HARARE – Zimbabwean wildlife authorities will today auction hunting packages for big game including elephants, lions and leopards with dozens of local and foreign hunters expected to take part in the auction.
The packages known as hunting camps consist of animal species packaged into bags to be hunted over a 10 to 14-day period in the Nyakasanga area of Hurungwe Safari and Sapi Safari in north-western Zimbabwe.
"The animals on offer include elephants, lions, leopards, buffalo, hippopotamus and plains game such as kudu, impala, waterbuck and birds," the National Parks and Wildlife Authority said in a statement.
"A cash participation deposit of 10,000 USD for hunting camps and 500 for fishing camps will be required in order to obtain a buyer’s licence number which is refundable if all sale conditions are met," it said.
The last auction in 2009 saw bidders coming from Austria, Germany, Russia, Spain and the United States. The country earned $1.5 million from the auction.
The wildlife department has sanctioned several hunts over the past decade especially as way to cull excess animals.
But illegal hunting has also been rife in Zimbabwe over the same period and mostly blamed on black villagers who have since 2000 invaded – and with tacit approval from President Robert Mugabe and his ZANU PF party — white-owned farms and game conservancies where they have been accused of poaching animals for food.
The situation has not been helped by reports of illegal and uncontrolled trophy hunting on former white-owned conservancies now controlled by powerful government officials and members of ZANU PF, although the government denies politicians are illegally hunting game and insists it still has poaching under control. – ZimOnline
Source: www.zimonline.co.za/Article.aspx?ArticleId=6596