Scientists and conservationists today, World Elephant Day, handed the Tanzanian Government a global petition with over 500,000 signatures collected since March 2024 calling for an end to trophy hunting of elephants along the country’s border with Kenya in the Tanzania portion of the range.
This follows a move by Tanzanian authorities to issue hunting permits for super Tuskers in the Greater Amboseli–West Kilimanjaro elephant population. Five were targeted, hunted and killed by trophy hunters in Northern Tanzania in the last eight months. More permits are set to be issued imminently.
The consortium sent the petition by courier to the Tanzanian High Commission in Nairobi and to Statehouse Tanzania at a press conference in a Nairobi Hotel.
While management of elephants in Tanzania is recognized as the sovereign duty of the Tanzanian government, scientists reminded the two leaders that this population is shared and their protection has been achieved for three decades through a bilateral agreement.
“The loss of these elephants is not just a blow to elephant populations but to our collective efforts in conservation,” said Dr. Cynthia Moss, founder of the Amboseli Trust for Elephants.
The petition emphasizes the significant ecological and economic value of the Amboseli–West Kilimanjaro elephant population, a unique genetic reservoir that transcends national borders.
Until 2023, there had been a 30 year period of no elephant hunting incidences reported. The recent hunting wave was triggered by a new quota that was issued in 2022 to Kilombero North Safaris. The last unfortunate super tusker hunting incidence had been in 1994 leading to an international outcry when four well known elephants (RBG, Sleepy, Saibulu, and Oloitipitip), subjects of the Amboseli Elephant Research Project, were shot by trophy hunters on the Tanzanian side of the border. As a result of public outcry, in 1995, a moratorium on trophy hunting of this transboundary elephant population was agreed between the two nations.
The new hunting permits threaten the survival of iconic Kenya-Tanzania cross-border elephants, the largest in Africa. Only 10 elephants with tusks weighing around 45 kg (100 lbs) each remain in the Amboseli ecosystem which has the highest density of these animals. Hunting could cause the Super Tuskers to disappear within the next three years.
“The recent killings of super-tuskers is particularly concerning due to the rarity and special role these older males play in elephant society,” stated Dr. Joyce Poole, Scientific Director of Elephant Voices.
Whereas Kenya banned hunting in 1977, where it remains prohibited, it is still legal in Tanzania, where hunting companies obtain licenses on behalf of clients.
The petition, on the international campaign site Avaaz, was backed by a consortium of more than 50 African conservation organizations. The consortium called on Tanzanian authorities to collaborate with their Kenyan counterparts to protect this shared natural heritage.
Dr. Paula Kahumbu, CEO WildlifeDirect remarked, “We urge President Ruto of Kenya and President Samia Suluhu of Tanzania to meet and agree on the shared immense scientific and economic value of preserving these cross-border elephants. The long-term benefits of ecotourism, science and conservation far outweigh the short-term gains from trophy hunting in one country.”
The petition also highlights unethical hunting practices, including use of helicopters to locate elephants and the burning or burying of carcasses to conceal evidence.
Dr. Winnie Kiiru of the Elephant Protection Initiative and Mpala Research Center echoed these sentiments, stating, “The killing of these iconic elephants for ’sport’ is morally troubling and economically short-sighted.”
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