WWF once again takes the side of trophy hunters. allafrica.com/... Leonardo was one of four electronically collared lions killed by trophy hunters in one year. WWF voted AGAINST a ban on trophy hunting of polar bears and now this is to do with trophy hunting in Namibia. Most people are unaware that the WWF have had a strong affiliation with trophy hunters for a very long time. They are backing the extension of trophy hunting contracts in Namibia.

Position on Trophy Hunting of The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) South Africa
 
We aren’t opposed at all to trophy hunting and wholeheartedly support the proactive, science-based, in-situ management of plant and animal populations and the sustainable consumptive use of surplus stocks, but oppose canned hunting where animals are specifically bred for hunting outside of natural systems.

Trophy hunting is defined as “a specific form of wildlife use that involves payment for a hunting experience and the acquisition of a trophy by the hunter”. WWF recognises the diversity of cultural attitudes and opinions with regards to trophy hunting. Trophy hunting occurs and ultimately, it is up to local communities and their local and national governments, to determine how they use their natural resources to benefit people, species and habitats.

Many countries utilise trophy hunting as a wildlife conservation and management tool within the broader framework of sustainable use programmes. When improperly managed, trophy hunting can have serious detrimental impacts on wildlife. Thus, in some circumstances, WWF provides scientific and technical advice to relevant stakeholders (e.g. government and local authorities, local communities and private landowners), to improve the management of such programmes, to assist them in providing benefits to species populations and/or habitats, and local communities.

WWF acknowledges that trophy hunting, where it is scientifically based and properly managed, has been proven to be an effective conservation and management tool in some countries and for certain species. That is particularly the case in areas where alternative sources of income or land use practices are unlikely to bring in much needed funds for people or wildlife, or to create sufficient incentives for conservation (as opposed to other forms of land use). In addition, there is evidence that in some areas where trophy hunting is used as one of a range of conservation tools, poaching of both the hunted species and other species in the habitat has been reduced.

However, WWF recognises that the trophy hunting of threatened species may appear at odds with their conservation, particularly those that are seen as icons of the natural world and as powerful symbols of the need for concerted action. WWF urges that for threatened or endangered species, all other conservation incentives and activities be fully explored before considering hunting them for trophies.

WWF believes that where trophy hunting is practiced, it must benefit the conservation of the species or population involved in the wild or its habitat and provide benefits for local communities as an incentive for their participation. 

Conservation Debate  The views of those opposed to trophy hunting.

But some conservation groups have condemned the hunt as sending the wrong signal about saving endangered species

Jeff Flocken, North American director for the International Fund for Animal Welfare, told National Geographic that hunting sends a signal to world markets that the animal is worth more dead than alive. Conservation efforts should focus more on ecotourism and photo safaris, he said.

Still, Dereck Joubert, a conservation filmmaker and National Geographic explorer-in-residence, disagrees with the hunting tradeoff, criticizing what he calls "conservation by the gun."

The World Wildlife Fund and Animal Abuse: http://www.wickedwildlifefund.com/abuse.html