Mozambique

28 October 2015, 22:15

GOB

Mozambique

Below is most of an e-mail which we received from a friend who has been one of the World's leading authorities on big game hunting in Africa.

I shall only post part of this e-mail as there is no reason to identify this gentleman but it is rather insightful as to the situation in this Country.

FOLLOWING IS THE INFORMATION

Mocambique was very tough. Poachers shot up the camp in the week before I arrived and then set fire to the concession. It burnt the entire time I was there and, by the end of my stay, some 800 000 hectares had been burnt out. It seems clear the police are in cahoots with the poachers as they only arrived three days after the shootings, then drank 36 quarts of camp beer, took all the camp meat (two reedbuck, bushbuck, bushpig and eland) and left. Recently, they let go three armed poachers caught red-handed with their guns and meat by the anti-poaching squad and a third poacher who was caught after firing at my PH with an AK admitted that his ammunition had been supplied by the police. In my opinion, the country is rapidly descending down the well trodden African pathway to failed nation state and, in the last month, the government has tried on four separate occasions to kill Dhlakama, the leader of the main opposition party. Not good.

Needless to say, the fires completely changed game patterns and, by the end of my stay, we were starting to pick up carcasses of animals that seemed to have starved to death or died of thirst. While we still saw many nyala, they were very skittish, difficult to stalk and we certainly saw none of the size I was looking for.

28 October 2015, 22:32

Neil-PH

Which part of Moz are we talking about? It's somewhat of a generalisation to say its "the situation in the country", when the area that I work and spend 80% of my time doesn't fall anywhere near this kind of mayhem.

There is a security company that publishes a regular newsletter about Mozambique as a whole and covers security issues too. I would suggest one registers on their web site to receive the newsletters. Its far more reliable. Rhula Intelligent Solutions, www.rhula.net

29 October 2015, 01:08

LionHunter

Condemning an entire country - and Moz is a large country - based upon the experience of one individual - by a "leading authority on big game hunting in Africa" (your opinion only since he is not identified) - in one concession is hardly representative and certainly not insightful.

29 October 2015, 01:26

dogcat

quote:
Originally posted by GOB:
Below is most of an e-mail which we received from a friend who has been one of the World's leading authorities on big game hunting in Africa.

I shall only post part of this e-mail as there is no reason to identify this gentleman but it is rather insightful as to the situation in this Country.

FOLLOWING IS THE INFORMATION

Mocambique was very tough. Poachers shot up the camp in the week before I arrived and then set fire to the concession. It burnt the entire time I was there and, by the end of my stay, some 800 000 hectares had been burnt out. It seems clear the police are in cahoots with the poachers as they only arrived three days after the shootings, then drank 36 quarts of camp beer, took all the camp meat (two reedbuck, bushbuck, bushpig and eland) and left. Recently, they let go three armed poachers caught red-handed with their guns and meat by the anti-poaching squad and a third poacher who was caught after firing at my PH with an AK admitted that his ammunition had been supplied by the police. In my opinion, the country is rapidly descending down the well trodden African pathway to failed nation state and, in the last month, the government has tried on four separate occasions to kill Dhlakama, the leader of the main opposition party. Not good.

Needless to say, the fires completely changed game patterns and, by the end of my stay, we were starting to pick up carcasses of animals that seemed to have starved to death or died of thirst. While we still saw many nyala, they were very skittish, difficult to stalk and we certainly saw none of the size I was looking for.

Not sure about this. There are several top notch safari operators that work Moz. Mark Young from AR is headed there now. Tim Herald was there recently. No mention of any of this...

Would like to know who this world expert is and who was the safari outfit...

29 October 2015, 01:35

Use Enough Gun

Please share any additional information that you might have or be privy too.

29 October 2015, 02:35

Aaron Neilson

One of my best safaris ever took place in Moz, in 2013 - loved it!

29 October 2015, 02:57

doubleboy

Got back just over a month ago from Southwest Moz.
Sketchy border crossing, dry.... but,

Buffalo man, buffalo !

29 October 2015, 03:43

d.unger

Which area? Which world leading authority? 800,000 ha (nearly 2,000,000 acres),really? It's been a dry year but that is a chunk of land.

I love Moz, and the areas I've been seem to be getting better every year. It's a big country with a lot of wild land spread throughout it. To paint the whole country with this brush is an overgeneralization.

29 October 2015, 04:10

GOB

Have not been given permission to provide the name. If you have doubts, do the research. I have only provided the information provided to us.

29 October 2015, 04:51

jdollar

your friend must have stayed there a verrrrry long time to have seen 2,000,00 burned.I would have thought a fire of that size most anywhere would have made the international news but I can't find it referenced anywhere....

29 October 2015, 05:13

dogcat

quote:
Originally posted by GOB:
Have not been given permission to provide the name. If you have doubts, do the research. I have only provided the information provided to us.

So them, why report it as if it were fact?

29 October 2015, 05:53

Safari2

Skeptical of this report. Here are the reasons why:

1) 800,000 Hectares is an extremely large area. Areas this large are typically found in the North in the Niassa region. I have heard some reports of fires being set in this region during safaris but not nearly to the scale in this "report".

2) Very recent reports out of the Zambezi Delta as well as Coutada 9 tell me that this could not have occurred in these areas.

3) Areas to the south bordering Gonarezou and Kruger are nowhere this large plus we have 2 posts on this thread that rule them out.

4) Here is where the story breaks down IMO. If you eliminate The Delta (Coutadas 10, 11, 12 and 14), Coutada 9 and the small areas in the south that only leaves Niassa and the Tete Province. There are NO nyala in these areas.

5)Bottom line is that I don't know where this could have occurred in Moz in an area that contains nyala?

29 October 2015, 06:03

jdollar

i wondered about the same thing. nyala are pretty much confined to the southern part of the country and 2,000,00 acres simply hasn't burned there- at least all in a single area.... bsflag

29 October 2015, 06:34

fairgame

A concession is only as good as the operator.

Sounds like a bunch of excuses for poor hunting and you will probably find that the area is depleted.

29 October 2015, 07:24

Frostbit

7 Months ago

Saw no fires, no smoke, and no personal encounters with poachers. There is poaching of course. No where in Africa is sparred. The level of poaching is inversely related to the amount of anti-poaching efforts.

We chose our location carefully.

Cheers
Jim & Joyce

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Hunt Reports

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Namibia Sept 2010 - ARUB Safaris http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6781076141

29 October 2015, 08:29

MTarcher

Nothing of the sort in Tete when we were there 4 months ago.

29 October 2015, 09:16

Neil-PH

quote:
Originally posted by fairgame:
A concession is only as good as the operator.

Sounds like a bunch of excuses for poor hunting and you will probably find that the area is depleted.

Now that's the kind of post I believe !!!

29 October 2015, 12:41

Manyathelo

The African hunting industry is a small world.....

GOB your friend wouldn't happen to be an esteemed author? Who took 2 Nyala tags in the hopes of shooting something exceptional?

He didn't have a great hunt by the sounds of things, but he hunted with a top class outfit on an exceptionally well managed area. An area very well looked after and testament to what good management can achieve. Sure Mozambique has its challenges and Southern Africa is experiencing one of its driest years in history. But what you have posted is a gross misrepresentation of the reality on the ground. Some of the best managed and most progressive hunting areas in Africa are to be found in Mozambique.

If it really is so horrendous and in such a spiral into mayhem and then why not come out with all the facts and name the area, outfitter and hunter so that people can do their own research and make up their own minds?

29 October 2015, 14:07

Neil Duckworth

Well said ,this is a very vague report and misguided. sure Mozambique has fires and poaching along with the odd political issue but TIA. If someone wants to criticise and area or outfitter no problem but present all the facts and please don't generalise a whole country .

29 October 2015, 18:12

Bwana Bunduki

quote:
Originally posted by Neil Duckworth:
Well said ,this is a very vague report and misguided. sure Mozambique has fires and poaching along with the odd political issue but TIA. If someone wants to criticise and area or outfitter no problem but present all the facts and please don't generalise a whole country .

Should I ask for my deposit back?

Really?

Fairly irresponsible....

Jeff

29 October 2015, 19:10

Dead Eye

Mozambique...

People poach

And they catch them...

I got back two weeks ago.

And felt safe as anywhere ive visited in Africa.

29 October 2015, 21:18

gunslinger55

When I was there a few years back there were lots of signs of poaching, saw a snared Sable, PH's actually set fires to burn grass. There was always smoke in the air. There is quite a lot of people in Zambezi Delta area. Which will lead to poaching, and I'm sure an unstable corrupt Government. It is Africa after all. Coutada 11

But the hunting was pretty fantastic

I was with a "famous hunting writer" who took 2 Nyala tags to try and get a 30"+ whopper. He never did but 2 others did

29 October 2015, 22:52

Safari2

quote:
Originally posted by Dead Eye:
Mozambique...

People poach

And they catch them...

I got back two weeks ago.

And felt safe as anywhere ive visited in Africa.

What area Dead Eye? Would love to hear s report.

29 October 2015, 23:06

Michael Robinson

This information is so vague, uncredited, suspicious and unsubstantiated as to be useless. Some part of it may be true, but there's absolutely no way to tell.

02 November 2015, 18:04

howard hunter

Very sad to see people generalise and damage the image of a whole country because of one bad operator which is the only time you will get a report such as this. Any decent operator has anti poaching in the forefront of his management and the police are the first people you need to get on side. I hope that GOB has the balls to mention who this operator is as these are the kind of operations and reports that do uneccessary damage to an industry that is constantly under pressure from the anti's and this type of reporting and operation makes it harder for us to keep our industry going. I have hunted Moz for over ten years and we are a small community in the hunting world in Moz and I have not heard of an 800,000ha area with Nyala so GOB please can you verify your information and report with facts and names that are substantiated sowe can avoid giving Moz hunting a bad name because of a single bad operation that should get hauled over the coals if he is going to cause damage to our industry through bad management.

quote:
Originally posted by GOB:
Below is most of an e-mail which we received from a friend who has been one of the World's leading authorities on big game hunting in Africa.

I shall only post part of this e-mail as there is no reason to identify this gentleman but it is rather insightful as to the situation in this Country.

FOLLOWING IS THE INFORMATION

Mocambique was very tough. Poachers shot up the camp in the week before I arrived and then set fire to the concession. It burnt the entire time I was there and, by the end of my stay, some 800 000 hectares had been burnt out. It seems clear the police are in cahoots with the poachers as they only arrived three days after the shootings, then drank 36 quarts of camp beer, took all the camp meat (two reedbuck, bushbuck, bushpig and eland) and left. Recently, they let go three armed poachers caught red-handed with their guns and meat by the anti-poaching squad and a third poacher who was caught after firing at my PH with an AK admitted that his ammunition had been supplied by the police. In my opinion, the country is rapidly descending down the well trodden African pathway to failed nation state and, in the last month, the government has tried on four separate occasions to kill Dhlakama, the leader of the main opposition party. Not good.

Needless to say, the fires completely changed game patterns and, by the end of my stay, we were starting to pick up carcasses of animals that seemed to have starved to death or died of thirst. While we still saw many nyala, they were very skittish, difficult to stalk and we certainly saw none of the size I was looking for.

03 November 2015, 00:55

EddieWalker

Mozambique is at the top of my list for a Cape Buffalo hunt in the next couple of years. When I first read the original post, I was very disappointed that it was so bad there and that I needed to rethink things. But then reading everyone elses replies, I changed my mind and seriously question the original post and it's intentions. Was it just sour grapes by somebody who had a bad trip? Not offering any specifics or anything to support the claims, I'm left believing that Mozambique is still a good destination to consider