Hunting golden wildebeest, black impala + other colour variants
For the past few years, the various colour variants were selectively chosen to increase the numbers, as well as to improve their horn sizes and colour quality. The exact same breeding methods were and are used, as they have done with the sable antelopes, roan antelopes, nyala, and buffalo.
South Africa is well known to be one of the preferred hunting destinations in the world. There are many reasons why hunters from all around the world come to hunt in South Africa. Affordability and the large variety of wildlife available to hunt, are two of the most mentioned reasons for hunters to travel from all over the world to come and hunt in South Africa.
South Africa trophy hunting safaris colour variants golden wildebeest gnu black impala kings wildebeest white impala wildebeest springbuck impala slams cape buffalo sable antelope roan antelope hunt hunts South African outfitters
The game farmer in South Africa owns the wildlife on his or her game farm, and takes pride in the quality of the wildlife that he or she can present to hunters. There is a continuous effort by game farmers to improve the quality and genetics of their wildlife. Rams and bulls (of all species) with larger horns and bodies, as well as new herds of females are regularly bought from other game farms and introduced on the game farms to improve the quality of the wildlife hunting. At the same time, new and stronger genetics are introduced, to prevent inbreeding and improve the genetics and bloodlines. Through these continuous efforts of the game farmers, we have seen over the past 10 to 15 years that the quality and horn lengths of the wildlife, have improved tremendously during this time.
A large number of the game farmers also breed with a variety of colour variants. The majority of these game farmers also breed with sable antelope, roan antelope, nyala, and disease free buffalo on their game farms, which through careful selection of breeding bulls, rams, cows and ewes, managed to increase the numbers and quality of these wildlife species to where they are today.
A few of the colour variants, such as golden wildebeest and black impala, have increased in numbers through ethical and healthy breeding practices, although the numbers of colour variants are still less than sable antelope. The numbers of good breeding stock are good enough to now allow that these colour variants can be hunted. During past years we saw the limited hunting of mostly older non-breeding colour variant rams and bulls. Since 2016 more and more colour variants (mostly golden wildebeest, black impala, and springbuck variants) have been hunted by international hunters.
Unfortunately the hunting of colour variants have not escaped the negative comments of certain individuals and groups. These negative comments have been carefully structured with choice phrases and words, to make the comments sound more legit and true.
We are not activists - we are wildlife ranchers, hunters and conservationists.
We will only make comments that can be proofed through history and science. Below we comment on the negative comments used by the people and groups who are against the hunting of colour variants. There are many hunters and other people who heard the false information about the hunting of wildlife such as golden wildebeest and black impala. Hopefully the below information will give you more knowledge, so that you can make a more educated and informed opinion about the hunting of colour variants.
• Colour variants are natural wildlife, and not man made wildlife
The anti-colour variant people and groups are saying that colour variants are not found in the wild, and are therefore not natural wildlife.
Colour variant wildlife such as golden wildebeest, kings wildebeest, black impala, and golden oryx, have been in Southern Africa long before the first white people arrived in South Africa in 1652. These animals are as natural as any other God created wildlife in Southern Africa, although very rare.
Golden wildebeest and kings wildebeest are naturally found in the Tuli blok (South East Botswana) and the Limpopo River Valley (North West South Africa). The first pioneers and cattle farmers who arrived in this area more than a hundred years ago, wrote about the "red or vos" wildebeest which they saw in the herds of blue wildebeest. Today we know these wildebeest as golden wildebeest. They also wrote about "bont" wildebeest, today known as kings wildebeest.
In 1986 Barry York saw a golden wildebeest for the first time, which was hunted by a South African biltong hunter. Richard York (son of Barry York), wrote:
"Barry was devastated that something so rare, beautiful and unique was now wasted and he was convinced he would never see something so beautiful again. In 1991 his luck changed when he and Alec Rough captured the first ever recorded golden bull in South Africa. This bull was caught from the wild, amongst the abundant herds of wildebeest that migrated along the Limpopo river."
Kruger van Zyl saw a kings wildebeest for the first time in 2002, and thought it was even more beautiful than the golden wildebeest, which he was already breeding with. By 2003 he managed to capture two kings wildebeest cows in the Limpopo River Valley.
It is common knowledge that Barry York and Alec Rough were the first persons to capture a golden wildebeest in the wild, and Kruger van Zyl and Jaap Seegers were the first persons to capture kings wildebeest in the wild. These game farmers were also the first people to start breeding with these extremely rare and beautiful wildebeest variants. In the years that followed, many game farmers captured golden wildebeest and kings wildebeest in the Tuli Block inside Botswana, as well as in the Limpopo River Valley on the South African side of the Limpopo river, bordering Botswana.
By 2013 the majority golden and kings wildebeest in the Thuli Blok (Botswana) were captured by game farmers. Department of Conservation in Botswana stopped the capture of all wildebeest that would be transported to South Africa, as Botswana were afraid that the golden wildebeest and kings wildebeest would disappear from the Botswana landscape. The Botswana government sees golden and kings wildebeest as part of Botswana's heritage.
Black impala are also natural impala, which was first written about by a soldier during the second Anglo Boer War (1899 - 1902) which was seen in an area, today known as the Waterberg region. It is commonly accepted that Dr Dirk Neethling was the first game farmer who captured and bred with black impala. His fascination with black impala started as a young boy, when he saw the skin of a black impala. In 1974 he established his first wildlife / game farm. At that time he made it his life mission to capture a black impala to breed with. He got to hear about a black impala, but the black impala was hunted by a hunter before his arrival. He searched for black impala throughout the 1980's, and finally he found black impala that he successfully captured in 1991. He was the first person to breed with black impala, and also the first person to sell black impala on auction in 2002.
The first farmers to the area, did not have the science that we have today. They thought the golden wildebeest and kings wildebeest were sick, and therefore looked different in colour. These farmers were mostly cattle farmers, and they were afraid that these wildebeest will carry diseases over to their cattle. Therefore they shot all the golden and kings wildebeest that they could find. This had a devastating effect on the numbers, as golden wildebeest and kings wildebeest reproduce at a very slow rate, due to the recessive gene, as explained further down in this page.
To understand how these first farmers could think that these wildebeest could be sick, you have to understand that this was more than 100 years ago. The believes carried over to the next generation, who also shot golden and kings wildebeest on sight. These farmers had no formal education, there was no science those days, and they formed believes on what they could see. There were deaths amongst their cattle, but it was not because of the golden and kings wildebeest. The deaths amongst the cattle were caused by a variety of diseases, including "Bovine malignant catarrhal fever" virus, which all wildebeest is a natural carrier of in Africa. In Afrikaans it is known as "snot siekte". When the farmers moved into areas with larger numbers of wildebeest, they experienced more deaths amongst the cattle, and assumed that the increase in deaths were caused by the not familiar colour of golden and kings wildebeest.
In 2001 / 2002 Kruger van Zyl and Jaap Seegers visited an older lady in Vaalwater, who were around 70 years old. In her house was a golden wildebeest skin, which her grandfather shot in the Limpopo Valley when she was a young girl. This was very long before any wildlife ranch / game farm existed.
To further explain and understand the thinking of the pioneer farmers, we use the example of the fever trees. The first pioneer farmers reached the areas in Northern South Africa, where the fever trees are more common. They could not understand why the people and livestock were dying in these areas, and assumed it was the fever trees that killed the people and livestock. Therefore they chopped the fever trees down, and burned the trees. It was only many years later, that with science we now know that it was not the fever trees that killed the people and livestock. The deaths were caused by a disease known as sleeping sickness, which is a parasite infection caused by the bite of an infected fly, called the tsetse fly. These tsetse flies are found in the same areas as where you find fever trees.
The past few decades there have been thousands of fever trees planted, to correct the mistakes of the past, and because these trees are beautiful. Why is it that the trees can be planted to correct the mistakes of the past, but certain people and groups are outspoken and against the breeding of golden wildebeest and kings wildebeest, which are also rare in the wild, due to the same man made mistakes, as man made with the trees?
White impala are very rare, but more commonly found in the Northern parts of South Africa. The most spectacular and regular sightings of white impala in South Africa, are inside Kruger National Park and surrounding Big 5 game reserves bordering Kruger National Park, as well as in Mapungubwe National Park which is also a SANParks game reserve where South Africa, Botswana, and Zimbabwe come together. White impala are also seen and photographed in National Parks in Eastern Tanzania.
Below are a few links to various photos and a video of white impala in these national parks:
(The links will open in new tab, so that you do not loose this page)
Kruger National Park video clip (1 minute 13 seconds)
Kruger National Park photo 1
Kruger National Park photo 2
Kruger National Park photo 3
Kruger National Park photo 4
Mapungubwe National Park photos 1 & 2
White impala are not albino animals, as many might believe. Note the black colour pigmentation of the eyes, nose, mouth, scent glands on legs, and black lines on the tail and behind.
• Colour variants survive very well in the wild
The anti-colour variant people and groups are saying that colour variants such as golden wildebeest, black impala, and white impala can not survive in the wild, due to their non camouflage colouring. They say that the colour variants stand out visibly, and will be killed by predators.
As explained above, the colour variants are natural wildlife, and have been surviving in the wild very successful for hundreds, if not thousands of years. The larger majority of golden wildebeest and kings wildebeest that have been caught in the Tuli Blok and Limpopo River Valley by game ranchers, were adult wildebeest. Some of them as old as 10 years. These areas have a variety of larger predators.
The white impala inside the Mapungubwe and Kruger National Parks, are probably the best example to explain how well the colour variants survive in the wild. In fact, they survive as well as any other wildlife in nature. There is probably no colour that stands out as much as the colour "white". Also keep in mind that predator vision is in black, white, and shades of grey. All predators have much better vision than any person. A lion can see at night 15x to 20x (depending on the moon) better than what a human with perfect eye sight can see during the day. This would mean that the white impala inside these national parks, should be very visible to the predators in the park. Kruger National Park has: 1750 lions, 1000 leopards, 5430 spotted hyenas, 120 cheetahs, 120 cape hunting dogs (wild dogs), and thousands of black backed jackals and caracals, which are all predators of impala. According to the theory of the anti-colour variant people and groups, the odds should be heavily stacked against the white impalas in these parks.
However, the numbers of white impala inside these National Parks have shown a steady increase, as well as other colour variants inside Kruger National Park, such as white kudu. Look at the first two photos of the white impala inside Kruger National Park - they are adult impala. They survive very well in nature where there are large numbers of predators. Also keep in mind that there is no human interference or human protection of wildlife in these National Parks. The only protection are against human poachers, and not protection against predators.
These people and groups who are against the breeding and hunting of colour variants, are people who describe themselves (and by the media) as wildlife specialist or people with vast knowledge of Southern Africa wildlife, and also as conservationists. If that was true, they should have more knowledge of the hunting patterns and methods of predators, which they obviously do not know, or knowingly spread their comments as "specialists" to people with average, little, or no knowledge.
How do these very white impala avoid being caught by such a large number of predators with excellent eye sight? The white impala and kudu do not need to avoid getting caught, as the first law of nature protects the colour variants. The weakest will be killed, and the strongest will survive. Yes, the white impala might stand out, and be much more visible to predators than the other impala, although all the impalas (red or white) are very visible to predators due to their excellent sight. Predators do not catch and kill the most visible animals in a herd. They attack and kill the weakest in the herd. You will often see a pride of lions spread out over some distance, watching a herd of wildebeest, zebra, impala, buffalo etc. The entire pride are still, and all of a sudden they all charge the same animal. That is why they have great sight, to spot the weakness in an animal. The entire pride will spot the same weakness at the same time, and attack the same animal.
The second law of nature is: Only the strongest will mate and re-produce. Impala has a very basic but effective selection method to ensure that only the strongest males will mate with the females. Rams are pushed out of the female breeding herds at the age of 15 to 18 months old. They then form separate herds which only consist of males of various ages. The adult males will fight with each other in the ram herds, known as bachelor herds. The strongest male will then challenge the dominant male in the female breeding herd. The strongest of the two rams will stay in the breeding herd and mate with the females, while the looser of the challenge will return to the bachelor herd. The ram in the breeding herd do not sleep, but will be chasing the females in heat and mate with them. This process takes much energy, and the rams loose prime condition within a day or two. Therefore the mating males are contiously replaced throughout the breeding season, resulting in a number of the strongest males breeding with the impala ewes. This ensures that only the strongest genetics are used as "father" of the next generation.
With the numbers of white impala increasing in the National Parks, it is save to assume that a number of the breeding males are white impala males, or males that have the white recessive gene. This off course blows another one of the anti-colour variant people and groups theory or often used comment out of the water. They claim that colour variants are genetically, and physically inferior to "normal coloured" wildlife, which is untrue as the colour variants have survived for thousands of years, and their numbers keep on increasing in the wild. The above applies to all colour variants in the wild, where man did not interfere.
Although there are still a large number of the anti-colour variant people and groups who claim that colour variants are not found in the wild, a number of them realised that the history and sightings (as mentioned above) are too well documented, and that they could not use that comment anymore. That is when they started to change their comment to: "Colour variants are genetically manipulated wildlife, through the interference of game farmers".
• Colour variants are not genetically manipulated wildlife
This subject can be discussed under various headings.
I am sure that many of you are familiar with the King cheetah, or also known as Cooper's cheetah. The first documented sighting of a King cheetah, was written by Major Cooper in 1926, of a king cheetah that he hunted and shot in Eastern Rhodesia, close to where Harare (Zimbabwe) is today. To date there is only six sightings documented of king cheetahs in the wild, including the Major Cooper hunt.
At first people and scientist thought that a king cheetah is a cross (offspring) of a cheetah and leopard. Then they believed that the king cheetah is a sub-specie of the cheetah specie. Later with the assistance of modern science, they learnt that the colour difference of a king cheetah is caused by a recessive gene. In other words, a king cheetah is a colour variant, caused by a recessive gene, exactly the same as other colour variants such as golden wildebeest, kings wildebeest, black impala, and white impala.
The hypocritical aspect of this is, that the people and groups who oppose the breeding and hunting of golden wildebeest and black impala, have to date never mentioned the breeding of the king cheetah colour variation. In fact, the king cheetah is considered to be protected, and millions of Dollars are raised world wide and used to research and breed king cheetahs. De Wildt cheetah centre close to Hartbeespoort dam in South Africa, was a small cheetah breeding centre. They became world wide renowned after breeding a king cheetah cub un-intentionally. After this the funding for the once smaller breeding centre flowed in from around the word, with the Dutch Royal Family becoming their biggest annual donor, and a number of vehicle manufactures donating more vehicles than what they need. All in the name of conservation.
The game farmers never got any funding, acknowledgement, or assistance in breeding the also extremely rare and small numbers golden wildebeest, kings wildebeest, black impala and other colour variants to larger numbers. The wildlife ranchers used their own money, and built their experience and knowledge through their own costly mistakes. There has never been, and still are no funding for research. All the DNA collected and sent to various laboratories in South Africa and in USA, are done at own cost.
Who are we as people to decide which wildlife species, sub species, or variants of species and sub species, are OK to conserve and protect? God created all these species, sub species, and variants as animals that walked the Africa continent long before game farmers, hunters, and other people.
After all, the colour variants were doing well until the pioneer farmers decided to shoot them, due to a lack of knowledge and understanding of genetics. Due to the rare and unique recessive gene, the population growth of the colour variants are slow and takes many years. If they were not shot on sight 30 to 100 years ago, their numbers in the wild would have been much more. The colour variants are targeted by certain groups as not the commonly seen or as freaks, just because their numbers are less than the specie or sub specie numbers. Does that make kings cheetahs, black leopards or Siberian tigers also "freaks of nature", just because their numbers are less? Colour variants breeding are part of conservation, because man caused the decline of their numbers. As you know, managed hunting is the backbone of conservation, and also the reason why the numbers of all wildlife in South Africa keep increasing.
Since 1991 all game farms and reserves where hunting takes place, are privately owned properties.
Dr Peter Oberem summed up the position of wildlife before 1991 in one paragraph, as below.
Before 1991 wildlife belonged to no-one, and therefore effectively belonged to the State. Before 1991 very few wild animals were found outside National Parks. This was caused by the arrival of settlers and their guns, their domestic stock, their fences and their diseases. Game animals were seen first as a source of food for the settlers and then later as competition for grazing for domestic stock. Veterinary Service campaigns to control diseases that settlers brought to Africa such as rinderpest, tuberculosis, brucellosis, together with African diseases like foot and mouth disease and nagana, that threatened the well-being of domestic livestock, led to millions of game animals being slaughtered, as wildlife had no commercial value.
In 1991 the ownership laws of wildlife changed with the promulgation of the Game Theft Act which allowed private ownership of wildlife, so long as it was adequately enclosed or fenced. This was the beginning of wildlife / game farming in South Africa (and Namibia). At this time the majority of wildlife only existed in National Parks, and very low numbers on the private owned game farms. This meant that the original numbers of wildlife on the privately owned game farms were very small numbers. Because of the small numbers of wildlife, the quality of wildlife those days were not anywhere close to the quality that we see in the wildlife industry today. Most of the top genetics were hunted, which also meant that the larger horn bulls and rams of many years before, did not exist anymore. The average horn sizes were much smaller than what existed many years before. Another potential problem was inbreeding, with the limited numbers available.
Dr Peter Oberem is a veterinarian, game rancher and President of Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA)
The game farmers / ranchers bought or exchanged rams, ewes, bulls, and cows with other game farmers to change bloodlines, improve genetic pools, and prevent inbreeding. After the elections and change of government in 1994, the possibility of hosting foreign hunters became a reality. At that time countries like Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, and Tanzania had an abundance of wildlife which had much larger horn sizes than the limited numbers of wildlife in South Africa. The game farmers realised that they had to improve the horn sizes and quality of the wildlife, to be able to compete with the above mentioned countries who had a well established hunting industry with hunter clientele from all around the world.
Through selecting larger horned males and females to breed with, the game farmers managed over the years to increase the horn sizes and general quality of the wildlife, to where we now see similar horn sizes as what roamed South Africa a century ago. Due to these horn sizes and general very good quality of the wildlife in South Africa, as a result of selective breeding, the South African hunting industry became competitive with other African hunting destinations, and can proudly offer trophies that are of top quality.
The selective breeding of natural wildlife also saved endangered species, increasing their numbers and saving them from extinction. The selective breeding increased all wildlife numbers. The selective breeding and quality thereof ensured foreign hunters in South Africa, which generates income to the private land owners, which are invested back into the wildlife industry and conservation, which creates further income, jobs etc. The past few years, selective breeding has become even more important to game farmers, to be able to compete with other game farmers. This ultimately benefits the wildlife industry, the wildlife, the hunting industry, the hunter, the local communities, and the economy.
The anti-colour variant people and groups are saying that inbreeding is a problem when breeding with colour variants, due the smaller numbers of colour variants.
Before 1991, the wildlife numbers in South Africa were an estimated 5 million. The current wildlife numbers in South Africa is an estimated 30 million. This would not have been possible without selecting and manipulating the breeding genetics. All wildlife in South Africa (and Namibia) are genetically manipulated. The same principles of selecting the best breeding animals, are used with the breeding of colour variants.
• Inbreeding is not a risk or problem when breeding with colour variants
The majority of new breeders start a breeding herd with a colour variant ram or bull, along with a herd of "normal" coloured female impala, wildebeest, gemsbuck (oryx), springbuck etc. The first offspring are known as splits, which have the recessive gene from which a colour variant calf or lamb can be born. The newer breeders who are not well established, will normally allow the breeding bull or ram (colour variant) to mate with his daughters, but not with his grand daughters. The breeders who have been breeding longer, will change the breeding bull or ram in a herd every year. Both methods are acceptable in livestock and game breeding.
The common practice is to sell the breeding bull, and / or some of the split offspring, and / or colour variant offspring, or the normal (base) cows or ewes pregnant from the colour variant breeding ram or bull. The funds generated from the sales are used to buy a new breeding colour variant ram or bull, to further breed with the first ram or bull's daughters and grand daughters. Further income from sales are used to buy a second breeding ram or bull, as well as splits cows. Breeders will also use one of the colour variant rams or bulls that they have bred, as a breeding bull in a second or third breeding herd, for which they bought split females as breeding females. Smaller breeders without sufficient funds to buy new bloodline breeding animals, will often exchange breeding bulls or rams with other breeders.
Keep in mind that the cost to buy and breed with colour variants, are large costs. For a breeder to be able to breed better quality colour variants, which they can sell for much better prices, he or she must change and improve the genetics and bloodlines on a regular basis. The competition for better quality colour variants, is huge. Therefore every breeder (same as other livestock breeders) do their best to produce the best possible animals, and genetics.
The quality, body sizes, and horn sizes of colour variants have improved tremendously over the years, which is proof that inbreeding is not a problem. If inbreeding was a problem, the body sizes would have become smaller, horns would have been dis-figured, and horn sizes would have become smaller and smaller - which is not the case. In fact, the opposite is true.
The anti-colour variant people and groups are telling international hunters that the colour variants are bred by greedy game farmers who sells the hunts of colour variants at very expensive prices to the foreign hunters.
• Colour variants are affordable to hunt
The above statement is not true. It is much cheaper to hunt a golden wildebeest bull or black impala ram, than hunting a sable antelope, roan antelope, or buffalo.
• Hunting colour variants is a fair chase hunt, the same as hunting any other wildlife in South Africa
It is often said that colour variants are bred in small camps, and therefore become use to humans, which makes the hunt not a fair chase hunt. The anti-colour variants supporters also say that the colour variants are hunted in small camps.
The above statements are not true.
In South Africa
Game farm
Game farmer
Game or wildlife
In the USA and other countries
Wildlife ranch
Wildlife rancher
Wildlife
Game farms are privately owned and funded by the owner / game farmer
Game reserves are mostly private ownership and self funded by the owner
National Parks are State owned and managed, example Kruger National Park
Provincial Parks are owned and managed by the Provincial Government
Biltong hunters are local South African hunters who hunt for the meat
Almost all hunting takes place on private game farms or private game reserves
It is well known that the conservation of wildlife in South Africa, is a great success story. National Parks, such as the Kruger National Park, are doing very good work to preserve the wildlife in their natural habitat. However, the numbers of wildlife per specie are as many as they can be in the National Parks, due to the land size of the Parks, vegetation, water sources, and other factors. The increase in numbers of wildlife from 5 million in 1991 to an estimated 30 million in 2017, is due to the private game farmers and their efforts.
The breeding of wildlife on game farms, did not only increase the numbers of general wildlife, but also increased the numbers of wildlife that were critically low numbers, and still are low numbers in the National and Provincial Parks.
A few examples includes:
Rhino (white & black). There are 20 000 to 22 000 rhino in South Africa, of which 6 500 - 7 500 are on private game farms.
Sable antelope. The numbers of sable antelope in the wild has been declining in the wild. In Zimbabwe it is estimated that there were 24 000 sables in 1994, and now there are around 450 to 500. In South Africa National and Provincial Parks, there are an estimated 680 sables of which Kruger National Park has 290, while there are an estimated 7 000 sables on private game farms.
Bontebok numbers in the Parks are only a few hundred. On the private game farms there are an estimated 2 500 to 3 000. A true success story.
There are many more species with extremely low numbers in the Parks, while there are thousands of these species on private game farms. Kruger National Park is the largest National Park in Southern and East Africa. It is the same size as Masai Mara + Serengeti + Ngorongoro Crater + Lake Manyara + Lake Nkuru - or the same size as Israel, Wales, or the Netherlands. In Kruger National Park for example, are only 300 nyala, 460 eland, 90 roan antelope, 290 sable antelope, and 220 tsesebe. These numbers on private game farms are in the thousands, due to the dedication and efforts of game farmers.
These game farmers do not get any funding from the Government. The above numbers were achieved by self funding by the game farmers, through income generated by wildlife sales amongst each other, and hunting.
Hunting colour variants
During 2017 the demand to hunt these rare colour variations have grown considerably. A growing number of colour variants have been hunted during 2017, with a growing number of enquiries and requests from hunters to hunt specific colour variants.
I am first going to tell the story of the bontebok, which is an antelope only found in South Africa, and nowhere else in the world. Bontebok were found in parts of the Western Cape. In the 1800's, thousands of wildlife animals were hunted, because they could. During this time many wildlife species in Southern Africa were wiped off the face of the earth, and became extinct, such as the kwagga, cape lion and many more. Eventually there were only 17 (seventeen) bontebok left in the entire world. In the 1930's a National Park was declared to specifically protect the bontebok. It is the smallest National Park in South Africa. Here the bontebok population began to grow. The park can only keep 200 bontebok, due to the size of the park and the vegetation type. As the numbers increased, the excess bontebok were sold to reserves and game farmers. Today there are 3500 bontebok in South Africa, which means 3500 bontebok in the world. From a group of 17 bontebok, a population of 3500 were bred, with no problems of inbreeding.
Every breeder will have females (base, split, or colour) that comes from a different game farm. Every herd is started with new genetics from new bloodlines.
The breeding colour variants, which are selected on a variety of criteria, are much more expensive than the colour variants that do not qualify as breeding animals, and therefore selected as colour variants to hunt. The price difference between breeding and hunting colour variants, ensures that better quality breeding animals are bred, which also means that the hunting colour variants quality and horn sizes keeps on improving. The same as with sable antelope and buffalo.
You must keep in mind that the colour variants are extremely rare wildlife. To be able to increase the numbers, the same breeding principles and methods are being used, as when breeding with sable antelope, tsessebe, nyalas, roan antelope, buffalo, and other wildlife. Yes, all these wildlife species are also bred in camps for many years, but you do not hear people complaining about these wildlife species being bred in camps, and also being hunted.
The term "camps" also needs to be explained, as there are whitetail deer breeding ranches in the USA where they are bred in extremely small camps or pens. Many of the international hunters think that the breeding camps in South Africa and Namibia, are similar to the pens and camps to breed whitetail deer.
The sizes of the breeding camps in South Africa and Namibia, depends on the specie that are bred in the camp, as well as the area where the game farm is located. The vegetation, rainfall, climate, and carry capacity of the veld are very different from one area to the next area in South Africa. Therefore the breeding camp sizes to breed the same specie, varies from one area to the next. Example: In Limpopo you will have 20 wildebeest in a 50 hectares to 100 hectares (124 acres to 247 acres) camp, and in the Eastern or Northern Cape you will have 20 wildebeest in a 100 hectares to 400 hectares (247 acres to 988 acres camp). African wildlife do not become tame, because they are in camp systems. The wildlife in a small camp of 20 hectares (50 acres), are still wild animals.
The colour variants are not hunted in the breeding camps, although a hunter will not get any closer to the colour variants in a 50 hectares to 100 hectares camp, than what he will get to other animals of the same specie in the wild. There are many reasons why colour variants are not hunted in the breeding camps (no matter what the size), but here are a few reasons that you will understand.
The breeding colour variants are much more expensive than what the hunting colour variants are. A breeding colour variant can be 5x to 20x (average) more expensive than a hunting colour variant, depending on the specie, horns size, pedigree etc. In some cases the price difference can be 50x or more expensive than a hunting colour variant bull or ram. The risk is too high that a wrong animal can be hunted through communication and understanding error, or a bullet going through the hunted animal and wounding a breeding animal that was standing behind the hunted animal, etc.
The males are weaned and taken out of the breeding camps at different ages for different species. In the case of golden wildebeest or black impala, the young males are removed from the breeding camps at 10 months to 14 months old. If they are note removed at these ages, the dominant breeding ram or bull will kill the younger males before the mating season. That means that the only male that can be hunted in the breeding herd, is the dominant breeding ram or bull, which will be the best quality and most expensive animal in the herd. There are no hunting males in the breeding herds / camps, that are of an age that they can be hunted.
The males that do not qualify as breeding animals, will be moved to an open farm / hunting area. The same practice have been used with sable antelope, roan antelope, buffalo, and other camp bred wildlife. Here the ram or bull can join other groups of the same specie, and have the time to grow to a huntable age, as well as be as wild as the other wildlife in the hunting area or open farm. These areas are generally from 500 hectares (1235 acres) to 4000 hectares (9885 acres) and larger. I promise you that you will not get any closer to that colour variant, than any other wildlife that were not bred in breeding camps. It will be a fair chase hunt. There are a number of game farms where the colour variants are bred on open farms from 1000 hectares and more.
Colour variants are bred and hunted exactly the same as sable antelope and buffalo, with which no one has a problem with.
• Colour variants and ear tags
Yes, many of the colour variants do have ear tags. This will be mostly the breeding animals, to assist with identification in order to be able to breed the best possible quality. Up to very recent the numbers of colour variants were so low, that all colour variants were used for breeding. The use of ear tags are now being limited to breeding herds. Animals identified as hunting animals, do not get tagged when moved to the hunting areas. The ear tags subject are seriously been talked about and addressed, and the use of ear tags are being limited to breeding stock, which are not available to hunt.
This has been confirmed by various people in the past year. SCI will not create new categories for the different colour variants, as the colour variants are variants of a specie. Categories are limited to species and sub-species. Colour variants are not a specie or sub specie, but a variant of a specie or sub specie. Therefore the horn measurements of a colour variant will be entered under the specie or sub specie that the variant is part of.
• Safari Club International (SCI) do recognize the horn measurements of colour variants
South Africa is in a very special position, where we have the opportunity to offer something to the hunter that is very unique to South Africa, and is a fabulous trophy. South Africa (and Namibia, although in beginning stages) are the only countries in Africa that can offer the trophy hunter these amazing and beautiful animals to hunt. The trophy hunter can add the colour variants to his or her already hunted trophies, such as springbuck, gemsbuck, eland, kudu, wildebeest, impala etc. The hunter has the opportunity to hunt all the different colours of a specie, and exhibit the trophies together. The hunter can do it in one hunt, or over a period of a few years. Why would you want to hunt another normal impala or wildebeest, when you already have one or more trophies of them. Add colour to your trophy room.
• Happy hunting
These comments are false information, or half truths that have been altered to serve their view and position. In the past these comments were mostly advocated within South Africa, but since the hunting of colour variants became more in demand by international hunters, these people and groups are advocating more and more abroad directly to the international hunters.
Wynand Breytenbach
info@wynandwildlife.co.za
• Articles
Wildlife Ranching magazine is the official publication of Wildlife Ranching South Africa (WRSA).
The magazine strives to serve WRSA members and wildlife ranching industry professionals with intelligence across the industry value chain - via a synergy of its print and digital products - with the goal of supporting readers through quality and original content to profitably grow their businesses.
To subscribe to the Wildlife Ranching magazine: Click here to subscribe
The below articles were published in Wildlife Ranching magazine. These articles contain interesting information, statistics, and data, that is relevant to the above subjects of breeding practices of rare game, as well as the hunting of colour variants.
Black gold - The genetic diversity of buffalo on private game farms and reserves, are higher than the buffalo in Kruger National Park.
This article is relevant to the above section: "Inbreeding is not a problem when breeding with colour variants"
Article date: 2015
Download the pdf document
Ranched buffalo incentives
Article date: 2016
Download the pdf doument
A case for colour variants - A game rancher's perspective
Article date: 2017
Download the pdf doument
The colourful game changer - In the section "Our reader's views"
Article date: 2017
Download the pdf doument
Buffalo and sable antelopes bred on private game farms and reserves in South Africa, are well known to be top quality animals with large bodies, exceptional horn sizes and expanded genetic diversity. These animals were also found in extremely small numbers in the wild. Game farmers caught animals from these small natural numbers, and bred them to the numbers that we see today. South Africa private game farms are the only source of disease free buffalo in Southern Africa. A recent study was done where the genetic diversity of 2387 buffalo on private owned game farms, were compared to the genetic diversity of natural buffalo in Kruger National Park, Hluhluwe National Park, Addo National Park, and St Lucia. The study revealed that the genetic diversity of the buffalo on the private game farms (which are also disease free), where greater than the buffalo in Kruger National Park, although the buffalo numbers in Kruger National Park is 10 times more than the buffalo on private game farms. For more information about this study, download the pdf document.
Hunters interested in hunting colour variants, are more than welcome to contact me on the below email address.
I am not an outfitter, but will send you the contact details of registered outfitters who you can contact to book your hunt of a golden wildebeest, kings wildebeest, royal (white) wildebeest, black impala, white flanked impala, golden gemsbuck (oryx), white gemsbuck (oryx), black, white, and copper springbuck, and many more colour variants.
Photo: Golden kings wildebeest bull that have been darted to move to a breeding camp
Information about colour variants   ||   Photo gallery of colour variants trophy hunts   ||   Hunting outfitters who offer colour variants hunts
Information about colour variants   ||   Photo gallery of colour variants trophy hunts   ||   Hunting outfitters who offer colour variants hunts