The Dallas Safari Club recently auctioned off a permit to hunt a black rhinoceros in Namibia, for a whopping US$350,000. Hunting enthusiasts gathered on the evening of January 11, at the Dallas Convention Center, to bid on the rare opportunity to hunt one of Africa’s Big Five. There are only about 5000 black rhinoceros left in the world, of which 1700 are in Namibia. Seeing as how the black rhinoceros is one of the world’s most endangered animals, auctioning off a permit to hunt one might seem absurd.
However, the Dallas Safari Club assures that the auction was in the name of conservation, to actually save the black rhinoceros. The proceeds from the auction will be given to the Namibian government to be used for conservation efforts. Right about now, you’re probably thinking, “Yeah right, the best way to save the black rhinoceros population is to give someone a license to kill one? What a load of bullsh…” Which pretty much sums up what most animal rights activists are saying about the auctioned permit…even the ‘hacktivist’ group Anonymous has involved itself in the debate.
In this instance, the rhinoceros that is to be hunted, is an old, nonbreeding male that has become increasingly aggressive and territorial making it a danger to younger rhinoceros that may have a better chance of increasing the population. In a statement to the Dallas Safari Club, the Namibian Government said, “To hunt a black rhino is not taken lightly by Namibia. … Only old geriatric bulls, which are marginalized in the population and do not contribute to reproduction, are trophy hunted.”
