Local News

Hunters’ gunshots signal doom to tourism in Tarangire

By Arusha Times Reporter


What currently ails Loliondo Game Controlled Area could easily be replicated at Tarangire National Park; the line separating hunting activities and conservation in the area is rapidly fading.

Park authority foresees imminent problems, including conflicts unless something is done to save the situation.

Mr Erasto Lufungulo the Chief Warden at Tarangire revealed that gunshots from nearby hunting blocks have started to scare tourists and things continue getting worse because visitors on game drives have been encountering gory incidences of killed animals and their hunters busy chopping off heads and limbs from their games.

“There are some hunting blocks that border the park and regular gunshots can be heard by tourists taking game drives or those staying at hotels or lodges here, these scare them and most get even more frightened upon witnessing hunters slaughtering animals nearby,” Mr Lufungulo pointed out.

The Warden did not rule out the possibility of firearms accidents should bullets miss their wildlife targets and hit human beings.

Apart from licensed commercial hunters, Tarangire Park also suffers poaching activities and between January and November this year a total of 145 illegal hunters were arrested which has almost tripled the number of poachers who were arrested last year (51).

According to Mr Lufungulo, poachers have hatched new schemes including planting poisoned watermelons along routes used by elephants thus killing the jumbos. A total of seven elephants were killed this year.

“Tarangire poachers mainly target elephant tusks and the problem here is that our animals sometimes venture outside the park and once outside our territory illegal hunters can kill them at will because our wardens have no mandate to make any arrests outside the park and whenever the situation call for it we are forced to seek assistance from the local police force,” he explained.

I like the way they seamlessly roll hunters in with poachers in this article. Plain to see this author is not biased.

And if you think about it, what activity, hunting or game viewing brings in the most revenue to their country?

Ditto . Bye the way GREAT ELE bull my friend!

Thanks Dave!

Are tourists on Adam and Luke's trophy fee list?

Brett

quote:

Originally posted by Brett Adam Barringer:
Are tourists on Adam and Luke's trophy fee list?

Brett

That'a a novel idea...

Sounds like an excellent teaching opportunity. Maybe SCI should print up a brochure to be distributed to the tourists explaining the benefits of hunting. "Viewer Discretion is Advised".

Typical anti hunting press statement. I wouldn't be surprised if the guy has family involved in phototourism.

As to the "upset about hunting in photo areas" crowd, I remember being in Zambia on the Luangwa where we were hunting Lion. The phototourists were driving on to the hunting concession to observe the lions at night with lights, off the hunting baits. I'm sure they were complaining the whole time about the "mean nasty hunters slaughtering animals" while taking their photos on the baits. I'm sure they were complaining about the hunting in the national park as well, even though they were several miles out of it at that point. I really don't understand their complaints- wouldn't the animal viewing be even better deep in the park, as opposed to on the borders??? After all, the hunters are driving them in to it with their "senseless killing"

Maybe it has to do with the hunting companies putting in roads, doing anti poaching patrols, hiring local people to work so they don't poach, etc. which allows the hunting area to have enough animals that these folks are willing to view them, just don't ask them to pay for it.

quote:

Originally posted by Kathi:

“Tarangire poachers mainly target elephant tusks and the problem here is that our animals sometimes venture outside the park and once outside our territory illegal hunters can kill them at will because our wardens have no mandate to make any arrests outside the park and whenever the situation call for it we are forced to seek assistance from the local police force,” he explained.

Once outside the park legal hunters can take them as well can't they?

This is basically BS as there is a 2K buffer between the hunting area and Tarangire. If photo tourists are seeing dead animals and running into hunters its because the photo tour guide is telling them its the park when actually they are in the hunting block. Some of these photo outfits are actually in the buffer zone and do not take their clients actually into the park at all.

Mark

I wondered when you or Adam would weigh in on this one Mark. Lolkisale borders Tarangire.... as do other concessions.

Well.. seeing as how many "Camera" Safari people seem to get stomped... chewed... gored... bit... or clawed.... hearing a few gunshots would be reassuring...

quote:

Originally posted by bwanamrm:

And if you think about it, what activity, hunting or game viewing brings in the most revenue to their country?

Actually, non-consumptive tourism brings in much more revenue to the Government then consumptive. Consumptive revenue generated per client is much higher than non-consumptive.

The problem around Tarangire (and elsewhere) really highlights the confusion that reigns where overlapping wildlife and tourism legislation does not conform. There has been a proliferation of photo tourism development on the outskirts of Tarangire, all of which falls within the designated hunting blocks. Now Gov doesn't know what to do without being exposed to the threat of legal action by an aggrieved party!

Ultimately, I believe non-consumptive will win and those blocks in OA that have a high demand from photo operators will eventually be converted. a shame really.

Well, I never considered myself "geographically challenged", but where is tarangire?

South east of the Serengeti Nat Park and a little south of Arusha in Masailand, Tanzania.

Here's an interactive map of Tanzania with Tarangire NP on it. Adam Clemente's 2 blocks are on the east boundary with Luke Samaras' block touching right between the two.

http://www.safaripatrol.com/map_tanzania.shtml

Brett

Don't worry guys it actually wasn't us hunters they heard shooting after all!! I figured it out:
http://forums.accuratereloadin...1411043/m/2631017121

Brett

This story reminds me of something that I always have wondered about. Has any African government (or anyone else) ever done a study about who spends more money in the country -the tourists or the hunters? Can any African government do without hunter revenue? Why can't it be made clear by hunter groups to travel tourists that what they are being sold is nothing more than a glorified visit to a zoo? If they really want an "African experience" then hire an outfitter and PHs (yeah, they carry loaded rifles,sorry) and go on a "camera" safari. But, no, those tourists want every luxury of "civilization" -including meals in dining rooms eating off linen tables. It's called "having your cake and eating it too".

quote:

Originally posted by Gerrypeters375:
This story reminds me of something that I always have wondered about. Has any African government (or anyone else) ever done a study about who spends more money in the country -the tourists or the hunters? Can any African government do without hunter revenue? Why can't it be made clear by hunter groups to travel tourists that what they are being sold is nothing more than a glorified visit to a zoo? If they really want an "African experience" then hire an outfitter and PHs (yeah, they carry loaded rifles,sorry) and go on a "camera" safari. But, no, those tourists want every luxury of "civilization" -including meals in dining rooms eating off linen tables. It's called "having your cake and eating it too".

If you refernce BwanaMich's post above and studies that are out there you will find that photo tourism is more profitable over all than hunting. Hunters spend FAR more money per person, but there are FAR more photo tourists. The immediate problems with this are two fold:

1. Becuase photo tourism needs so many more people to be profitable it is VERY high impact. Habituation of wildlife, degredation of roads due to motor vehicle travel, litering, increased resource consumption, increased staffing needs, ect, ect, ect. This is as aposed to hunting which is relatively low impact.

2. Photo tourists won't go everywhere hunters will and quite frankly shouldn't. Hunters will gladly pay $10,000s of dollars to hunt areas with a fraction of the game, tons of brush, mosquitoes, tse flies, and diseases! Your average photo tourist won't plain and simple! That's one of the reasons why hunting is so important. We have a vested interest in protecting the wildlife of places there no one else wants to be. We can make sure the timber isn't cleared and the animals aren't poached.

Brett

Brett:

Wev are arguing at cross purposes. I didn't mean that "photo tourists" should not live under the same conditions as hunters in the bush. I'm saying that hunter groups should try to get a younger crowd (already anti-hunting perhaps -but maybe open to conversion after a night in the real bush) to want to go into the bush and see real wild animals "close up". Who knows? Hearing the territorial roar of a male lion at night from inside a flimsy tent might give them a new perspective!

quote:

Originally posted by Gerrypeters375:
Brett:

Wev are arguing at cross purposes. I didn't mean that "photo tourists" should not live under the same conditions as hunters in the bush. I'm saying that hunter groups should try to get a younger crowd (already anti-hunting perhaps -but maybe open to conversion after a night in the real bush) to want to go into the bush and see real wild animals "close up". Who knows? Hearing the territorial roar of a male lion at night from inside a flimsy tent might give them a new perspective!

Just tell the younger "greener" crowd that their ever-so-important "carbon footprint" would be less if they were hunting!

And, it's always been my main reason for going to Africa to..."chop off heads and limbs from my games." Raping and pillaging is only if I have time left over before my flight.

I have been fortunate enough to spend a bit of time in some of East and southern Africa's best known Parks and I can tell you that very few Tourists would be remotely interested in going to 80% of the reserves that sustain Africa's game.
A prime example is Nyassa Game reserve. This place has little for the average Photo Tourist, but boy its a hunters paradise.
So who is paying to keep these wild areas from becoming farmland?