Overview

Laws allowing private ownership of game were enacted in South Africa in the early 1970s, paving the way for the private sector to introduce legal tourist hunting.

As a result, this became the single most crucial component in reviving game

populations by providing motivation to protect herds and their natural habitats.

On the African continent, few places attract as many hunters as South Africa. The abundance of wildlife, the variety of hunts available, the low prices, and the first-rate facilities all combine to make South Africa a top-tier hunting destination. Hunters may do anything from stalking lions across the Kalahari Desert to relaxing with a drink in a five-star hunting lodge.

Hunting is also widely popular with South Africans, who engage in both trophy hunting and meat hunting, creating a sustainable food source and a way to keep animal populations in check.

 

The culture of hunting in South Africa

 

Many South Africans enjoy hunting as part of their cultural heritage, and as a way to reconnect with the land and nature. Most South African hunters are educated in both the skill and the proper manner in which different species should be hunted, taking both an ethical and practical approach to hunting in a way that protects and conserves these species.

 

So-called “Biltong hunters” target a variety of plains game for their meat, which can often be a more affordable and healthy food source. Game meat such as that from Kudu, Springbok, Gemsbok and Wildebeest are lower in fat, higher in protein and present a more ethical meat source – in fact, you won’t find a more free-range, grass-fed protein than that of venison.

There are also many trophy hunters in South Africa who carefully add to their impressive trophy rooms – much of which are cherished for generations in private farm homes and lodges across South Africa.

South African trophy hunters work closely with their selected outfitters (when they are not hunting their own game) to ensure that the species they hunt are targeted in a sustainable manner, ensuring that stocks are healthy.

This is a very valuable aspect of hunting in South Africa, as all game today is kept in private concessions and reserves, so that overpopulation is a factor which must be carefully managed.

 

Hunting varieties in South Africa

Many South African species would likely be gone or on the verge of extinction if not for hunting. As such, hunting has been responsible for saving numerous species that were on the verge of extinction and reintroducing them to areas where they had been locally extinct, such the sable, bontebok, wild ostrich, Cape mountain zebra, and black wildebeest.

Private companies hold three times as much land and four-fifths of all the game as all the state-owned parks and reserves combined, and they manage these resources using highly successful and effective conservation programmes.

In fact, hunting is a crucial financial incentive that gave the initial short-term funding to create other forms of ecotourism in South Africa’s protected area network, both formal and informal.

Below, we take a look at some of the varieties of hunting that both South Africans and international hunters regularly engage in.

 

A)   Rifle Hunting

Rifle hunting is a common pastime among South Africans who enjoy the great outdoors. Every year, hundreds of thousands of sportsmen from all over the world flock to South Africa to hunt the country’s abundant plains game with their preferred firearm.

When it comes to hunting, the vast majority of sportsmen would rather use a rifle than a bow.

 

B)   Bow hunting

Bowhunting in South Africa is second to none. Bow hunting is only allowed in certain concession areas; these areas are specifically set aside for this activity, so the animals there are less stressed than in those where rifle hunting is permitted.

Convenient blinds are frequently set up in advantageous locations to increase the likelihood of successfully targeting a trophy.

 

C)   Hunting plains game

Multiple all-inclusive plains game packages are available in South Africa. The most sought-after trophies, including as kudus, impalas, and blue wildebeests, are included in these packages.

Rifle and bow hunting are both easily accommodated, and are led by Professional Hunters with years of experience in both disciplines. Hunting in South Africa will provide you with an adventure you won’t forget any time soon.

 

D)   Hunting the iconic Big 5

Hunting the “Big Five” in South Africa is one of the most difficult and gratifying experiences a hunter can have. The earliest European hunters in Africa labelled the Big Five—lion, elephant, buffalo, leopard, and rhino—because they considered these animals to be the most dangerous on the continent.

 

For more information visit our website www.hunt24.co.za