There is a clear line between killing out of desperation and killing for profit. On Christmas Eve someone stepped well over that line, and the Big Life rangers were waiting for him on the other side.
The sound of an approaching motorbike started it; the community informer had been right. Rangers lay in wait, quietly in the darkness of the bushveld.
The poacher rode straight into the ambush, carrying the grisly tools and victims of his trade. A bright flashlight (called a Kadoo) for blinding animals at night, and blades to hamstring and then butcher them. Seven antelope carcasses, on their way to market.
This was one success from our recent series of cross-border operations, conducted together with rangers from Tanzania and funded by the African Wildlife Foundation, and demonstrates the success of working together across international borders.
And for those who believe that all poachers are destitute and starving, take note. Game meat poaching is a business, stealing from those who earn a living from wildlife and tourism, and we will continue to do what we can to stop it.
If you would like to support the rangers working to prevent this trade please consider joining the Big Life Ranger Club at biglife.org/big-life-ranger-club
