Bøffel jakt

I helgen var Dries, vår viltoppsynsmann, på jakt sammen med trofe jegere fra USA. De skulle jakte bøffel, men alt gikk ikke helt som planlagt. Her er rapporten han skrev etterpå – det var nok en spennende jakt!

RE : BUFFALO SHOT IN SELF DEFENSE – QUARANTINE CAMP


1. Sir, the events as described below unfolded on Friday the 1st of September 2006 in
the Buffalo Quarantine Camp outside Tsumkwe, at about 11:00 AM that morning.

2. Approval was granted to Eden Wildlife Trust to shoot an old buffalo bull in the said
camp under Permit # 80309 with the Professional Hunter ( Big Game ) being
Mr. W. Hugo from Eden. The client was a certain Mr. Jason from the U.S.A.

3. During the hunt, I accompanied the hunting party so as to identify the old bull to
be shot.

4. The hunt started at about 10:00 AM that Friday morning and we immediately started
walking in the South Western corner of the “old” camp as this is where we had seen
the old bull on many occasions, noteworthy to state that we ( MET ) always saw him
on his own ( solitary bull ).

5. After an hour of walking, we came across the old bull sleeping under an Acacia bush,
totally unaware of our presence. We were 5 ( five ) people in the group including the
client, 2 ( two ) PH hunters from Eden, a tracker from Eden and myself. None of us at
that time saw the second buffalo bull also sleeping under and behind another Acacia
bush approximately 20 meters from where we were standing and looking at the old
bull that was to be shot.

6. After considering their options, the PH hunters got the client to within 15 to 18 meters
of the old buffalo bull. Only after various whistles did the old bull wake up and stand
up so as to offer the client a clear broad-side shot. The client fired 2 shots into the
bull’s shoulder and the animal ran for about 20 meters before going down.

7. Approximately a minute after the old bull had gone down, the hunting party started to
walk towards the downed bull. At that stage the second bull ( which we had not seen )
came charging towards the group from a Southern direction, heading North and
towards us. Instinctively the whole group made way and ran in various directions,
making noise and yelling in the hope that the charging bull would change direction.
Unfortunately the charging bull did not veer and kept its attention on the hunting
group.

8. In the chaos of the charge, I realized that the charging bull had no intention of ceasing
in its charge and as such I came around a bush, so as to face the bull, and to take a shot
at him. At that stage I clearly saw that he was about 2 to 3 meters behind the client.
Pro. Hunter W. Hugo had also turned around and immediately fired at the bull with
his .416 Rigby rifle. The shot fortunately broke the bull’s shoulder and it went down
immediately. Mr. Hugo was approximately 3 meters from the bull when he took the
shot. As mentioned earlier, if Mr. Hugo had not taken the shot, I would have – in both
cases simply out of self defense and to prevent human injuries or even fatalities.

9. After both bulls were dead, we noticed that the second bull ( charge ) had a severe
testicular infection of some sorts – it was swollen to about the size of a football. The
bull was also old and of poor trophy quality. The infection could have caused its
aggression.

10. The meat of the two bulls were distributed between 3 villages upon the request of the
Nyae Nyae Conservancy. Both trophies are currently in MET possession at
Tsumkwe.

11. Eden is willing to pay the full concession price for the second bull and will apply for
approval to obtain the trophy of the said bull. The first bull measured in at 43 inch
spread, whilst the second measured in at 36 inches.

12. Based on the information as described above, I will recommend that Eden be granted
the right to purchase the second bull’s trophy from the NNC.

13. I am pleased at the way the charge unfolded that day and would have acted in the
same way ( shooting charging bull ). It was very clear that someone would have been
severely injured had it not been for the actions of the Pro. Hunter. Eden is to be
commended on their Pro. Hunters and in the way they acted, proving testimony to the
strict regulations that MET imposes on Professional Hunters in Namibia.

14. I further recommend that the 2 other old buffalo be shot and that this one ( charge )
not be taken off the quota as a result of the charge.

Ser det ikke spennende ut?

I morgen tidlig reiser vi ut til Khaudom viltreservat for å telle vilt. Det blir neppe like spennende – heldigvis – men det skal ikke bli så verst dette heller. Viltellingen er noe som gjøres ved fullmåne hvert år i september og oktober. Det gjøres ved fullmåne fordi det da er lyst nok til at vi ser dyrene når de drikker. Det telles på 10 – 15 vannhull for å få et inntrykk av viltbestanden. Vi gleder oss veldig! Vi skal til en av brønnene som er lengst ute i bushen – et sted man hvert år ser både hyener, løver, den utryddingstruede Roan Antilope, noen ganger leopard, giraff og selvsagt hundrevis av elefanter! Skulle det skye over har vi med kortstokk, whisky og gin – så det blir nok uansett kjekt. Trine har dessuten kjøpt seg en sau i dag, så vi skal ikke sulte heller!