U.K. to restrict hunters’ trophies

Trophies of endangered and threatened species killed by hunters will soon be banned from being shipped to Britain, according to a new government proposal that has been called one of the toughest in the world.

The proposed ban, which was announced Friday, will cover nearly 7,000 animal species, including the lions, rhinos and elephants that many big-game hunters seek out. It will notable also include some 1,000 animals with “near-threatened” status.

Over the past half-century or so, the world’s wild animal population has dropped by an average of 68% across different monitored species, according to a World Wildlife Fund report from 2020. The decrease is primarily attributed to the loss of natural habitat, though some species, such as the Plains zebra are threatened by hunting.

British Environment Secretary George Eustice said that the proposal will help protect global biodiversity and is a central component of London’s commitment to international conservation.

“We are appalled at the thought of hunters bringing back trophies and placing more pressure on some of our most iconic and endangered animals,” he said in a statement.

Big-game hunters say that they contribute to local economies, a point disputed by conservation groups, who regard the activity as cruel and bad for biodiversity. But in 2019, more than 120 researchers signed an open letter published in the journal Science, cautioning that a ban on trophy hunting may lead to further habitat loss because the land would be converted for other use.

British hunting enthusiasts often travel abroad - top destinations for trophy hunters globally include Tanzania and Zimbabwe - where they can obtain licenses to shoot wild animals, according to animal welfare advocacy groups. Their kills are then made into trophies showcasing animal skin or horns.

Over 2,000 such trophies were legally exported to Britain in the last decade, according to an estimate by U.K.-based nonprofit Born Free. In comparison, the United States, which has a sizable domestic hunting scene, imports some 126,000 trophies each year, according to the U.S. branch of the Humane Society.

Many British conservation groups expressed support for the proposed ban, even as they urged London to quickly enact the policy. The country’s Conservative government has been laying the foundation for a trophy hunting import ban since at least 2019.