https://www.zimbabwesituation....for-hunting-buffalo/



Bow and arrow for hunting buffalo
May 20, 2019 1:15 PM
Source: Bow and arrow for hunting buffalo | The Herald


Elita Chikwati Senior Reporter


The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority has relaxed conditions relating to the hunting of buffaloes by allowing the use of specific bows and arrows as part of efforts to diversify options for professional hunters and boost revenue from the sport.

The bows and arrows, however, need approval from the relevant authorities.

Parks and Wildlife Management Authority spokesperson Mr Tinashe Farawo confirmed the development, saying hunters were now allowed to use specific types of bows and arrows to hunt the buffalo.


“There are specifications for the bow and arrow. These type of bows and arrows kill instantly. Before this, hunters would use big rifles. We have been advocating for this and we welcome the new development,” he said.

Mr Farawo said there are categories of animals used in the hunting and the buffalo was in category A.

Government amended the Parks and Wildlife Act by deletion of the buffalo in part A and insertion of part that gives specifics of bows used for hunting.

Environment, Tourism and Hospitality industry through the Statutory Instrument 114 of 2019, Parks and Wild Life (General) (Amendment) Regulations, 2019, (No.6) published in the Government gazette of May 17 notified of the amendments.


“It is hereby notified that the Minister of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry has, in terms of section 129 of the Parks and Wild Life Act [Chapter 20:14] made the following regulations:-

“These regulations may be cited as the Parks (general) Amendment regulation 2019, no 6.

The third schedule to the Parks and Wild Life general, published in Statutory Instrument 362 of 1990 hereinafter called the principal regulations is amended by the deletion of ‘buffalo’ in part and by the insertion of a new part.

“Section 53A of the principal regulations is amended in sub section by the insertion of the following- animal specified in Part E of the Third Schedule, shall use a modern compound bow or traditional bow.


“Arrows should be on modern construction, either aluminium, carbon, graphite or a combination of these with a weight of not less than 600 grains, including the broadhead. Broadheads should be of single bladed construction with two cutting edges and none replaceable blades with a minimum cutting length of 30mm. No mechanical broadheads may be used,” read the statutory instrument.

Mechanical broadheads include all broadheads where blades deploy on impact.

The statutory instrument also directed that hunters going on the bow hunts should be accompanied by a qualified professional hunter with previous bow hunting experience in dangerous game.

I think the pull weight of any compound bow used for buffalo should be at least 70 lbs. or more. I have a picture(don't know how to display it) of a water buff rib with two broadheads where only the points have barely fully penetrated the rib. Two hunters sharing a water buff hunt and shooting at the same time using 55 lb. pull compounds and standard weight arrows. Their aussie ph immediately fired at the buff when he saw the arrow's shafts sticking way out of the buff.

Gotta love this part.

quote:

These type of bows and arrows kill instantly.

Mark

I should have added that penetration is of most importance with very large animals with harder bone. Thus, just a two sided broadhead with no mechanical on impact displaying cutting edges. Great for tender deer but not for the buff and larger.

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Gotta love this part.

quote:

These type of bows and arrows kill instantly.

Mark

I was looking for the part where they approved the use of exploding heads like Rambo used in Rambo II.

Huh? Let’s go old school bushmen poison arrows and breechcloths.

When I hunted Australian Buff with Simon Kyle Little, I used 80lb Hoyt with total arrow weight of 900 gr. I used Ashby 315 grain two blade broad heads and Easton dangerous game shafts. This combo had complete pass through on 2 cows and 2 bulls. However, I can assure you they don't kill instantly. Their is a huge volume of blood in a buff. One bull just stood there after the arrow passed through, for it had to be 5 minutes, as it felt sick and finally fell just fell over

Besides where is a similar requirement in the gun regulations for a bullet to "kill instantly"? Instead they need a regulation that takes into account the kinetic energy of the arrow.

quote:

Originally posted by MARK H. YOUNG:
Gotta love this part.

quote:

These type of bows and arrows kill instantly.

Mark

I can’t speak to Cape buffalo, but water buffalo in Argentina.

I’ve never been a fan of bow hunting, as the TV shows always have the shot and high fives while waiting.

I prefer DRT, but I dropped a water buff cow (the intended target) and she bellowed, so we waited for the herd to go. I was using a .458. Well, she decided that wasn’t how she wanted to die. That was a hell of a chase.

Bows have killed plenty. Not my deal, but I will not judge.

The destruction of vital organs kills animals.

How it is done is immaterial.

Not a fan of bows for large dangerous game. It is "sporting" to use a 2x tippet when fishing to catch large fish, as when you "lose", the fish is free. But when you arrow a Buff or elephant and don't succeed, it is the animal that pays for your "sportiness". I was in Mozambique when a film crew was doing a shoot of an Elephant bowhunt. I'm sure it looked fine in the final cut, but they skipped the part where the Elephant wandered around for 2 days wounded until we flew over, located it, and sent the GPS coordinates to the hunter on the ground.

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:
Not a fan of bows for large dangerous game. It is "sporting" to use a 2x tippet when fishing to catch large fish, as when you "lose", the fish is free. But when you aerrow a Buff or elephant and don't succeed, it is the animal that pays for your "sporrtiness". I was in Mozambique when a film crew was doing a shoot of an Elephant bowhunt. I'm sure it looked fine in the final cut, but they skipped the part where the Elephant wandered around for 2 days wounded until we flew over, located it, and sent the GPS coordinates to the hunter on the ground.

That wouldn't have been a Jack Brittingham episode by any chance, was it?

No, it was a Canadian archer. He was quite good...shot a Hartebeast at 110 meters, and had a kid's bow with him that he used to teach the village kids with. But a bow is not a weapon to humanely take an Elephant, in my opinion anyway.

Water buffalo bull killed by bow in Australia last Year by camp member. Backed up by big bore double. Saw bison killed by arrow kid used a 800 grain arrow 2 blade broadhead for penatration and a 80-100 lb draw can’t renember and get hella close. Same tackle in Australia. I can be done but suggest back up with big bore or two. Having hunted with archery gear a bit dead right there is not very common

quote:

Originally posted by Saeed:
The destruction of vital organs kills animals.

How it is done is immaterial.

Exactly....

How many were backing him up with a big bore? It would be very sporting if you had the gonads tohunt dangerous game with archery equipment with no backup. But ain’t gonna happen I’m guessing but even rifle hunters are backed up. I assume wandering lost buffalo and elephants are very common. You definitely can kill them just a matter of when. I have talked to my phs about this type if DG hunting and none seemed overly enthused

quote:

Originally posted by Biebs:
Not a fan of bows for large dangerous game. It is "sporting" to use a 2x tippet when fishing to catch large fish, as when you "lose", the fish is free. But when you aerrow a Buff or elephant and don't succeed, it is the animal that pays for your "sporrtiness". I was in Mozambique when a film crew was doing a shoot of an Elephant bowhunt. I'm sure it looked fine in the final cut, but they skipped the part where the Elephant wandered around for 2 days wounded until we flew over, located it, and sent the GPS coordinates to the hunter on the ground.

I bet that Bossie Mostert wished that the hunter had a 375 H&H rather than that bow & arrow.

I did the same thing Geronimo did. I threw my bow & arrows into the creek when I got my hands on a Winchester.

Well said Bob....

The use of bow and arrow has been around for a long time, though on alienated land, not the Parks and Wildlife estate. From time to time there can be moratoria.

Richard Harland made the case that for hunting dangerous game, one should be equipped with a weapon capable of doing the job when things don’t go just right. It’s obviously a personal decision. Personally, I would not.