A lesser-known aspect of the debate around the intensive predator breeding industry – which needs tons of meat for lion feed – is the impact it has on veld and biodiversity. Roelof Bezuidenhout reports.
The long and fierce debate about the Threatened or Protected Species (Tops) regulations has so far missed one of the most important spin-offs of the predator industry, namely the impact of predator breeding facilities on the environment.
That’s according to Daan Buijs of Biodiversity Scientific Support, North West Department of Agriculture.
Buijs said the focus has been on the ethics and the possible financial implications of the regulations, as well as the area size and game populations required to allow for a free-roaming period of 24 months before an animal may be hunted. “But concentrating on the facilities alone completely ignores the ripple effect that breeding centres have on ecological systems.
An intensive lion breeding operation may cover 100ha, but need 100 000ha to sustain the animals to feed the lions.
“This has never been acknowledged by the industry and was also not part of the rationale behind the drafting of the Tops regulations – which are aimed at species instead of ecosystems.”
Buijs used a lion breeding locality in the Kalahari as an example. “The area has an annual rainfall of between 200mm and 400mm and an ecological carrying capacity ranging between 12ha and 28ha/large stock unit (LSU).
“The traditional farming system is an open area where livestock roam. This has a severe impact on the soil structure and natural vegetation and vast areas have already been transformed from grassland to scrubland.
“As the lions’ main diet comprises donkeys from local communities, donkey breeding has become a flourishing secondary industry,” he said.
Buijs explained that an average lion needs about 9kg of meat a day, or more than 3 000kg a year. “That’s the equivalent of 16 donkeys of 200kg each. In 2006, there were 532 lions in 14 facilities in this region of North West, consuming 8 811 donkeys a year.
Even if this figure is halved, 4 405 donkeys have to be available. At a carrying capacity of 20ha/LSU, these donkeys (at 0,54 LSU per donkey) require 46 698ha of grazing.
“This figure doesn’t include the breeding stock, which would double the land needed to 93 396ha – a conservative assumption, since 20% to 30% fecundity is a more realistic figure for natural reproduction, noting that these lions represent only 35% of the provincial captive lion population.”
Buijs pointed out that, if the 532 captive lions in the Kalahari region of North West were to be released as free-roaming, they would need 93 396ha inhabited by 10 070 blue wildebeest, 6 316 Burchell’s zebra, 8 945 gemsbok or 10 012 waterbuck.
Animal rights versus breeders
Buijs said there were two distinct groups of opponents in the Tops argument – animal rights activists and the predator breeding and hunting industry.
“The former want a total ban on hunting, while the industry wants the period before an animal may be shot after being released drastically reduced to save costs.
“Sadly, the time span between release and the hunt makes no difference to the individual lions. They will be shot, whether it is after 96 hours or 24 months. “It remains a case of dead lion walking,” he added.
“The anti-hunting animal rightists base their opposition to the Tops regulations on moral grounds, although theirs is a vast income-generating industry on its own.
Meanwhile the predator breeders argue they’ve developed their enterprises with the blessing of government. They’ve certainly made large financial investments in terms of land, infrastructure and breeding stock,” he said.
Buijs suggested that, while the intent of Tops regulations is to protect our biodiversity, it’s debatable whether the National Environmental Management Biodiversity Bill (Nemba) is the right vehicle for controlling hunting.
“Bred predators have no biodiversity value. Animals with different genotypes and ecotypes are crossbred to produce larger offspring with more impressive manes and it is in contravention of the very same Act to release these genetically mixed individuals into a wild population.
“That’s why the lion breeders have a valid point when they argue that their lions take the pressure off wild lion populations by increasing the supply to hunting clients.”
Contact Daan Buijs on e-mail at [email protected].
