Breaking! Tragically, After 2 Years, Leopard Hunting Quota Is Reinstated In South Africa; 7 Are Allocated For Trophy Hunting In 2018

An updated quota was recently announced by South Africa’s Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) pertaining to the amount of male leopards permitted to be hunted in 2018.

While we think that trophy hunting of any wild animal should be permanently banned across the globe, the new quota has been allocated to five male leopards in the Limpopo Province and two male leopards in KwaZulu-Natal; all of which must be seven years or older. Horrible!

This news is especially disheartneing as zero quotas were issued in 2016 and 2017 because the Scientific Authority, which was established “to assist in regulating and restricting the trade of listed threatened or protected species, and species to which an international agreement regulating international trade applies, was concerned that trophy hunting posed a high-risk to the survival of leopards in the wild.

According to a statement released by the DEA, the controversial change was noted to be the result of leopard populations becoming “stable” in certain areas, which is not true. As per the department, the quota allocation is subject to change every year depending on the updated available “scientific information” on the status of leopard populations in South Africa.

The correct scientific evidence that WAN has researched shows that the wild leopard population is not in any way stable, and in fact the species is at risk of becoming extinct in the wild.

Trophy hunting is wrong on so many levels and it is unfathomable that certain groups continue to justify it. Killing endangered species should never occur, whether it deemed to be based on “so-called” “science” or not!

In 2016, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List included the leopard as an endangered species. As of last year, there was only an estimated 4,500 leopards in South Africa, with the number of leopards declining almost 66% just within a period of 7.5 years.

This is unacceptable and must END!