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My wife and I were privileged to go on a number of African safaris in Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, and even Zimbabwe. We watched animals; we did not shoot them except with a camera. We went on each safari in an open land rover. The animals in the game reserve are so used to land rovers, we could drive within a few feet of animals with little or no notice.  

Viewing wild animals up close in their natural habitat is fascinating and very entertaining. We watched female elephants with their young. The babies were cute trying to learn how to maneuver their trunks to put food in their mouths. We watched a group of lionesses stalking a herd of cape buffalo waiting for one to stray from the herd; a female cheetah stalking and then killing an impala; huge crocodiles sunning themselves; silver-backed gorillas with their families; chimpanzees and all sorts of monkeys and baboons; a wide variety of birds; thousand upon thousands of wildebeests gathering for their annual migration north; giraffes; hyenas; zebras; deer and antelope; hippos; lemurs; and white black rhinos; and much more. 

Thankfully, the brouhaha following the killing of Cecil the Lion by Dr. Walter Palmer, an American dentist, has put a much needed spotlight on so-called trophy hunting, the stalking and killing of wild animals for sport. The trophy is the antlers, head, skin of the slain animal plus the "joy of the kill." The hunter is usually armed with a high-powered rifle (a bow and arrow in Palmer's case). The animal doesn't stand a chance. And that's called sport! It would be better to spend the money for such hunts -- $50,000 in Palmer's case -- on protecting the animals' habitat so that future generations can enjoy witnessing them in their natural habitat. 

In memory of Cecil the Lion, let all future "hunts" be with camera, not guns.