The Giraffe Hunt Chronicals

SI CE ARRIVING IN the UK, I find myself, with tiring frequency, up against a ti-hunting sentiment. I don’t seek to become embroiled in arguments, yet, by the same token, I’m not ashamed to speak of my profession in Africa, spread over 45 years as a game ranger, wildlife manager an professional hunter, all to do with sustainable wildlife conservation, an integral part of ecotourism.

A few years back the South African and international media were awash with outrage over American sport-hunter Tess Thompson Talley’s shooting of a giraffe in South Africa. Not letting it rest, social media sites also climbed on the bandwagon with ignorant trolls roundly abusing Thompson.

Probably 99% of the vitriol being directed against her was due to ignorance. Thompson herself, also displayed ignorance by stating on her Facebook page that she’d shot, the species in question, is the most common of the eight species, and only found in Southern Africa.