Lessons & Reflections from the National Butterfly Center

I know it’s crazy, but I can’t stay silent about Cecil the Lion and all the current hype…I hope my comments are not considered cuckoo, but well crafted and cogent.

My father was a big game hunter and a Life Member of Safari Club International, an organization that is currently being vilified. When he killed the record-breaking Nile crocodile in 1991, the villagers ate the beast and celebrated my father as a hero. He was a "savior" to their clan, which had lost many people and livestock to this “devil.”

Just one of his trophy permits, for which he paid after being selected in a lottery, was $50,000. He was well into his 80’s when his number came up, and it didn’t matter that he’d just had another coronary catheterization, he hopped a plane and took off like Jeff Glassberg in hot pursuit of some incredibly rare butterfly.

Fifty thousand may sound like a lot of money—and it is—but that amount still did not account for the specialized gun, gear, travel, guides, taxes, meals, taxidermy, etc. So when people ask whether ecotourism can supplant “sport hunting,” I say, "You do the math." The economics of it are substantially different than butterflying or birding. There is no big game hunting equivalent to Birding on a Budget.

The generosity and graciousness of my father on safari was also exceptional. Not only did he tip his guides and every member of their staff, each time my parents traveled to Africa, they left all of their clothes and shoes behind, except what they would wear home; literally, showing gratitude for their experience by giving their hosts the clothes off their backs.

My dad did not play golf or poker. Hunting was his passion. The home in which I grew up looks like an extension of the Museum of Natural History. Over the course of his lifetime, he contributed nearly $1,000,000 to wildlife conservation through his chosen hobby, and taught me to value all life on Earth. He funded hunter training and safety courses, habitat preservation projects, and scholarships for students involved in species management studies—and he never balked at paying an entrance fee, too.

No matter where he hunted, on five continents, he obeyed their laws and respected their traditions, which is more than many do in their day-to-day activities.

He showed me conservation is a balancing act, and this is something people seem to have forgotten in their outrage du jour, or perhaps they simply do not know.

If this is something that concerns you, please take action; and NO, I don’t mean sign a petition.

Stand against the terribly sad syndrome of modern ignorance by taking your children (students, neighbors, book club) to a nature center, a dude ranch, a fishing hole or a working farm. Unlike Africa, these places are accessible to everyone; so drag them out to gain perspective and get an education!