Can hunting endangered animals save the species?

We turned to one of the world's top conservationists, Pat Condy, who lives in Texas, to find out what he thought.

Pat Condy: That's the scimitar horned oryx. Altogether, on different ranches, many different ranches, there are somewhere between six and 10 thousand of these animals.

Pat Condy has devoted his life to saving animals and he showed us around the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center outside of Dallas which he runs. It's a world leader in breeding rare and endangered animals.

And it's also a place where tourists can get closer to these beautiful creatures than they ever could in the wild.

Logan: Do you think that Texas ranches are saving animals from extinction?

Condy: There's no question about it, that they are.

Logan: What gives you the confidence to say what you're saying?

Condy: What gives me the confidence is when you look at the numbers, the animal numbers, okay, and you see that they're not declining, that they're either stable or growing.

Logan: The numbers, you can't argue with that?

Condy: When you're talking about conservation, it's the numbers that are the bottom line.

But for Priscilla Feral, the bottom line is that these animals should not be hunted. She's helped create a reserve in Senegal for 175 orxy and in court, she's winning the legal battle she's been fighting for years to stop them from being hunted in the U.S.

In the coming weeks, a new rule issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will take effect, making it a crime to hunt the scimitar horned oryx - and two other endangered antelope - without a federal permit that will be difficult, if not impossible, to obtain.

Seale: Just since the announcement of that rule the value of those animals has probably dropped in half. You've got to understand, I'm a rancher to make a profit, just like any business.

Logan: How does this rule change affect that?

Seale: I will say that in five years you'll see half the numbers that you see today. And I would venture to guess in 10 years they'll be virtually none of 'em left.

Feral: The future for oryxes is Africa. It's not Texas.

Logan: Can the future not be both? Don't they have a greater chance of survival the more of them there are?

Feral: In their native lands.

Logan: Regardless of where they are?

Feral: I don't think you can say regardless of where they are. A Texas hunting ranch is not the same as being in a reserve in Senegal.

Condy: Put the hunting aspect to one side, and take a 50,000 foot view over this, this resource of a species that is extinct in the wild is going to disappear now from Texas, slowly but surely.

Logan: So who's winning the day here?

Condy: I don't think anybody's winning the day. One thing is for sure, they are losing it. Those species are losing it.

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[travis123abc]

In Brazil they are actually cloning endangered species, Here is one of the downsides of the Endangered Species Act
http://ponderingstuff.com/2012/08/23/endangeredspecies/

[13inches]

meeska my dear: Humans and human ancestors have eaten meat for over 300,000 years. Bonobo Chimps are the closest living relatives to humans and Bonobo Chimps eat MEAT. It is natural and normal for humans to eat MEAT. If all you limp-wristed vegetarians want to sit around and just eat tofu all day, then go ahead and do so, but STOP bad-mouthing big game hunters. The top animal conservationists in the world have stated the big game ranches in Texas are HELPING increase the populations of endangered and threatened big game species. I am an animal lover. I do not hunt. But facts are FACTS. Priscilla Feral and her clown posse management team at Friends of Animals are HURTING the future of rare endangered Big Game animals. Priscilla Feral is an idiot and the only animal she is protecting is herself and her paycheck. I have stopped donating money to Friends of Animals and I encourage all other REAL animal lovers to stop donating money to FOA. FOA doesn't care about the welfare of animals, they only care about promoting their silly Vegetarian Religion and keeping themselves employed.

[petersenonmain]

Farel is nothing but a bunny hugger. In the 1970s Kenya outlawed hunting, within 15 years most of the big game was gone and the elephant did not last that long. If there is no insentive to protect the anamals they will be gone.
these people like Farel have been watching to much Bamby and have no idea how the real world works shes is probablely a member of PETA in other words dummer thena box of rocks.

[meeska]

We are a twisted society, that we think it is ok -- right, even virtuous -- to spend $50,000 to kill because it will help businesses to succeed that promote killing. And we're not talking about killing because your family is starving and you can't get food any other way. We're talking about massaging the egos of people with a whole whack of money. And isn't THAT just so sad that these people ENJOY killing.

Why is it that the only answer to preserving endangered species is to kill them? And PLEASE! Let's clarify. This is not hunting; and killing is not a sport. As for comparing killing these animals to killing animals for food, let's also clarify the misconceptions about THAT. We do not -- repeat NOT -- need to eat animals to survive. In fact, hundreds and hundreds of studies over many many years have proven that a meat based diet is bad for your health and really bad for the environment. We eat animals because either we don't know any better or because we like the taste (and often both). Ignorance is not bliss, either in killing to eat or killing to boost the fragile egos of 'hunters'. Their money could be better spent "buying" one of these animals -- like a sponsorship. The businesses could promote photo safaris -- part of the new growth of ecotourism. If the "canned hunt" ranches can't stay in business by evolving, turn over your stock to someone who can and get out of ranching. There is nothing sacrosanct about being a rancher. You don't have my sympathy because you can only support your property by promoting killing.

It's no wonder Americans are the laughingstock of the world.

[PracticalAmerican]

Meeksa - do you want the animals to go extinct? In this situation, you've failed to see the whole reason for the film. There is some irony here! The irony is that in order to save them, we have to allow hunting!!! WHY??? Because nobody gives a damn about these animals except hunters. Do you??? Surely you don't send them money? Do you knit them sweaters? Do you send them Christmas cards? If you don't, it does not matter. For as much as you want to wail in the wind, the only thing that helps them is an economic incentive...so either knit sweaters and sell them and give the money to a preserve, or send money in your Christmas cards, OR... wait for it...shut your cake hole!

[bowfishr1]

Bottom line is these ranchs are a business just like any other. You have to make money to maintain, grow, and stay in business. So unless some other entity is going to pay for the care of these endangered animals then i guess we will let them go extinct. When that happens im sure Ms. Ferel and here organization will blame it on the Texas ranchers and hunters who have brought them back from extintion, not any animal rights group who have sentenced them to a picture in a book.

[Artismo]

Hunting aside, how do you people think meat gets to your grocery store? They are raised, slaughtered and butchered. What happens to these beautiful animals in the wild? They are hunted by big cats and African bushmen and poachers. They suffer injury stavation and disease like any living creature. Life is hard for every living thing in this world.

These ranches do an outstanding service for the animals, themselves, and their communities at large. Ms. Ferel and her allies are no friends of animals - her 126 oryx' in Africa are just fodder for poachers. And you crybabies who lament the animals' "suffering" really need to educate yourselves on the basic matters of life and survival, and then make a real concerted effort to grow up.

[Artismo]

"Feral: The future for oryxes is Africa. It's not Texas. "

She clearly does not view man as part of the natural food chain. I'm sure the big cats of Africa make for a messy kill themselves. The facts have shown that these animals have no future in Africa. That is why the zoos cooperated with Mr. Bamberger back in the '70s. This well-meaning woman is condemning these wonderful animals to extinction, all to satisfy her mis-guided sensibilities.

[thehuntinggame]

I WONDER IF MICHAEL VICK IS A MEMBER?

[ColtJ8713]

This is probably the coolest thing ever! It should satisfy both partys, but in a imperfect world, it won't

[goffshas17]

What if the ranch was used as a place for vacationers to go to have a fun safari. Instead of shooting the animals, people would be allowed to view them for a price. It's different from a zoo because people would be able to actually go near them and view them face to face. As long there are no carnivors or other dangerous animals it could be quite an experience. If the ranchers could successfully do this or some other method, they would be real conservatationists.

[ColtJ8713]

They do.

[ColtJ8713]

They do. Watch the video.