a disproportionate voice in social media, compared to local communities that are affected by living amongst or near wildlife, and carry the costs.

Opinion: Loss of wilderness is Africa’s primary cause of wildlife population reductions

Lodge owner says that the loss of wilderness areas is the main reason behind reductions in populations of lions, elephants and other species.

Wildlife vet: the Botswana elephant debate is actually about a bigger conservation issue

Botswana elephant debate: Wildlife vet says that this is NOT about too many elephants in Botswana, it’s about too many elephants in areas where humans, livestock and elephants overlap.

Opinion: Put down the petitions – help create alternatives for Botswana beyond elephant hunting

Botswana elephant debate: Tourism marketing manager urges the tourism industry to create alternatives beyond elephant hunting.

Opinion by human-wildlife conflict specialist: Botswana has found her voice about elephants – but will we listen?

Human-wildlife conflict specialist comments on the recent recommendations regarding the hunting ban and human-elephant conflict in Botswana.

Opinion: Dr. Mike Chase on elephant poaching in Botswana

Dr Mike Chase, from Elephants Without Borders, provides a statement on the elephant poaching in Botswana.

Opinion: Dereck Joubert reacts to Botswana hunting and culling recommendation

Respected filmmaker and conservation spokesperson Dereck Joubert has reacted to the Botswana government committee proposal to resume trophy hunting, and commence with elephant culling. Plans also include erecting fences to prevent certain wildlife migrations, and improve on human-wildlife conflict mitigation methods.

Opinion: Activist exposes South Africa’s lion park scams

Lion activist says let’s call a scam for what it is.

Updated rhino poaching stats – what is not being disclosed – comment from award-winning filmmakers

Award-winning filmmakers Susan Scott and Bonné de Bod comment on the latest rhino poaching statistics released by the Department of Environmental Affairs.

Opinion: Pro hunter responds to our CEO regarding hunting in Greater Kruger

Professional hunter Paul Stone has responded to Simon Espley’s opinion editorial questioning whether the trophy hunting industry will ruin Kruger National Park’s expansion plans.

Opinion: Our CEO asks whether the trophy hunting industry could ruin Kruger’s big expansion plan

Our CEO asks whether the trophy hunting industry will bring the Greater Kruger to its knees.

Dereck Joubert sets the record straight about trophy hunting impact on lions and refutes claims of so-called benefits

An opinion post by Dereck Joubert as he sets the record straight about trophy hunting impact on lions and refutes claims of so-called benefits.

Opinion: Ecologist responds to Guardian newspaper article against trophy hunting

Campaign against trophy hunting – a western urban cultural imposition on rights of rural African communities: arrogant cultural superiority or ignorance?

Opinion: Why trophy hunting is counter-productive as a ‘conservation tool’

Trophy hunters target the largest or rarest animals they can find – or those with the biggest horns, tusks or manes. Yet both science and common sense tells us that that goes against nature’s law of survival of the fittest.

Opinion: Farcical quotes from the lion farming colloquium in South Africa

An opinion post on the colloquium on lion farming in South Africa.

Botswana elephant poaching debate: Wildlife vet speaks his mind

Botswana elephant poaching debate: Wildlife vet speaks his mind.

Scientists question BBC reporting over elephant poaching crisis in Botswana

A group of prominent scientists have questioned the reporting by the BBC of the elephant poaching crisis in Botswana.

Elephants: Listen to the people of the Okavango – opinion

The elephant – an iconic species that is beloved around the world is not such a gentle giant to the people who actually live with Earth’s largest mammal. This is the story of over 16,000 people from 15 settlements in the eastern Okavango Delta panhandle who are trapped between a river and over 18,000 elephants.

Leopard hunting quota was issued despite official report showing significant population declines

The official report into leopard populations reveals significant population reductions, and yet the SA government has announced a resumption in trophy hunting. Does this make sense? A respected biologist suggests not.

Biologist questions science behind leopard trophy hunting quota

After only two years of no leopard hunting, we now have apparently accumulated enough population data to reinstate a hunting quota and lift the zero quota. I find this very hard to believe for such a cryptic species.

Video: South African rhino doing circus tricks in Russia – what’s next for our wildlife industry?

A two-ton white rhino, sold from a South African farm, is being forced to perform tricks at Russian circuses.

The Extinction Business: Lion bone trade threatens world’s big cats

The Extinction Business: South Africa’s ‘Lion’ Bone Trade is an investigative report by EMS Foundation and Ban Animal Trading that reveals startling and alarming factors that have a significant negative impact on worldwide big cat conservation.

Skye the lion – the beginning of the end for trophy hunting in the Greater Kruger?

The highly controversial shooting of a male lion by a trophy hunter in the Umbabat section of the Greater Kruger could conceivably mark the beginning of the end for trophy hunting in this part of Africa.

Opinion: The (high) road to a Greater Kruger National Park

An alternative, constructive perspective to the Greater Kruger Protected Area is offered, in contrast to the more acrimonious narratives that are doing the rounds in response to the hunting of a lion in the area.

Kruger lion hunted – what we know

A large male lion was trophy hunted on Thursday morning last week in the Greater Kruger National Park.

Zambia’s hippo cull: Valid concerns and questions from those affected

A showdown is looming between tourism operators in Zambia’s South Luangwa National Park and trophy hunters, in the wake of the Zambian government’s decision to cull up to 2,000 hippos over a 5-year period in Luangwa Valley, across the river from the tourism lodges – and to award the culling contract to a South African trophy hunting outfit Umlilo Safaris (so much for the empowerment of local people and generation of revenue that stays in Zambia).

Opinion: Africa is not Disneyland

Some imagery that comes to our screens can be tough to stomach, and every now and then Africa really tests one’s emotional make-up.

Opinion: Like the fossil fuel industry, trophy hunting is unsustainable

Trophy hunting is like the fossil fuel industry. They’re both messy, unsustainable, in need of an alternative approach and, ultimately, fail to deliver on their promises.