Back to the book. It is much more than pretty pictures illustrating the hugeness of elephant hearts. It is written: "If it pays, it stays," and this is heralded as the keynote statement for the survival of African wildlife. It says that the funds generated from sport hunting, fueled by foreign currency, support species conservation. It concludes "the ultimate survival of Africa's wildlife population depends on hunters."

Well. Whew again. It's good to know that African wildlife is in such voracious hands. But I'm still left with my concerns about tigers. They're not African, of course. They're Asian animals, the ultimate survival of which is a great big question mark. Three (perhaps four) of the eight subspecies of tiger have gone extinct in this century.

Hunting them is against the law.

So who will save the tigers? My bet is that no person or interest group, no matter how well intentioned, can reasonably hope to emerge as the sole savior — not ecotourism folks, not conservationists, not hunters. But perhaps if we all start working for the common good of the adaptable cat, we might begin to come to grips with an incredibly complex issue.

I think I'll keep it quiet, for the time being, that there are tigers in Africa, now, and that they're learning the lay of the land — sans pressure as trophy game. Hopefully, I'll run into the Birkenstock-shod Defender of Wildlife at the baggage claim and, after my seatmates have retrieved their rifles and cleared customs, ask if she has any thoughts about all of this. ...

Tomorrow: On to Londolozi Game Reserve, a former hunting farm and now a model of ecotourism where visitors can view and photograph (but not hunt) Africa's big five: elephants, lions, leopards, rhinoceros and cape buffalo.

<< Previous Dispatch | Next Dispatch >>