Cape Town - Animal protection advocacy groups have opposed the approval of hunting permits granted to two Constantia farmers after seven baboons were killed.
CapeNature defended the granting of the permits, saying they were based on valid applications and motivations provided by farmers as a last resort to mitigate human/wildlife conflict.
“The applicants were able to prove that they have implemented multiple non-lethal mitigation measures over a number of years to try to prevent the continued damage to vineyards and infrastructure without success, and experienced extensive losses,” it said.
The permits were valid for a year, from October 2017. Since then, seven baboons have been killed.
Baboon Matters spokesperson Jenni Trethowan said the organisation opposed the lethal manner of baboon management. She questioned why non-lethal mechanisms did not work on the two farms when they worked in other parts of Cape Town.
“It would be interesting to understand why an electric fence, for example, failed in the vineyards, yet has proved hugely successful in Zwaanswyk.
“We believe that there are a variety of options that could be explored, but it is also very important to understand what has caused the increase in raids to the vineyards to a point where they felt they had no other options,” she said.
Trethowan suggested the mountain fire in 2015, the clearing of the pine plantations and the drought had resulted in an increase of baboon raids to areas where food and water were accessible.
Cape of Good Hope SPCA chief executive Mqabuko Ndukwana said: “Active hunting of our baboons is not a methodology for baboon management that we would ever support. We believe that there are a number of non-lethal methods that still have to be fully explored.”
UCT’s Institute for Communities and Wildlife in Africa director, Professor Justin O’Riain, said vineyards in Cape Town fell outside the urban edge, and were not protected by the city’s field rangers.
“The farmers have thus had to employ their own field rangers, and they have also invested heavily in electric fencing along their borders with Table Mountain National Park.
“They have tried unsuccessfully to thwart baboons from their crops for many years,” he said, adding that apart from killing the baboons, farmers might have to add a wildlife levy of their products to ensure they can increase their contribution to non-lethal costs.
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