How Much for that Rhino in the Window?

"I do not understand what it is that drives a man, or woman, to pick up a rifle and shoot an elephant, or a lion, or a leopard, or a kudu, for sport... But whatever one thinks about hunters and hunting should not cloud a judgement about whether they can be good for conservation."

- Raymond Bonner, At the Hand of Man: Peril and Hope for Africa's Wildlife

Dallas Safari Club auctioning black rhino hunting permit

Tonight - as I type this, in fact - someone is planning to kill a rhino.  Actually, I suspect that pretty much all of the time there is someone, somewhere, planning to kill a rhino, but this one is different.  This isn't taking place in a poacher's camp site, or in the shadowy lair of some organized crime boss.  This is happening publicly and - chillingly to some - proudly, right here in the USA.  Dallas, Texas, so be precise. It's the reason why that will surprise many.

Rhinos are one of the poster-children of the ongoing extinction crisis, with all five species threatened to varying degrees.  Two of the Asian species - the Sumatran and the Javan - are among the most endangered mammals on the planet, with Africa's black rhino not that far behind.  Saving rhinos is a priority for many conservationists, but it's an expensive one.  Setting up protected areas isn't enough, as poachers have shown a complete willingness to track the last rhinos down anywhere.  Guards need to be hired, trained, and armed.  Populations need to be monitored constantly.  Nor is saving rhinos "safe", as many park rangers and wardens have been killed defending their charges.

The southwest African nation of Namibia, home to about a third of the world's wild black rhinos, came up with a controversial solution to raise some cash for rhino conservation.  Through the Dallas Safari Club, it is auctioning off the rights to hunt one of its rhinos - an aged bull, deemed surplus to the population, who could be culled without harming the species at large.  That doesn't change the fact, however, that a critically endangered rhino is going to die, which doesn't sit well with many conservationists.

I've got mixed feelings about the hunt.  I can accept the science behind it - an elderly male, outcompeted by younger bulls, won't be breeding anyway, and it's probably bound to die before too much longer anyway (how do they guarantee that they shoot the right rhino, though?  I'd hate to go, "Oops, my bad, that was actually a pregnant female... do over?").  DSC is hoping to raise anywhere from a quarter-million to a million US on his hunt, which can do a lot of good for rhino conservation.  And I'd hate to understate the important role that hunters have played in the conservation of wildlife around the world (which is only fair, since some of it they did drive to extinction in the first place...)

At the same time, I've never been too comfortable with trophy hunters - and not just because it's a rhino.  That being said, I've had the chance to watch black rhinos in the wild on two occasions and seen them countless times in zoos (including at the Dallas Zoo, not far from where this auction is taking place).  I've also cared for white rhinos, and had the chance to hand feed and stroke Indian rhinos.  They really are magical animals (metaphorically - nothing I repeat NOTHING to do with the horn!), and the thought of putting a bullet in one for fun doesn't sit well with me.  Also, I worry about the message it will send to local Africans. "No, silly, these animals aren't for you to shoot... they're for rich (presumably white American) people to shoot... now, if I catch you in this park again, we're pumping you full of lead!"

I understand that it's easy for armchair animal lovers in Europe and North America to bemoan the upcoming death of this majestic animal (though I do have fingers crossed that some billionaire will swoop down, win the auction, and then shred the permit).  It's the government of Namibia, along with other African and Asian countries, that ultimately will decide the fate of the rhinos in their lands.  I hope that they find a better way.

Until then, I hope that they put the money - however much it is - earned from this hunt to good use, and that it goes some way towards saving the species.  They owe the black rhino that much...