Minister calls for shoot to kill policy in Botswana   Posted by Deborah Schrenk (campaign founder)   The Deputy Speaker of the Botswana Parliament, Pono Moatlhodi, has called for the immediate introduction of a shoot to kill policy to tackle poachers targeting rhino and elephants in the country. His call for a new tougher stance against the poachers comes just days after Mozambique declared that the Limpopo National Park lost its last 15 rhino to the poachers.With the rising demand for rhino horn and elephant ivory from China and Vietnam there is the real fear that the loss of rhino from the Limpopo National Park could just be the first in a line of national parks that will lose their populations. Moatlhodi said that introducing the shoot-to-kill policy is essential to protect both the rhinos and the tourist trade of the country. Protecting the wildlife that the tourists come to see is essential if the country is to widen the strength of the economy and move beyond just being a diamond producing nation.He said that there are particular concerns for the rhinos and elephants of the Kasane region in the north of Botswana which is particularly popular with tourists.While the Botswana army has been deployed to patrol areas with high incidents of poaching particularly along the borders with Zambia and Namibia,  Moatlhodi believes that giving permission to rangers, soldiers and police to shoot to kill while out on duty they will be much more effective at tackling the poachers.Saving the high profile species of elephants, rhino and gorillas will ensure that the growing tourism industry in the country has a long-term future. Wildlifenews.co.uk Posted by Kevin Heath on  April 27th, 2013 at 2: 19 pm and last updated on  April 28th, 2013 at 7: 57 amfenews .co.

AFRICAN  INDABA    The Rhino Debate - Where is the Plan?  With over 4.800 black rhino and close to 21,000 white rhino in Africa, there is the potential to harvest up to 20 tons of rhino horn per year.    A comprehensive report, A Study on the Dehorning of African Rhinoceroses As a Tool to Reduce the Risk of Poaching, undertaken by the Endangered Wildlife Trust on behalf of the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) in 2012 investigates the impacts and efficacy of dehorning and to identify the circumstances under which the intervention is most likely to be effective at reducing poaching.   Yet the rhino debate continues. In the following sections, we first provide an article by  Michael ‘t Sas-Rolfes, an independent conservation economist based in Cape Town, South Africa who  describes the increase in rhino poaching in South Africa where rhinos are hosted on both state and privately owned land, suggesting that a fresh look be taken at the possibility of re-opening international trade. The article provoked considerable interest and we have therefore invited follow-up contributions from Colman O Criodain of WWF and Mike Knight, Chair of the African Rhino Specialist Group of IUCN/SSC. Colman focuses on enforcement problems relating to illegal trade in one country, while Mike explains more of the background as well as the dilemmas facing rhino conservationists and calls for a balanced and creative approach. Finally Rowan Martin, an independent wildlife consultant in the Southern African region on a range of conservation and development projects comments that all three articles leave him with a sense of dissatisfaction and stipulates that rhino have the potential to transform land use in southern Africa.   Rhino dehorning has been used historically as a tool to reduce the threat of poaching in parts of southern Africa.  Dehorning is a contentious matter due to uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of the method at reducing poaching, and due to potential veterinary impacts and adverse effects on the behavioural ecology of rhinos.  So where is the plan?  South Africa have released their plan (see National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, 2004 (Act No. 10 of 2004): Biodiversity Management Plan For The Black Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) In South Africa 2011-2020 Government Gazette, No. 36096 25 January 2013)  The plan was jointly developed by South African members of the SADC Rhino Management Group (RMG). The Vision of this plan is to contribute to the long term recovery of the black rhino population by having viable populations throughout their former range within South Africa.  The target is to have at least 3000 D.b.minor and 500 D.b. bicornis by 2020 with at least 5% growth rates.  Amongst the six components to achieve this is the proposal for a regulated harvesting regime limited to bulls. Kenya has released its plan (see Conservation and management Strategy for the Black Rhino (Diceros bicornis michaeli) in Kenya: 2012 – 2016, 5th Edition. Kenya Wildlife Services, P.O. Box 40241 – 00100 Nairobi, Kenya). Their Vision is to conserve 2000 East African Rhino with the goal of increasing the national herd from 623 to 750 animals by 2016.  At an estimated implementation cost of Ksh632 million (~US$7.35million), the plan places a heavy emphasis on law enforcement and protection and envisages expanding the range of rhino habitat through establishing additional sanctuaries.  There is no mention of any form of harvesting or trade in rhino horn. In both cases, the strategies are advocating to continue with the status quo which is extremely costly and has not worked in the long term.    Missing from this approach is what to do with the harvested horn.  A paradigm shift if required here if the reduction in illegal trade in rhino horn is to be reduced. This will require that all stakeholders in all range states, from producers to consumers, begin working to the same plan.  Rhino producers in Africa cannot continue to bear the opportunity costs (estimated at US$400 million annually) as a result of decisions at international forums such as CITES. Either the forum advocating the non-trade approach should fund rhino protection in situ by  paying the opportunity costs imposed on rhino producers like protected areas, communities and private landholders in Africa or support devolving the ownership of rhinos to private, community and state landholders and promoting legal markets for rhino hunting and trade in regulated harvested horn.  This will provide powerful economic incentives for rhino conservation in Africa that will reverse the uncertainty and double the population of rhinos in the next 20 years.  

By Chris Avena   Social media has become a large part of our every day lives. There is a type of social media for every type of interest. Now, social media has crept into the outdoors. Less than two years ago I launched SeeMeHunt.com, the interactive social network for hunters. It is a social media outlet where you can share your experiences and pictures of your outdoor adventures and meet other hunters and outdoorsmen from around the world.    This past August I was invited to join the World Wild Adventure Team to go to South Africa to co-host part of their Big 5 African Game Series.   This particular hunt really did peak my interest. We would be hunting a White Rhino. This was number one on my Big Five hunting list. This hunt would be a bit different than most. This was to be a “Green Hunt”. It would have all of the thrill and excitement of a big game hunt, but instead of using a 375 H & H, I would be hunting this great beast with a tranquilizer gun. The fact is, green hunting requires more skill and precision than hunting with a rifle because the animal must be shot at a much closer range. The darted animals can become very unpredictable. The animal could bolt or it could charge. The tranquilizer gun does not have immediate results like a conventional rifle which leaves a large margin of uncertainty.   After twenty hours of traveling, we finally arrived in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Our PH for this trip would be Stephan Tam, a young, confident and very competent professional. I must admit, I was a bit nervous to hunt my first Big Five animal, but all of that would change. We got settled in at the lodge and the hunt would begin the next morning. I was up before sunrise. I was overwhelmed with excitement. I watched the sun come up and I was in awe of just how beautiful it was. We discussed our strategy over breakfast and we set out about eight in the morning. The trackers were out about an hour before us looking for signs of rhino. Around mid day the trackers spotted a rhino going down into a creek bed. We carefully followed over the rocky terrain and down into the creek bed. It was a bit unnerving wading through the high reeds of the creek bed because rhino were not the only big game in the area. There are Lion and Cape Buffalo which are just as aggressive and just as dangerous. We followed the trail out of the creek bed and into the thick brush. My view was obscured by the thick thorny brush that adorns the plains. Our PH, Stephen was on point  and he silently moved us within thirty yards of this six thousand pound colossus. As I cleared the brush, the rhino came into view. My heart skipped a beat when I realized that not more than eighteen yards away were TWO huge rhino’s. There is a certain degree of uncertainty of how a rhino will react when it is shot with a tranquilizer. However, when two rhino’s travel together the risk factor increases considerably. Stephan’s calm demeanor put me at ease while we got set to take the shot. I raised the tranquilizer gun and took careful aim right behind its shoulder. Stephan whispered “Take em when you are ready”. I squeezed off a round and watched as the tranquilizer dart hit home. The time factor for the tranquilizer to take full effect is approximately fifteen minutes. Fortunately, both rhino’s bolted in the same direction away from our hunting party.   The two rhino’s ran for about a mile with our trackers in hot pursuit. We caught up with them in the truck only to come upon a very dangerous situation. The drug was starting to take effect on the darted rhino, however, his companion was not going to leave his side. With time at the essence, we needed to separate the two as quickly as possible. We tried to scare off the second rhino by beeping the trucks horn but it only seemed to agitate him. The rhino began to charge the truck. Only stopping yards from hitting us on three separate attempts. The situation was dicey to say the least. With the clock ticking, we were finally able to scare off the second rhino. We had to work quickly and efficiently to collect the DNA samples. The veterinarian drew a vile of blood while I took some hair samples and blood swatches. We were able to take some scrapings from the rhino’s horn. We took measurements of this prehistoric beast including its height, length and the length of its horn which measured 29.5 inches long. With our main task completed we still had a little time for our recap for SeeMeHunt.com and snap a few pictures for prosperity.   The DNA samples were sent to James Derr PHD, the director of the DNA technologies laboratory at Texas A&M University. Doctor Derr supplied us with the DNA kits so we would be able to log the DNA from the rhino into their global data base. We have a responsibility as hunters to assist with the conservation efforts so animals such as the rhino will continue to flourish in the wild for years to come.   You can find out more about our African adventures at www.SeeMeHunt.com the interactive social network for hunters or watch us on World Wild Adventures which airs on the Pursuit Channel. Our next adventure will take place in Costa Rica where we will team up with the wounded warrior foundation so we can show the men and women of our military just how much we appreciate their service, dedication and the sacrifices that they have made for our country to protect our way of life. We will take them on the trip of a lifetime to Crocodile Bay Resort where we will go deep sea fishing for Monster Marlin. These are not just any Marlin; these are 2-300 pound Marlin that you will be telling your children about some day. We will defy the laws of gravity while zip lining over a 1000 foot gorge, skimming the canopy of the rain forest and admiring the views below. If you are interested in attending one of these trips to Costa Rica or you are interested in becoming a sponsor, you can email me for details at  SeeMeHunt.com@gmail.com    

Read the following story about Chris going on a wild hunt for Rhino! Click Here!

Do you dare to be “different”? by Mia Anstine What are your thoughts on the direction society has headed? What do you think about the new "normal"? I do not generally post religious material, but this post in my morning news letter really got me to thinking about why our country is in such turmoil. I am thinking about what so many of us [...] Read more of this post

By Chris Avena   There was a time when the Rhino roamed the plains of Africa in vast numbers. However, since the 1970’s, the worlds rhino population has been reduced by approximately 90% due to poaching. Poachers would hunt the rhino just for their horn. There is no scientific evidence that the rhino horn has any medical properties, and yet, poachers still hunt them for their horn illegally. The value of one horn is equal to approximately fifty U.S. Dollars. Even though the rhino’s horn could be removed without harming the animal, they are still slaughtered.   Today, there are less than twenty thousand rhino that roam the plains. With the help of our conservation efforts, those numbers are steadily increasing. This past week, I had the distinct pleasure of hunting with the World Wild Adventure Team. Our destination – South Africa. This particular hunt really did peak my interest. We would be hunting a White Rhino. This was number one on my Big Five hunting list. This hunt would be a bit different than most. This was to be a “Green Hunt”. It would have all of the thrill and excitement of a big game hunt, but instead of using a 375 H & H, I would be hunting this great beast with a tranquilizer gun. The fact is, green hunting requires more skill and precision than hunting with a rifle because the animal must be shot at a much closer range. The darted animals can become very unpredictable. The animal could bolt or it could charge. The tranquilizer gun does not have immediate results like a conventional rifle which leaves a large margin of uncertainty.   After twenty hours of traveling, we finally arrived at Tam Safari’s. Our PH for this trip would be Stephan Tam, a young, confident and very competent professional. I must admit, I was a bit nervous to hunt my first Big Five animal, but all of that would change. We got settled in at the lodge and the hunt would begin the next morning. I was up before sunrise. I was overwhelmed with excitement. I watched the sun come up and I was in awe of just how beautiful it was. We discussed our strategy over breakfast and we set out about eight in the morning. The trackers were out about an hour before us looking for signs of rhino. Around mid day the trackers spotted a rhino going down into a creek bed. We carefully followed over the rocky terrain and down into the creek bed. It was a bit unnerving wading through the high reeds of the creek bed because rhino were not the only big game in the area. There are Lion and Cape Buffalo which are just as aggressive and just as dangerous. We followed the trail out of the creek bed and into the thick brush. My view was obscured by the thick thorny brush that adorns the plains. Our PH, Stephen was on point  and he silently moved us within thirty yards of this six thousand pound colossus. As I cleared the brush, the rhino came into view. My heart skipped a beat when I realized that not more than eighteen yards away were TWO huge rhino’s. There is a certain degree of uncertainty of how a rhino will react when it is shot with a tranquilizer. However, when two rhino’s travel together the risk factor increases considerably. Stephan’s calm demeanor put me at ease while we got set to take the shot. I raised the tranquilizer gun and took careful aim right behind its shoulder. Stephan whispered “Take em when you are ready”. I squeezed off a round and watched as the tranquilizer dart hit home. The time factor fort he tranquilizer to take full effect is approximately fifteen minutes. Fortunately, both rhino’s bolted in the same direction away from our hunting party.   The two rhino’s ran for about a mile with our trackers in hot pursuit. We caught up with them in the truck only to come upon a very dangerous situation. The drug was starting to take effect on the darted rhino, however, his companion was not going to leave his side. With time at the essence, we needed to separate the two as quickly as possible. We tried to scare off the second rhino by beeping the trucks horn but it only seemed to agitate him. The rhino began to charge the truck. Only stopping yards from hitting us on three separate attempts. The situation was dicey to say the least. With the clock ticking, we finally scared off the second rhino. We had to work quickly and efficiently to collect the DNA samples. The veterinarian drew a vile of blood while I took some hair samples and blood swatches. With our main task completed we still had a little time for our recap for World Wild Adventures and snap a few pictures for prosperity.   The DNA samples will be sent to James Derr PHD, the director of the DNA technologies laboratory at Texas A&M University. Doctor Derr supplied us with the DNA kits so we would be able to log the DNA from the rhino into their global data base. We have a responsibility as hunters to assist with the conservation efforts so animals such as the rhino will continue to flourish in the wild for years to come. If this DNA kit were to become standard issue when you applied for your hunting license, we would be able to log in and track a vast variety of species through out the world rather quickly. With this in place, we would have the ability to track various herds from all parts of the globe from one year to the next.

                                      I dreamed of Africa For as long as I could remember, I have always dreamed about going to Africa. As a child, when I would go on camping trips, I would hide out in the woods and imagine that I was stalking the dangerous game of the “Dark Continent”. I would hide in the brush and as stealthily as possible, I would stalk my prey. I would use a stick from the woods as my rifle but it was as accurate as a Remington 700. I never missed. Every shot was carefully placed in the kill zone. Lions, Elephants, Cape Buffalo, I successfully tracked them all. In my minds eye, my trophy room was unsurpassed. I would proudly walk the room admiring my triumphs and victory’s.   When I was ten years old, we had taken a school trip to Sagamore Hill – President Teddy Roosevelt’s house. I was awe-struck from the moment I entered his home. There, in every room of his home were the trophies that I had been dreaming about. There were Lion Rugs, Cape Buffalo, Rhino mounts through out the house. In the great room, two American Bison mounts flanked either side of the huge fire place. I was in complete amazement of his hunting exploits. I knew then, that Teddy Roosevelt had left a life long impression on me that would leave me longing to experience the thrill of the dangerous game of Africa as he did a century before. Through the years, hunting in Africa was never far from my thoughts. Occasionally, I would speak to friends about planning a trip but the answers always seemed the same. “Sure, let’s plan something for next year” but next year would never come. Something always seemed to come up. We are buying a house, we are having a baby. I would love to but…….   A week ago, I received a call from Judge Julie Mogenis. I am part of her pro-staff for her new show “World Wild Adventures”. She began to tell me how bogged down her schedule was and how there just was not enough time to go on all of the hunts that she had booked. I did not expect her next question. She had asked if I would fill in on a hunt for her and co-host the segment of the show for her. I was caught a little off guard but without knowing anything about the hunt Julie was speaking about, I agreed to fill in thinking that maybe it was a deer or an elk hunt.   Awesome! You will have to be in Africa by Monday. I was silent for a moment trying to process what I had just heard. You want me in Africa by Monday to fill in for this hunt, I repeated? What kind of Plains game will we be hunting? No plains game Julie said. This will be a Green Hunt for Rhino. This conversation was getting better by the minute. My first trip to Africa and I will be hunting one of the Big Five? This was like a dream come true. Weather I wanted to fill in for her on this hunt or not was not even a factor. The only issue I had was that we had a family vacation planned to Cabo San Lucus and the dates would overlap by a few days. I needed to speak to my family to shuffle around some dates. After I hung up the phone I woke up my girlfriend to tell her about the conversation. I was not sure how we would work out the dates but she said not to worry about any of that and I should just go to Africa. I really did not have to be told twice so I booked the flights the next day.   All I know is, one minute I was laying on my bed watching the Cartoon Network with my son and the next minute, I am on a plane to South Africa to hunt rhino. It is an experience of a life time. I can honestly say that if you work hard enough and you want it bad enough – Dreams do come true- So follow your dreams.

TANZANIA: Africa's ultimate hunting destination. Eelephant, Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, Sable, Roan, Gerenuk, Oryx, Crocodile, Hippo and many more species available. Combine your hunt with a safari to Serengeti National Park to see the wildebeest migration, Ngorongoro Crater, Mount Kilimanjaro and Marlin fishing off the coast of Zanzibar.   Contact me to book your safari now. Carl Strauss : carlstrauss62@yahoo.com

It is 12:20 pm August 1 2012, Harare Airport, Kevin and I waiting for our dear friend’s aircraft to land. Dakota McArtor is flying in on a connection flight from South Africa from the States; he is joining us on a 14 day hunt. Finally he is at ZIMRA’s desk clearing the Rifle; great is the joy when we shake hands, upon asking him if he is looking forward to this he responded “more than you guys could ever imagine”   Dakota is our American partner and dearest friend; he will be with us for the next 16 days to conduct a hunt with Colorado Buck – from the Television program Where in the World is Colorado Buck.   The drive out to Lake Chivero, just outside Harare on the Bulawayo road, where we will be staying the night, is a pleasant short drive as Dakota is talking about how he looked forward to this trip. We decided to stay overnight before we head out to the hunting area, as the rest of the hunting group will only join us later that evening.   What a pleasant surprise when Gary the proprietor of the lodge we staying at offers to take us with later that afternoon for some Falconry over dogs... I have seen this before but never part took in it... Love it, as Gary said hunting is hunting.   Back to Harare, 21:20 pm, awaiting our client’s arrival...we are relieved, when I see them walking through customs. After a brief hello and hand shakes ... oh almost forgot photo session, we headed out to the overnight accommodation we arranged for the clients. 5:45 am, clients having breakfast and trying to connect to the Internet, in order for clients to check mail etc. before we head out... Packing the two vehicles proved to be not as difficult as we anticipated, all lending a hand, which is what is great about our clients – not scared to dirty their hands. We brought both our four door hunting vehicles on this trip as the road trip down to the hunting area is roughly 4 to 5 hours drive and we needed our clients to travel in comfort.   Kevin arrived in Makuti a little while before we did, Dakota; Andrew – Colorado’s cameraman and I had to stop and run some errands. When we arrived Clients were sitting on the porch enjoying the view. We had a late lunch and lounged around for a while before heading out to pick up the game scout and to the area set out to sight the rifles. This we believe is very important as the airlines are not as careful as one hope they would be with the gun cases. We stayed in a lodge in Makuti, this is adjacent to area where Kevin and Dakota will hunt with Chris and Christine Woods, Chris is the proprietor of Cross Canyon Arms in Utah, for Buffalo, Leopard and some plains game. Colorado and I will be hunting lower down in the valley in the Nyakasanga area for Buffalo and Tuskless Elephant.   Wake up call at 04:30 am – Day One, breakfast before we headed out. Kevin and Dakota set out with the clients to check on some previously identified areas where some Leopard tracks have been spotted and activity identified, also to set up trail cams. The rest of the day was spent looking for fresh bait. Leopard hunting over bait requires you to keep the Leopard in the area with fresh bait.   We on the other hand set out to Nyakasanga, where we met up with the local PH, trackers and game scout. The areas that we hunt is within Zimbabwe’s Wildlife Management Areas (Parks) and this is a requirement that an authorised game scout accompany you on your hunts to ensure hunts are conducted in a fair and ethical manner.   We drove a while looking for fresh Buffalo and Elephant tracks, the morning did not yield any good tracks and we decided to stop under a group of trees on the bank of the Nyakasanga River (dry this time of the year) and proceed on foot looking for an Elephant herd spotted there earlier in the week. After about an hour and half’s walking we got onto fresh tracks and followed however the wind was not in our favour and as we were about to adjust our strategy we spotted a small group of young Elephant but we were winded and they took off. We still pushed ahead to see if we can find more tracks, we came across a fresh Buffalo track, only one set of very large tracks... definitely an Old Daggaboy.     We followed the tracks, at one stage we were so close to the Daggaboy I could smell him however he did not get to be this Old by being stupid.... we saw where he actually laid up... got up and were feeding again... we got closer but the Jess were thick and got his tracks where he actually turned to look back at us... then the next tracks indicated that he got out of the area... with some speed... next time Old timer... we returned to the vehicle a few miles back and had a well deserved late lunch...

TDK Safaris still have the following available in Zimbabwe. Male lion Buffalo Combo hunt Day rate $1500.00/day 18 days minimum 1x Male lion @ $10000.00 trophy fee 1 x Buffalo @ $3300 trophy fee And   Leopard/Buffalo Combo hunt Day rate $1350.00/day 15 days minimum 1x Male Leopard @ $5000.00 trophy fee 1 x Buffalo @ $3300 trophy fee     Other Species Available to hunt: Kudu        $ 1950 Zebra        $ 1350 Grysbok    $ 600 Tuskless   $ 4500 Hyena       $ 900   Contact: theo.verster@tdksafaris.com