Trophy Hunting

Trophy hunting is a pastime for hunters, killing wildlife to obtain animal parts for display.

About
Each year, thousands of wild animals around the world are killed in trophy hunts, where the primary motivation is to obtain animal parts for display and for pride, but not for subsistence. Cruel and unsportsmanlike practices include baiting, hounding and trapping—also captive hunts, in which hunters pursue animals who can’t escape—ensure that the hunters can kill them easily.

Outrageous Story
Cecil, a famed black-maned lion in Zimbabwe, was lured with bait, shot with an arrow and suffered for more than ten hours before his hunters tracked and finished him off. Cecil's death in 2015 sparked international outrage. His son, Xanda, met a similar fate two years later.

Consequences
Killing native wildlife and other animals damages the ecosystem.

Myths and Truths
In the United States, data from the Humane Society of the United States shows that native carnivores and domestic dogs kill few cattle and sheep—despite the constant rhetoric from those working in agriculture, including the government itself. The most recent data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows that farmers and ranchers lose nine times more cattle and sheep to health, weather, birthing, and theft problems than to all predators combined. Those few losses can be fixed with humane, effective, and cost-effective non-lethal methods, yet few cattle and sheep growers in the U.S. use them to protect their herds.

Statistics

 * 1.26 million  wildlife trophies were imported to the U.S. between 2005 and 2014.
 * 1,200 species are hunted and killed as trophies.
 * 32 states currently allow the trophy hunting of black bears in the U.S.

Resources

 * Banning Trophy Hunting by the Humane Society of the United States.