Wildlife Management In Africa Essay Example For Students

Wildlife Management In Africa Essay Wildlife Management in AfricaIn the past three decades, many of Africa’s wild animals have suffered a massive decline in population due to poaching. Africa is the worlds second largest continent and home to thousands of species of animals. Unlike in North America, most of these animals roam completely free in an almost totally undeveloped environment. In attempt to save these animals from possible extinction, anti-poaching laws have been enacted by governments throughout Africa, as well as an international ban on ivory trade. Anti-poaching regulations have in turn stemmed the formation of programs and policies for the management of Africa’s wildlife. Poaching: BackgroundPoaching, the illegal killing of protected animals, occurs in Africa for a variety of reasons. The most profitable reason is the ivory trade. Hundreds of elephants and Rhinos are slaughtered every year for their ivory tusks, which claim a sizeable profit on the black market. Many hunters also poach for the sport of it, the thrill of the hunt. Many of the countrys native peoples, however, poach animals as a means to stay alive. Because the wildlife of Africa roams so free, many people and crops are damaged and destroyed every year and natives poach the animals for self-defense. Financial concerns also drive many natives to poaching, seeing as most of Africa is still considered to be third world and an elephant tusk can mean the difference between starving to death and a prosperous year (Messer, 50). Poaching also has negative effects on the environment, and on the economy. Governments in Africa and around the world have tried to enforce strict anti-poaching laws, a nd also regulate the ivory trade, until recently however, both efforts have been in vain. In the past, government imposed anti-poaching laws transformed animals such as elephants and rhinos into a non-resource. They imposed laws that forbad the killing of these animals, but offered no alternative for those whose livelihood came from the animals (Butler, Mar1995; 40). The programs that were implemented were enforcement programs: many with a policy of shoot to kill (poachers). For example, in 1984, Zimbabwe implemented â€Å"Operation Stronghold,† whose main policy was to shoot poachers on site. Kenya has similar policies in their game parks, in retaliation to the poachers â€Å"poaching† park rangers (Hogan, 13). This attempt to secure animal populations has often cut off the human population in the immediate area from a valuable source of both income and food. Wildlife and Rural InhabitantsMany rural communities depend on farming as livelihood. Only 5 percent of the land in Africa is considered suitable for intensive agriculture, which therefore makes farmin g difficult (Child, 1997). Wild animals, especially elephants, make it even more difficult to eek out a living on the African landscape because they like to eat the crops, devastating the farmer’s income. In order to avoid or reduce damage from elephants, farmers have tried various strategies to deter them. Especially during the harvest season, farmers expend a great deal of labor attempting to guard their fields from elephants. Different methods, such as lighting fires, beating drums, and even firing guns into the air are tried. However, farmers explain that elephants, with their great intelligence, quickly learn that they will not be harmed by these methods and often return to eat the crops (Butler, Mar1995; 40). More modern methods, such as electric fencing and trip alarms have also been tested. Despite the high cost of these deterrents, elephants have learned to foil them as well. Another method that has been used with some success in Zimbabwe is the firing of tear gas ca nisters filled with chili pepper (Butler, Mar1995; 40). So far, no method has been able to completely deter the elephant aside from killing it. It should be noted that elephants do not destroy crops solely by eating them, but can also cause considerable damage by trampling crops while in transit. The Colour Purple EssayAnother interesting approach to wildlife management in Africa are animal relocation programs. Such programs move animals from overpopulated areas to under-populated regions or areas where certain animals have gone extinct. In September 2000, seven elephants where relocated from elephant-abundant South Africa to Angola. Operation Noah’s Ark is a program whose goal is to repopulate the once abundant animal population of Angola, which were desecrated during the 25 year long civil war. Animals are relocated in family groups to reduce the shock and stress of the long journey and the re-adjustment period (Swindels, 2000). New education programs have also been implemented to teach people of the benefits of animal conservation. One such program was implemented at the South African Wildlife College with funding from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in order to train wildlife managers how to better manage wildlife, resources, and people. During the two year program , students learn how to track animals and poachers, as well as oversee irrigation systems, identify plants, and handle community relations. They also learn about legal issues in conservation and tourism infrastructure. Tanzania also has a similar program that hires professionals to teach each subject instead of full-time professors (Mooney, 1998). ConclusionWith all that confronts the attempts to properly managing African wildlife, there does appear to be some avenue to pursue that could bring about an improved setting for the co-existence of human and animals. First, there needs to be better education on the plight of the animals particularly in those Western countries where foreign aid must compete with corruption. Secondly, there needs to be a way of channeling the revenue, derived from the consumption of animal related goods, to the people whose production possibilities are damaged by the destruction brought about by the animals (i.e. Elephants trampling crops or loss of farm la nd due to protected wildlife lands). Third, there needs to be a change of the property right structure in many of the South Africa countries. Such programs as CAMPFIRE can facilitate this change. It should be made explicitly clear that any change that will occur will do so in a political arena and careful consideration of the local political and cultural systems will be necessary to design optimal wildlife management programs. BibliographyBibliographyButler, Victoria. â€Å"Elephants By the Truckload.† International Wildlife. Vienna, VA. July/Aug 1995. v25 no4 p30-35Butler, Victoria. â€Å"Is This the Way to Save Africa’s Wildlife?† International Wildlife. Vienna, VA March/ April 1995 v.25 no.2 p38-43Child, Brian. â€Å"On economic Development of Africa’s resources† House Committee in International Relations. March 19, 1997. www.house.gov/international_relations/105th/af/wsaf3177.htmDrogin, Bob. â€Å"Zimbabwe is losing the Rhino War.† Los A ngeles Times. Sept 22, 1994 pA-1Dunn, Kate. â€Å"Animals Caught in Middle of Zimbabwe’s Land Reform. Poaching by Squatters in White-Owned Nature reserves Worries Conservationists.† Christian Science Monitor. Boston. Nov 28, 2000. Hogan, Rolf. â€Å"The Wildlife trade: Poacher or Gamekeeper?† The Unesco Courier. Paris. July/Aug 2000. v53. Issue 7/8. p12-14Lee, Kyu Young. â€Å"Groups Clash Over Wildlife Habitat Expansion Program† Environmental News Network. Internet 2/6/01 www.enn.com/enn-news-archive/1997/05/050597/feature.aspMesser, Kent. â€Å"The Poacher’s Dilemma: The Economics of Poaching and Enforcement.† Endangered Species Update. Ann Arbor. May/June 2000 p.50-56Mooney, Carolyn. â€Å"A South African College Trains A New Generation to manage wildlife, Land and People.† The Chronicle of Higher Education; Washington, July 31, 1998Murphy, Dean. â€Å"New Housing Ousts Hippos in South Africa.† The Los Angeles Times. LA,CA. October 5, 1998. Proquest. http://proquest.umi.comPeck, John. â€Å"Asian Meltdown Hits Zimbabwe.† Zmagazine. Internet 2/6/01. www.zmag.org/zmag/articles/pecksept98.htmRembert, Tracy. â€Å"Opening the Ivory Door.† Environmental New s Network. October 5, 1998. www.enn.com/enn-features-archives/1998/10/100598/ivory_23818.aspSalopek, Paul. â€Å"Poaching for Elephant Tusks Alarms Africa Anew.† Chicago Tribune. http://chicagotibune.com/news/nationworld/article/0,2669,SAV-0004100104,FF.htmlSwindells, Steven. â€Å"Elephant Airlift to Angola Brings New hope.† Environmental News Network. September 11, 2000. www.enn.com/extras/printer-friendly.asp?storyid=31322Government Essays