For those critical of trophy hunting, particularly for cats, let me provide you my own most recent experience. I am hardly an expert on African hunting, but I am at least informed on what I personally saw and learned.
I spent two weeks in Namibia during August. Great plains game hunting, and I took a nice leopard on the second to last evening. We ate game every evening, but obviously did not consume all the game we took during the two weeks. Namibia is a land of huge cattle stations. The game animal "belongs" to the ranch owner. Those of you who have hunted in Europe will recognize the formula.
When I shot my oryx, for instance, I retained the cape and the skull. The back straps went on the grill two nights later and the bulk of the animal went to feed the worker families on the station. The tropy fee for the bull was shared between the owner and the government. Other animals we took were sold in the same way they are sold to markets in Germany. In other words, on Andre's 40k acre, low-fenced property, he is "insentivized" to protect his plains game herds - herds which just twenty years ago were largely culled to make way for cattle.
The ranches also have heavy populations of leopards. This is a rather recent result of sport hunting. Again, twenty years ago, a leopard-killed calf was laced with poison. The leopard was viewed as purely a problem animal. The poisoning killed leopards but also, obviously affected honney badger, vulture, jackel, and caracal populations.
Today, the cats are a major cash resource. The trophy fee is again split between the government and the station owner. It is enough to underwrite the loss of several calves. As a result, leopard populations are exploding across Namibia.
I am more proud of that leopard than any other game animal I have taken. And not because he is exotic, but because we worked very hard for him, spending hour upon hour during bitterly cold nights sitting over baits. And though I am 56 this year and not quite the airborne ranger I once was, I am also hardly a overweight rich guy having a cat delivered on a platter.
The ranch owners benefited, the PH benefited, and most importantly the game animals of Namibia are benefiting from sport and trophy hunting. I in no way would ask Greg or Jim to change their personal opinions or hunting choices - merely have an informed and open-minded opinion about the choices others of us make.
