World to Africa Safaris - US & Europe Tour 2010

We are busy with the final arrangements for our International shows and visits for the 2010 season. The itinerary will be as follow:

16 February to 3 March - United States of America

Gary Power and I will be in the Minnesota area from the 16th to visit clients and attend the SCI Minnesota chapters annual EXPO at Northland Inn, Brooklyn Park on the 19th & 20th of February. We will have a booth and donated x3 hunts to the chapter to assist in their conservation projects. If you are in the area please come and visit us.

Gary will leave for South Africa after the Expo on the 22nd and I will leave for Phoenix on the 25th to visit a few clients.

4 - 8 March - Europe, Madrid Spain

I will attend the FICAAR show in Madrid with our European agent, Eugenio Franzoni, from 5 - 7 March. This is our 1st visit to Spain and we hope to introduce our company to the local hunters.

February - Moscow, Russian Federation

Our new partners Premium African Safari will attend 2 shows during February in Russia, they are based in Moscow and recently opened a new branch in South Africa. They have exclusive rights to market our hunts in these part of the World and we wish them all the best with the efforts!!

10 - 14 April - Italy

We will attend the annual EXA SHOW in Italy with our agent Eugenio Franzoni. Eugenio is based in Italy and a well known hunter in his Country we also plan on attending this show every year.

Together with the shows above we also expect hunters this year from Australia, Dubai and United Kingdom.

If you would like to visit us at the shows or would like to meet with us personally please contact me directly at a.nortje@icon.co.za

For more information about World to Africa Safaris please go to www.worldtoafricahunting.com

Have a great hunting season and 2010!!

Andre Nortje

Zimbabwe sport hunting has become a tremendous source of income for the country and specifically for conservation and promotion of tourism. The most popular dangerous animals hunted as part of Zimbabwe sport hunting include that of lions, leopards, elephants, and buffalo. Rhinos are not hunted as part of Zimbabwe sport hunting because of their endangered status. Hunters from the USA, Austria, France, SA, Germany, Canada and also the UK now regularly hunt in Zimbabwe during the Zimbabwe sport hunting season which starts in April and ends November. About 500 elephants and 500 leopards have become available for the hunting season. Many tour operators have already reached their quotas for the Zimbabwe sport hunting season and as such it is recommended that you book hunting in the country through professional outfitters such as WTA well in advance to ensure that you also get your chance of a trophy hunt for one of the most popular larger animals in the country.

Although it is essential to prevent the killing of animals left, right, and centre, hunting as a sport should not be condemned because some animals are cute and cuddly. The bambi effect is a term used by hunters to refer to people who irrationally object to the killing of certain animals because they are so loveable including rabbits and duikers etc. The environment is fragile and in many cases such objections will promote an imbalance in nature. To ensure that the habitat in a specific area stays in balance it may from time to time be a requirement to kill animals even though they are cute. Through normal sport hunting it is possible to regulate the killing of animals and do so to ensure a balance in nature.

One of the most known clubs for hunting safaris worldwide is known as the Safari Club International. Its membership is made up of hunters that follow ethical hunting practices. It is one of the few hunting safari clubs that transcend international borders. As a hunting safari club on international level it hosts annual conventions and speaks out against practices such as the fenced hunting of endangered antelopes from the African continent on USA farms. We recommend that you join the club or similar hunting safari clubs which will give you information about latest hunting practices, regulations, and controversies. Belonging to hunting safari clubs will also give you more exposure to hunting opportunities, excellent rates, and the best methods for hunting specific animals.

Canning is a process whereby the animal is caught or bred and raised as a domestic or caged animal and then is released only a few hours before the hunt begins. Other forms of unethical hunting practices which should be avoided in trophy hunts include for instance, the use of spotlights to blind the animal or to severely affect its night vision and then to shoot it is in the state of blindness or semi-blindness. Using of glue to kill birds and making use of traps to catch the animals also form part of unethical hunting practices. Internet hunting is one of the newest forms of unethical hunting practices. Webcams are used as well as remote controlled guns to locate and then kill animals. Make sure that you only use outfitters and professional hunters such as WTA that will never participate in unethical hunting practices.

There are various hunting methods that can be used in the pursuit of a trophy. Some are illegal and other simply unethical. Always select outfitters that only make use of and promote legal and ethical hunting methods such as WTA. Some of the hunting methods often used in trophy hunting in Africa are listed below for your information.
• Blinds – where the hunter waits on the animals from a concealed position – often used in bow hunting.
• Camouflage involves the visual concealing of the hunter to blend in with the surroundings.
• Bait – that is when a decoy is used to attract the hunted animal. It can be in the form of food or scents or sounds.
• Dogs – used for tracking animals.
• Flush – to scare the animal out if its hideaway.
• Stalking – to walk silently after an animal as a predator would do.

With media hype about canned lions it is understandable that people may think that hunting plays no part of conservation. The truth is that ethical hunters will not participate in canned hunting. Conservation hunting is thus possible and plays an important role in the provision of resources for the conservation of wildlife and the environment. With conservation hunting the landowners and managers of conservation areas can manage animal populations. Elephant populations as well as the populations of lions, rhinos, and various antelope species can quickly become too dense for the allocated area. By allowing conservation hunting the animal numbers are kept in check and the competition for water as well as food resources is reduced ensuring a balanced habitat.

The WTA hunting packages for Africa include stylish accommodation during the hunt period, all the catering, laundry services, beverages including soft drinks, water, as well as moderate amounts of beer and liquors. Our hunting packages also include the professional hunter (PH), the vehicle and the field preparation of trophies. The WTA hunting packages do not include the following in the quoted prices:

Your airfares and the shuttle services to the various hunting areas
Personal and chronic medication
Packing and shipping of trophies and taxidermy work
Telephonic costs and internet facility rental
Vaccinations

Make sure that you know which calibres are recommended and allowed to take along when you hunt in the specific areas. We will provide full information and will also provide laundry services as part of the hunting packages; as such it is recommended that you keep clothing luggage to a minimum.

International hunters should preferably bring their own rifles. It should be noted that hand guns as well as automatic and semi-automatic guns may not be used in hunting of animals at all. If you plan to do plains game hunting in the Free State, Limpopo or Zimbabwe, we recommend a calibre of.264 to .350 magnum. To hunt buffalo you will need at least .375 calibre which is also the same for rhinos and elephants. The medium calibre will be effective for a kill at a maximum of 200 meters while the heavy calibre will be effective in the range of up to 100 meters. When you book a game hunting safari with us, we will provide all the information required to ensure that you bring the correct rifles and bullets and will assist with the paperwork.