When poachers kill an elephant matriarch, the remaining family members in her herd, such as the less experienced sisters and the youngsters, are left without guidance and often die from drought, hunger and disease. When poachers kill old bulls, their young, male apprentices suffer, and when poachers kill apprentices, the elderly bulls that they were protecting are left unable to defend themselves.

     The Tanzanian people are victims, too. Although some Tanzanians profit from being poachers, the majority of individuals, families and communities suffer real financial loss. This happens because Westerners respond to the poaching problem by restricting legal hunting. When hunters no longer hunt, the hunting companies no longer employ Tanzanians to work in their headquarters and camps, and they no longer purchase supplies and services from Tanzanian businesses. In the end, Tanzanian people lose income.

     As the elephant population dwindles, so do the species that depend on elephants. This includes the birds that pick the bugs from the elephants’ skin, the dung beetles that turn elephant dung into dirt again, the antelope that depend on the elephants to dig waterholes, and the plants that depend on the elephants to spread their seeds. Because poachers have been using chemicals to douse elephant carcasses, the vulture population has decreased as well.

     Hunters are also victims of poaching. When poachers devastate a species, people assume hunters are to blame. Understanding the difference between hunters and poachers is just too complicated. Anti-hunters, left-leaning journalists and anxious politicians reinforce the misconceptions, and suddenly there are laws restricting hunters.