Since the killing of Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe, four US airlines have committed to no longer transporting hunting trophies from the so-called ‘Big Five’ species. Delta Air Lines, United, Virgin Atlantic and American airlines have all changed their rules about transporting hunting trophies so they will no longer carry trophies from lion, leopard, elephant, rhinoceros and buffalo. Furthermore, a group of airlines including Air France, KLM, Iberia, IAG Cargo, Singapore Airlines and Qantas also stated they would ban the transport of trophy-hunting kills, according to Paul Ferris, campaign director at online petition group SumOfUs.org.
“Airlines and other large travel corporations would be foolish to ignore the public reaction to the killing of Cecil the lion, and growing concern about the plight of endangered species,” said Ferris.
In Brief
- A similar ban was initiated by South African Airways in April, later joined by Emirates, Lufthansa and British Airways. However since July reports have stated that SAA has rescinded the ban and resumed shipping trophy kills.
- 15,000 American tourists visit Africa on hunting safaris every year, according to Conservation Force, a nonprofit group that advocates responsible hunting.
- 11 African countries issue lion-hunting permits, including Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia and Tanzania.
In Depth
- Read the original article on the New York Times
- Follow the Campaign Against Canned Lion Hunting on Twitter
- Download the free report “How much does Trophy Hunting actually contribute to African Conservation?“
