Rarity, trophy hunting and ungulates

Abstract

The size and shape of a trophy constitute major determinants of its value. We postulate that the rarity of a species, whatever its causes, also plays a major role in determining its value among hunters. We investigated a role for an Anthropogenic Allee effect in trophy hunting, where human attraction to rarity could lead to an over-exploitative chain reaction that could eventually drive the targeted species to extinction. We performed an inter-specific analysis of trophy prices of 202 ungulate taxa and quantified to what extent morphological characteristics and their rarity accounted for the observed variation in their price. We found that once location and body mass were accounted for, trophies of rare species attain higher prices than those of more common species. By driving trophy price increase, this rarity effect may encourage the exploitation of rare species regardless of their availability, with potentially profound consequences for populations.

Bushmeat hunting and extinction risk to the world's mammals

“…In places where legal user rights over wildlife have been granted to either private land owners or communities in parts of southern Africa, wildlife populations have generally increased dramatically [92,93]. However, such approaches can also impart problems if poorly managed, as in cases of evolutionary consequences driven by selective human harvesting for particular phenotypic traits [94], exacerbation of exploitation of rare species due to higher prices [95], fragmentation of populations with fencing [65], overstocking of large wild herbivores [91], increased intolerance towards carnivores [91] and violations to animal welfare [96]. …”

Selecting Habitat to Survive: The Impact of Road Density on Survival in a Large Carnivore

“…Humans impact animal performance either directly, notably through disturbance, hunting or poaching [19], [20], or indirectly by altering habitat [21] or changing food chain equilibrium [22], [23] and climate [24]. Altogether, human disturbance can heavily affect the spatial heterogeneity of resources in the environment, which in turn can markedly impact population dynamics [25], [26], and, thereby, the selective pressure on habitat selection.…”

Application of the Anthropogenic Allee Effect Model to Trophy Hunting as a Conservation Tool

“…Thus, increasing price as rarity increases is a necessary but not a sufficient condition to produce the unstable equilibrium creating an Allee effect. Studies that merely demonstrate increasing price (or value) as a function of rarity (e.g., Angulo & Courchamp ; Angulo et al ; Palazy et al ) without demonstrating an unstable equilibrium do not inform the question of whether or not an AAE is present.…”

“…Trophy hunting can be defined as “a specific form of wildlife use that involves payment for a hunting experience and the acquisition of a trophy by the hunter” (WWF ) which in certain circumstances, can act as “an effective conservation and management tool…particularly…where alternative sources of income or land‐use practices are unlikely to bring in much needed funds for people or wildlife, or to create sufficient incentives for conservation” (WWF ) (e.g., Leader‐Williams et al ; Lindsey et al , ; Frisina & Tareen ). Some authors have implied that AAE is a common, perhaps inevitable, characteristic of trophy‐hunting systems (Johnson et al ; Palazy et al ; Prescott et al 2011). We disagree and are concerned that uncritical application of the AAE model to trophy hunting in the scientific literature may elevate it to one of received wisdom, potentially weakening support for effective programs and misdirecting efforts to reform others that are poorly managed.…”