Interview with a Professional Hunter
Eric Pasanisi, President of Tanganyika Wildlife Safaris (TAWISA), the largest safari hunting company in Tanzania, granted this interview in 2013. Although the conversation is several years old, it shows his longstanding commitment to stopping poachers.
Q: How many hectares does TAWISA hunt in the Selous?
Pasanisi: Today around 2.7 million hectares [6,600 square miles], but we invest also in anti-poaching in many open areas next to Selous. The total for anti-poaching is close 3.2 million hectares [12,400 square miles].
Q: What do you need to stop the poaching?
Pasanisi: Land Rovers and anti-poachers.
Q: How much does a fully-equipped Land Rover cost in Tanzania?
Pasanisi: A Land Rover in full is around $52,000.
Q: Me: What else do you need?
Pasanisi: Money to pay the teams. Each team [has] 7 anti-poachers and 2 assistants.
Q: How many men are doing anti-poaching in the Selous?
Pasanisi: Around 32 depending the season but 24 during all the year.
Q: What is the ARMZ mining company doing to help fight poaching?
Pasanisi: They pay for a team of 10 with the government, but to fight poaching you need to have a motivated team, and nobody could be more motivated than hunters.
Q: How many elephants did TAWISA kill on safari hunts last year?
Pasanisi: 24.
Q: How much does TAWISA spend on anti-poaching?
Pasanisi: We spent last year $450,000. We need this year to spend at least the same and more if possible to fight poaching.
Q: How many hectares does TAWISA hunt in the Selous?
Pasanisi: Today around 2.7 million hectares [6,600 square miles], but we invest also in anti-poaching in many open areas next to Selous. The total for anti-poaching is close 3.2 million hectares [12,400 square miles].
Q: What do you need to stop the poaching?
Pasanisi: Land Rovers and anti-poachers.
Q: How much does a fully-equipped Land Rover cost in Tanzania?
Pasanisi: A Land Rover in full is around $52,000.
Q: Me: What else do you need?
Pasanisi: Money to pay the teams. Each team [has] 7 anti-poachers and 2 assistants.
Q: How many men are doing anti-poaching in the Selous?
Pasanisi: Around 32 depending the season but 24 during all the year.
Q: What is the ARMZ mining company doing to help fight poaching?
Pasanisi: They pay for a team of 10 with the government, but to fight poaching you need to have a motivated team, and nobody could be more motivated than hunters.
Q: How many elephants did TAWISA kill on safari hunts last year?
Pasanisi: 24.
Q: How much does TAWISA spend on anti-poaching?
Pasanisi: We spent last year $450,000. We need this year to spend at least the same and more if possible to fight poaching.
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Charles Beukes, a former professional hunter who has run safaris in Tanzania, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe, says if it is a reputable hunting company, “it will spend money on anti-poaching units in those remote areas. So if you remove those hunting organizations, you’re left with a void” (Russo).
Andy Hogg, the founder of a photo safari company in Zambia, says, “Hunters will say they have a presence in an area – and yes, when they’re there, it is a poaching deterrent.” However, he says, the hunters’ protection can be sporadic because they “leave at the end of the season when the rain starts – and in fact, that’s when a lot of our poaching happens” (Russo). Neil Duckworth, owner of a hunting safari company in Mozambique, says, “Poaching, as opposed to legal trophy hunting, is indiscriminate, without regard to age, sex or species of animals killed . . . and if not constantly policed there will be no wildlife left (Flowers).” In addition to providing infrastructure for the game department, his hunting company finds and destroys animal traps, reintroduces species to the ecosystem, donates animal meat to the villagers, and builds permanent dams for water for the animals. |
Poachers chopped this elephant's head off. The holes on the right are where his tusks went into his skull. The white lines are vulture poop.
This is a hunting vehicle. The game scouts use similar trucks, usually without the raised bench in the back. Three people fit in front and the other four to six men ride in the bed with the gear. This truck is riding along the sand of a dry river bed. Elephants come to the river bed to dig for water, and elephant poachers look for them there.
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