Episode 836: The Most Stressful 53 Hours in Big Cat Conservation

What this episode covers

Our old friend Robbie Kroger of Origins Foundation makes his return to the show this week. We’ve been friends for nearly a decade at this point, and I always enjoy hearing about the Origin Foundation’s latest conservation work. During today’s discussion we focus primarily on a recent cheetah relocation project (the largest and riskiest on record) that Robbie was directly involved in. From the fundraising to boots on the ground, he was there every step of the way. Some might think it’s odd that hunters take an interest in a species like cheetahs that we don’t really hunt or talk about frequently in conservation circles. But this is who we are and what hunters do so for the Origins Foundation to step up and invest in this kind of work isn’t surprising at all. Highlights from the conversation include: * How did Robbie and Origins Foundation get wind of this project and subsequently become a huge part of it’s success? * Why are cheetahs one of the most threatened large carnivores in Africa? * The bottleneck and inbreeding * Why don’t hunters historically pursue cheetahs? * The lion problem * Cheetah behavior and range * 53 Hours of nail-biting relocation * Did we lose any cats? * Canoes and cheetah crates in croc infested waters * How did National Geographic pick up the story and what does that mean for the hunting community as a whole? * Grandaddy’s .416 Rigby * Buffalo hunting in his footsteps * No mountain reedbuck? * Perhaps a pronghorn? * A place where the beautiful game, education and hunters beautifully intersect * Privatization of wildlife and why it works in Africa (Image Courtesy of the Origins Foundation)

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