African
Elephant - loxodonta africana - the
worlds greatest of beasts
In
theory the Elephant started it all, African hunting that
is..... those great recounts of Selous, Burton, the Muirs
in Nyasaland, even Livingstone, their travels into the vastness
of an uncharted continent after the riches of ivory. They
still linger in our memories and provoke that excitement
we all feel when we think of Africa, toting a double rifle
over your shoulder and taking on a beast the size of a London
bus.
An
Elephant bull with heavy ivory topping 100 pounds is considered
by many as the ultimate African trophy and hunters dream
of the day they can relive one of Africa's oldest hunting
traditions. Despite their size, Elephants are worthy of
their status and offer one of the most arduous challenges
available today.
Most people believe Elephant hunting is illegal and become annoyed with anyone who suggests the contrary. Elephant hunting is allowed in African countries where their populations are stable, adequately protected and well managed. Perhaps of all endangered species, African elephants are the least likely to disappear because of what they are - they are the last surviving mega fauna of the world and the biggest threat they face is human encroachment into their habitat, not from trophy hunting.
There
are no sub-species listed for record purposes although there
is a difference between the savannah and forest Elephants;
the latter living in the sub-tropical rainforests of central
and west Africa. The Forest elephant is smaller-bodied and
their lighter ivory has a orangey-pink luster to it. They
are very bad tempered, possibly due to living in dense forests
where they cannot see very far and stampede at the slightest
sign of danger.
habits
Elephants
once roamed the African savannah in their thousands
forming vast herds which followed the seasonal
migrations. Beginning in the 16th century, they
were hunted commercially for their ivory. Their
slaughter culminated in the 1980s when their number
had been reduced almost by half. Since then, active
legislation and a worldwide ivory ban has resulted
in a stabilization and increase in the Elephant
population in countries with sound conservation
policies.
Today
the largest problem facing the Elephant is its large
appetite and the shortage of habitat mostly due
to human encroachment. They are continual feeders,
resting during the heat of the day and are destructive
to their habitat if confined to certain areas, often
destroying hundreds of trees only to browse a few
leaves off one branch. Their impact extends to the
destruction of the habitat of other species as well
thus creating a serious dilemma for conservation.
Elephants
live in herds, with a matriarch as the leader. Older
bulls break away from the herd and often form small
bachelor groups, with younger bulls acting as "askari"
for the older males. They travel great distances
in search of food, and often follow a seasonal route
covering hundreds of miles. They have to drink water
every day, often chasing other game away in times
of drought although they are often the first to
dig for water in dry riverbeds creating pools for
other species.
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hunting
tips - the hunt
Elephant hunting is done mostly on foot by following promising
fresh spoor until the animal is sighted. It is then determined
if the tusks are of satisfactory trophy size. Usually this
type of hunting involves hours of walking only to be disappointed
by a large bodied small tusked bull.
Generally older larger bulls will have younger, more alert
bulls in attendance and they often raise the alarm or cause
problems by always seeming to be in the way of the path
to the larger bull. In most cases, an Elephant hunt is a
psychological battle of endurance, patience and persistence
with many blisters, sunburn and exhaustion.
The
shooting part of the hunt is fairly quick, usually a brain
shot is recommended at close quarters with heavy grain solids
from a large bore caliber. When facing the Elephant a frontal
brain shot is aimed at the third or fourth wrinkle below
the center of the eyes. With a side shot, aim for the area
between the eye and the ear hole or directly in front of
the ear hole where the hairy knob juts out. A heart shot
is a better bet when it is difficult to get in close to
the elephant, placed lower down, directly behind the shoulder.
CITES
PERMITS
African
Elephants are listed both under Appendix I or
II of CITES depending in which part of the continent
they occur. At times their listing is rather confusing
and is concerned more with actual commercial ivory
sales (from legal culls) than with hunting trophies.
www.cites.org
More
information can be found at the US fish and wildlife
website (www.fws.gov)
or at the SCI Washington DC website (www.sci-dc.org)
USA
importing guidelines
USA import permits
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hunting
tips - the caliber
The
minimum is the .375 Magnum which is a legal requirement
in many countries. Most hunters prefer something heavier
starting from .416 or .458 Magnum upwards with heavier double
rifles being the best choice.
hunting
tips - the trophy
Score is taken
from the weight of both tusks and they do vary quite considerable.
It is not often that a good bull carries evenly matched
ivory. Usually older bulls will wear down their favorite
tusk digging and stripping bark, much in the same way we
are either left or right handed.
A
good set of tusks must protrude from the skin flap for at
least a meter, usually much more depending upon the thickness.
Remember a considerable portion of the tusk is hidden in
the skin and skull bone, probably at least a third. The
thickest part of the tusk is usually at the lip.
hunting
tips - where
Most
of the larger Elephant were hunted in the first half of
the 20th century from the classic countries which held vast
herds such as Kenya and Tanzania whilst in the 1980s, Ethiopia
and the Sudan produced good, heavy ivory over 100 lbs per tusk.
Today
(of the countries which allow elephant hunting) there still
are some very big tuskers being taken with each year producing one close to the 100 pound mark.
In
Zimbabwe the Hwange region near Victoria Falls has always
been good for big Elephant and if you choose the right time
of year and operator you will shoot 60lbs plus.
In
Botswana many Ph's make 60lbs and up their benchmark and these are taken on a regular basis
if you choose the right concession. The areas known as the
Chobe Enclave form a corridor within the Chobe National
Park which is today considered to hold Africa's largest
remaining population of Elephant. These areas are by far
the best in Botswana, if not Africa.
Botswana
is estimated to have over 200,000 elephant which is leading
to serious habitat destruction problems in certain areas and is affecting other
species. I believe it is only a matter of time before a
true 100 pounder comes out of this region. Botswana elephant do have very soft ivory and tend to wear down their tusks much quicker. Big elephant in Botswana tend to have very thick worn down tusks.
North-east
Namibia, known as the Caprivi strip has produced some big
bulls probably due to the relative proximity of the Botswana
population and their movement through the Caprivi into Angola.
Tanzania
has produced massive long ivoried bulls along the Tarangiri
National Park however permits are very limited and the price
of these hunts are very high. As a rule Tanzania's elephant have long thin ivory which makes for a classic looking trophy while not necessarily the heaviest.
Two
large Elephant bulls close to 100lbs per tusk were taken
in South Africa out of the Tembe Elephant Reserve in Northern
Natal. This was however a once-off exercise as the bulls
were surplus to the reserve. Tembe has what I Believe are
Africa's largest remaining tuskers. The park habitat is
very dense thickets and it is believed that this is where
elephant escaped and hid during the early ivory hunting
days of the colony. I have personally seen Elephant here
well over 100lbs per side and it is well worth visiting
this small gem of a park to see these giants!
Zambia recently started hunting elephant in two regions of the country (under CITES approval), namely the Luangwa valley and the lower zambezi valley. In truth no big elephant have been taken here and if one was witness to the wanton destruction of these beasts back in the 1970's & 1980's it would be best to avoid hunting elephant here, it is not "right" to deplete a resource further especially one which is ill managed by the wildlife authorities.
did
you know?
Bushmen
would coat their bodies in elephant dung to get close to
the animal for better arrow penetration. The Zulus believed
that to die whilst hunting the King's royal ivory was the
highest honor attainable.
zambian
hunting - south african hunting
- wingshooting - fishing -
family adventures
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