Who gains from saving nature
Ledger 1 : 33 — For each dollar financing nature-based solutions in 2023, about $33 financed activities harmful to nature. (UNEP)
Cases / Protected area / relocation · Zimbabwe · 2015–2016

Hunter who shot lion Cecil in Zimbabwe was never charged

Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.

Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
What the record lacks: 1 none on record · 4 insufficient · 1 not measured See the gaps

A lion known as Cecil was lured with bait to the edge of Hwange National Park and shot in July 2015 by a US hunter who had paid about $54,000. The hunter was never charged, and the trophy-hunting revenue figures cited come from a 2013 report commissioned by animal-rights groups.

What?
A lion known as Cecil was lured out and shot by a US hunter in Zimbabwe in July 2015; the hunter was not charged. National Geographic
Where?
Edge of Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe National Geographic
When?
July 2015 shooting; charges dropped reported in November 2016 National Geographic
Who?
Gained
Lost
  • Local communities in nine African countries — receive about 3 per cent of trophy-hunting income, according to a 2013 report
Harmed
  • Cecil, a lion from Hwange National Park — lured out with bait and shot in July 2015 National Geographic
Why?
Not stated in the sources reviewed.
How?
Lion lured out of the park with bait and shot by a hunter who had paid for a trophy hunt National Geographic
6 of 6 questions answered from the record

What happened

The record, in order.

In July 2015 Cecil was lured with bait to the boundary of Hwange National Park and shot by a US hunter who had paid about $54,000, according to National Geographic (November 2016).

The minister said the hunter's documents were in order; the hunter was never charged, and a charge against the guide was dropped.

A 2013 report commissioned by animal-rights groups found that communities in nine African countries received 3 per cent of trophy-hunting income, and that in none of them did trophy hunting exceed 2.7 per mille of national income.

    In court and with insurers

    Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.

    Lawsuits and rulings

    No court case on record. No court has ruled on this case.

    Insurers

    No insurer decision on record.

    What we don't know

    Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.

    Nature

    • Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.

    Record

    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: the lion was valued at £784,000.
    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: an Oxford University assessment of Cecil's legacy five years on.
    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: Botswana trophy-hunting fees of up to $43,000 per elephant and annual income of $2.7 million.
    • Insufficient Reported but not verified: the CAMPFIRE programme returned $1 to $3 a year per household in one district (earlier study).
    • None on record The sources reviewed do not give current independent figures on trophy-hunting income.

    Did the harm stop?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Who paid?

    Not stated in the sources reviewed.

    Sources

    Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts✓ Press and investigations— Communities and civil society— Researchers

    Press and investigations

    1. Wildlife Watch: Cecil lion hunter charges dropped
      National Geographic · 2016-11-11

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