The death of a large elephant with giant tusks, of which few specimens remain, sparked a wave of protest.. In Botswana, a hunter shot an animal for fun after paying $50,000. The African country allowed elephant hunting again in 2019 after years of being banned to gather more resources, but observation tourism is suffering from these animal deaths.
A female elephant was killed by a professional hunter with a single bullet. animal a endangered species with giant teeth reaching almost to the ground. Also, the hunted animal was considered the largest specimen in Botswana.
Leon Kachehoffer, a native of the African country, said he took the animal’s life after paying $50,000 on its northern border with Namibia. The hunter claimed that the elephant carried about 91 kg of ivory in its tusks.
Via a post on his Facebook profile, he said the controversy the “hunting trophy” created was unexpected. he added “to make a hunt Bull This is an incredible privilege.”
Because of this fact, African politician Ian Khama, the former president of Botswana, spoke on social networks harshly criticizing the truth. Khama lamented that safaris were allowed in the country again after his successor, Mokgweetsi Masisi, granted permission again in 2019.
Khama criticized that one of the tourist attractions in the area was shot just for fun.
An elephant loved by tourists
“This was one of the largest, if not the largest, tusked elephants in the country. tour operators were constantly trying to portray tourists as an iconic attraction. now he’s dead”, convicted the politician.
“How does this death benefit our dwindling tourism industry? Incompetence and lack of leadership nearly wiped out the rhino population and now this!” he added angrily.
The elephant was over 50 years old and its death can alter the behavior of younger males as they tend to take older ones as references for behavior. There are currently only 40 specimens of this species.they all have fangs that make them a great attraction for professional hunters and poachers.
About 130,000 elephants live in Botswana, but very few have large ivory tusks. The current government justifies the legality of its hunting for the economic benefits it brings. Elephant hunts in 2021 raised $2.7 million.
“The income from hunting and meat will make a huge difference to the population,” said Debbie Peake, spokesperson for the official body that regulates the hunting industry. “The elephant already had a gunshot wound, which means it was right in front of the poachers.” “If he had been killed by a poacher, it would have been of no use to the local community,” he added.
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Source: Informacion
