Trophy hunting is good? What are you talking about? Trophy hunting is barbaric. I am against it. You can tell
by my tote bag. Look, I don't like it
any more than you do. I'm an animal lover,
too, see? This argument is really
counterintuitive and, frankly, kind of difficult to accept, but I ask that you keep
an open mind and hear me out, because the evidence suggests
that, in specific situations, trophy hunting can really help
endangered animals. But how? How can killing animals
help animals? Come here, I'll show ya. (Adam)
...as read by Adam Conover. Whoa!
I'm an ostrich! I am a frog man,
and in Africa, animals like these
are in desperate straits. Oh, my God.
Can I finally talk to animals? Do... you...
love me? Hey, no touching! There are only 5,000 of us
left alive, you know. Ugh, I drink 50 gallons
of water a day, and I'm not as thirsty
as this girl. And the real threat
to these animals isn't trophy hunters. 'Sup? Ahem! I'm a rich bro who takes occasional
hunting trips to Africa. What can I say? Kablammin' rare mammals
makes me feel like a man. (gunshot) Meant to do that. Judge this dweeb
all you want, but he's not why these animals
are at risk of dying out. The real threats are loss
of habitat and poaching. We're a criminal cartel that systematically kills
thousands of animals a year. We cut off the horns
and tusks and sell them
to foreign businessmen. I shot Babar right
through the heart, for money. (laughing maniacally) Poachers are organized,
they're ruthless, and they are decimating
animal populations. In some countries,
rhino horn is believed to cure cancer
and even hangovers, and sells
for $28,000 a pound. That's more than gold
or cocaine. (sniffs)
Ahh. Uck! That's awful! Why don't
the locals stop them? Well, they're kinda busy,
you know, living their lives. Yeah, I got
a family to feed. Why should I waste time
protecting a frickin' lion? In his defense, I do eat
his livestock on the regs. Heck, sometimes
I attack adults and children. (gulp) Hey! And just as harmful
to animal populations is the habitat loss
caused by farming. These animals are literally
running out of places to live. So, some African nations
came up with a plan. They took advantage
of the existing demand for trophy hunting... I would like to bazooka
one rhinoceros, please. ...and used it to fund
animal conservation. Fine. There's an aggressive male
who's too old to breed, has attacked three people,
and killed five other rhinos. He's basically
an ass(bleep). You can shoot him
for... $350,000. Deal! This is what I choose
to spend my money on for some reason. Here's your receipt
and your "I'm a Rich Jerk Who
Shoots Rhinos" tote bag. What the hell?
He's gonna kill a rhino. Yes, but we're going
to use that money to save more rhinos. Say whaaaaat?! Yeah, in Namibia,
revenue from trophy hunting is the main way they fund
new wildlife conservancies. And in South Africa,
a portion of the proceeds from trophy hunting
is given directly to local land owners,
and that incentivizes them to give the rhinos
land to live on and to protect them
from poachers. Hey! Stay away
from those rhinos! They're worth more alive
than dead! Breed, my little
moneybags, breed. But he's keeping them alive
so they can be hunted! Absolutely true, but still,
this system works. One-third of all white rhinos
in South Africa now live on private land, and their population
has gone from just 100 to more than 18,000. I'm so confused! You know ostriches don't
really do that, right? (muffled)
I don't care! It feels good. Veronica, I understand
that this is hard to believe. I had a tough time
with it, too. But then I talked
to Rosie Cooney, the chair of the Sustainable Use
and Livelihood Specialist Group of the International Union
for the Conservation of Nature. Whew! Glad I got through
that whole title. It's true, Veronica. Trophy hunting can be a valuable
part of conservation efforts, even if you find hunting
distasteful. It's not the hunters
running these programs. It's the government agencies or sometimes even
conservation groups themselves. The hunters' motives
don't really matter. The money they generate can really help
the animals who need it. (Veronica)
But how do I know the money is going to the right place? Well,
that's a good question. Like any program where
there's a lot of corruption or where things
are badly managed, these programs
don't work well at all. But that doesn't change the fact
that when they are well-managed, these programs can be a huge
help for wildlife conservation. In Namibia, for example, 100% of the hunting
concession fees go straight
to the local communities. It's been a huge success. I don't know. I still think that we
should ban trophy hunting and find another way
to help these animals. Sorry, but that's
not a great idea. Many countries are depending on
this revenue to protect animals, to pay the game guards,
to buy the vehicles. What happens
if that money dries up? It's very easy for us
in the developed world to judge how other countries
should manage their animals, but should it be
our decision? Or should it be
up to the communities who live with these animals
every day? Hunting is a really important
source of conservation revenue, even where you are,
Veronica, in the U.S. Hunting fees generate around
$200 million a year, which for many states
is their primary source of conservation funding. If we banned
all trophy hunting everywhere, right now, it would do
way more harm than good. Bye, guys! Yeah, thank you!
Bye! Oh, man.
Fun way to travel. (rifle cocks,
gunshot) Okay, stop! I don't care
how much good it does, I hate that anyone would be
allowed to kill an animal! I just want to stop them
from suffering. Why is killing them
the only solution? I know it's hard. We love these animals
so much, we can't imagine any benefit
coming from their deaths. It just seems wrong. But you know what's worse
than one animal getting killed by a hunter? Hundreds of thousands
being wiped out by poaching and loss of habitat. The truth is,
in some nations, the regulated hunting
of a few individuals is helping to save
entire species. So, cute animals
have to die... to live? Well, I guess that's
one way of putting it. (ominous music) (gasping and whimpering) (shrieking) I'm doing this
for your own good.
Was this not one of those Adam Ruins Everything things?