Elephant thread

[rwsmith]

Theunis Botha was leading a group of hunters when they came ;' upon a herd of breeding elephants near Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. Three elephants charged the group, and Botha opened fire on them. But a fourth elephant caught the group by surprise and rammed Botha from the side, picking him up with her trunk, according to the South African outlet News 24.

One of the other hunters in the group fatally shot the elephant, which then collapsed and fell on top of Botha.

I don't suppose it matters what caliber is used if an elephant falls on you.

I didn't particularly like his methods for hunting some cats, like leopards. He had a humongous pack of dogs that he would use for drivers.

 

[kwselke]

I read the story online Veteran big game hunter dies after elephant, felled by gunfire, collapses on him - Houston Chronicle and am sorry for the loss of a life. I am a hunter, but never have gone after dangerous game bigger than feral hogs. Never been mad enough with elephants, lions, tigers and such to want to kill one. There is real danger in hunting.

 

[Badger Matt]

RIP. If it wasn't dangerous, we wouldn't call it dangerous game.

 

[Tyrod]

I read the story online Veteran big game hunter dies after elephant, felled by gunfire, collapses on him - Houston Chronicle and am sorry for the loss of a life. I am a hunter, but never have gone after dangerous game bigger than feral hogs. Never been mad enough with elephants, lions, tigers and such to want to kill one. There is real danger in hunting.

Yes, but what separates the men from the wannabees is hunting game that has at least a minimal chance of killing you. Live by the sword, die by the sword.

 

[kwselke]

Yes, but what separates the men from the wannabees is hunting game that has at least a minimal chance of killing you. Live by the sword, die by the sword.

If I'm angry with any kind of critter I'll do my best to put it down without a fair fight. Having a dead elephant fall on me is not the way I expect I will go.

 

[old bear]

I am truly sorry that anyone, human or animal, had to die that day. But, here is the real deal. If you can't cover your bet, then DON'T make it.

 

[Xfuzz]

In short,
What a dumb dang way to die.

 

[mtgianni]

In short,
What a dumb dang way to die.

Not sure about that. As a PH he is responsible for the safety of an entire group. Elephants are notorious mankillers using both trunks and feet. Dropping the lead charging animal is the best known deterrent to a charge.

 

[rburg]

Danger is where you find it. A while back, I sold my 458 after moving off the hill. The oversize chick next door was as close to an elephant as I ever want to get. And mean to boot!

 

[Xfuzz]

Really ??
Why are they shooting these majestic beast's to begin with ?
Defense of a village, food ?...Ivory, forget that.
Hate the loss of human life..but..Poetic justice is
rattlin around in my brain.

 

[dougb1946]

1) The meat will all be eaten-no waste
2) The safari brings in money. Pays for the natives who guard the area. Pays for the guards who stop poachers.

Ironically, one way to save a species is to make it a protected game animal and charge the hunters exorbitant amounts for the privilege . Money then goes to protect habitat and to study and develop strategies for increasing the population. You then get a large group of humans profiting from the animals survival.

 

[Absalom]

.... Elephants are notorious mankillers...

Not really. Most of the time they bluff-charge and can be deterred with yelling and hand-waving, and PH's are very reluctant to shoot elephants they don't absolutely have to, unless the safety of their clients leaves them no other choice.

Of course, nothing is certain with wild animals, and in the incident discussed in this thread, the cow wasn't bluffing and caught the PH.

Take a look at this video and note how long the PH waits and keeps yelling trying to get the animal to back off before putting it down.

[ame]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_uAfvHexIyo[/ame]

 

[Mistered]

The oversize chick next door was as close to an elephant as I ever want to get. And mean to boot!

But is she a mankiller? I work with one (probably similar to your next door neighbor) and she IS a mankiller!

 

[chaparrito]

Sorry the elephant died. Him? Not so much. It's spelled C-O-M-E-U-P-P-A-N-C-E.

 

[rwsmith]

I don't think he meant....

Not sure about that. As a PH he is responsible for the safety of an entire group. Elephants are notorious mankillers using both trunks and feet. Dropping the lead charging animal is the best known deterrent to a charge.

I don't think he meant that HE was dumb. Just the way he died under a falling elephant. Had that fourth elephant not surprised him, he would probably not be in the news. I'm sure he knew what he was doing. Just a spot of bad luck. Which in that kind of hunting will get you killed.

BTW: Don't forget TUSKS! But I gather that after they stomp you into a grease spot they use their tusks to mix up what's left.

 

[badge]

Really ??
Why are they shooting these majestic beast's to begin with ?
Defense of a village, food ?...Ivory, forget that.
Hate the loss of human life..but..Poetic justice is
rattlin around in my brain.

They shoot Elephants for a variety of reasons. One is Sport or Trophy hunting. Another is Rogue animals that are destroying Native crops or Natives themselves. Another is " Cropping or Culling ". That is to remove a predetermined number of the creatures from an area, normally a Park area so as they do not eat themselves out of their food supply. Cow Elephants can be disagreeable as can Elephants injured or wounded and or harassed by Poachers. Sounds Like a brave PH who died defending his clients to me.

 

[Leonard]

Again the anti hunt crowd chimes in. Elephants are legally hunted in some countries and in many cases its that revenue that keeps them from being totally exterminated. They are at odds with farmers, ranchers, tribal lands where they exist off of what they can grow.

Those of you that seem to value an animals life over that of a human are sick. I am sure his family, children would enjoy reading some of these comments.

I don't know all of the facts and probably wont until later this year but I have never felt more alive than when faced with a close to death experience.

The south African killed was probably not the PH its unlikely he was licensed as such in Zimbabwe. I suspect there was a Zimbabwean PH somewhere in the mix.

 

[CajunBass]

Why are they shooting these majestic beast's to begin with?

It's sort of part of hunting elephants.

 

[pharmer]

Moral of the story, never Botha the pachyderms. Joe

 

[Badger Matt]

Really ??
Why are they shooting these majestic beast's to begin with ?
Defense of a village, food ?...Ivory, forget that.
Hate the loss of human life..but..Poetic justice is
rattlin around in my brain.

Ah, so we must leave the "majestic" animals alone and only kill the, what, truly hideous beasts? Please. Man hunts dangerous game because it is dangerous. All game in Africa is well-used by the locals when hunted legally. The PH died as he lived; like a MAN!