Abstract
In most species, sport hunting of male trophy animals can only reduce overall population size when the rate of removal of males is so high that females can no longer be impregnated1. However, where males provide extensive paternal care, the removal of even a few individuals could harm the population as a whole2,3. In species such as lions, excessive trophy hunting could theoretically cause male replacements (and associated infanticide4,5) to become sufficiently common to prevent cubs reaching adulthood. Here we simulate the population consequences of lion trophy hunting using a spatially explicit, individual-based, stochastic model parameterized with 40 years of demographic data from northern Tanzania. Although our simulations confirm that infanticide increases the risk of population extinction, trophy hunting could be sustained simply by hunting males above a minimum age threshold, and this strategy maximizes both the quantity and the quality of the long-term kill. We present a simple non-invasive technique for estimating lion age in populations lacking long-term records, and suggest that quotas would be unnecessary in any male-only trophy species where age determination could be reliably implemented.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Milner-Gulland, E. J. et al. Reproductive collapse in saiga antelope harems. Nature 422, 135 (2003)
Swenson, J. E. et al. Infanticide caused by hunting of male bears. Nature 386, 450–451 (1997)
Greene, C., Umbanhowar, J., Mangel, M. & Caro, T. in Behavioral Ecology and Conservation Biology (ed. Caro, T.) 271–305 (Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford, 1998)
Bertram, B. C. R. Social factors influencing reproduction in wild lions. J. Zool. 177, 463–482 (1975)
Packer, C. Infanticide is no fantasy. Am. Anthropol. 102, 829–831 (2000)
Schaller, G. B. The Serengeti Lion (Univ. Chicago Press, Chicago, 1972)
West, P. M. & Packer, C. Sexual selection, temperature and the lion's mane. Science 297, 1339–1343 (2002)
Packer, C. et al. in Reproductive Success (ed. Clutton-Brock, T. H.) 363–383 (Univ. Chicago Press, Chicago, 1988)
Packer, C., Gilbert, D., Pusey, A. E. & O'Brien, S. J. A molecular genetic analysis of kinship and cooperation in African lions. Nature 351, 562–565 (1991)
Packer, C. & Pusey, A. E. Male takeovers and female reproductive parameters: a simulation of oestrus synchrony in lions (Panthera leo). Anim. Behav. 31, 334–340 (1983)
Bygott, J. D., Bertram, B. R. C. & Hanby, J. P. Male lions in large coalitions gain reproductive advantages. Nature 282, 838–840 (1979)
Grinnell, J., Packer, C. & Pusey, A. E. Cooperation in male lions: kinship, reciprocity or mutualism? Anim. Behav. 49, 95–105 (1995)
Quadling, H. S. & Starfield, A. M. Exploiting object-orientated programming structures in the quest for an individual-based lion population model with an attractive user interface. S. Afr. J. Sci. 98, 449–454 (2002)
Packer, C., Tatar, M. & Collins, D. A. Reproductive cessation in female mammals. Nature 392, 807–811 (1998)
Packer, C., Pusey, A. E. & Eberly, L. Egalitarianism in female African lions. Science 293, 690–693 (2001)
Leader-Williams, N., Kayera, J. A. & Overton, G. L. Tourist Hunting in Tanzania (IUCN Species Survival publication no. 14, Gland, Switzerland, 1996)
Smith, R. J., Muir, R. D. J., Walpole, M. J., Balmford, A. & Leader-Williams, N. Governance and the loss of biodiversity. Nature 426, 67–70 (2003)
Hillborn, R. & Walters, C. J. Quantitative Fisheries Stock Assessment: Choice, Dynamics and Uncertainty (Chapman & Hall, New York, 1992)
Coltman, D. W. et al. Undesirable evolutionary consequences of trophy hunting. Nature 426, 655–658 (2003)
Caro, T. M. et al. The impact of tourist hunting on large mammals in Tanzania: an initial assessment. Afr. J. Ecol. 36, 321–329 (1998)
Sutherland, W. J. Sustainable exploitation: a review of principles and methods. Wildl. Biol. 7, 131–140 (2001)
Slotow, R., Van Dyk, G., Poole, J., Page, B. & Klocke, A. Older bull elephants control young males. Nature 408, 425–426 (2000)
Starfield, A. M., Furniss, P. R. & Smuts, G. L. in Dynamics of Large Mammal Populations (ed. Fowler, C. W.) 121–134 (Wiley, New York, 1981)
Acknowledgements
We thank the government of Tanzania for permission to conduct research; K.W. was supported by the Wildlife Conservation Society, Big Game Special Projects Foundation, John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Graduate School of the University of Minnesota, Dayton-Wilkie Foundation, and Global Wildlife Trust; C.P. was supported by the McKnight Foundation and NSF LTREB and Animal Behavior programmes. We thank T. Gelatt, P. West, G. Hopcraft, M. Craft, B. Kissui, L. Frank, S. Mduma, T. Ramme, W. Testa, T. Coulson and N. Leader-Williams for advice, assistance and discussion.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing financial interests.
Supplementary information
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Whitman, K., Starfield, A., Quadling, H. et al. Sustainable trophy hunting of African lions. Nature 428, 175–178 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02395
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02395
This article is cited by
-
Anthropogenic edge effects and aging errors by hunters can affect the sustainability of lion trophy hunting
Scientific Reports (2023)
-
Hunting alters viral transmission and evolution in a large carnivore
Nature Ecology & Evolution (2022)
-
Lion and spotted hyena distributions within a buffer area of the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem
Scientific Reports (2021)
-
Evidence of a further emerging threat to lion conservation; targeted poaching for body parts
Biodiversity and Conservation (2019)
-
Mating, births, and transitions: a flexible two‐sex matrix model for evolutionary demography
Population Ecology (2018)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.