A journalist named Jamil Nagri took to his Twitter account, sharing the news of two Pakistani-Spanish men hunting Markhor.
“Recently, an American citizen also hunted the highest rated Astore Markhor in Skardu,” added Nagri as he shared the pictures as well. The news was upsetting to Pakistanis, and they are now calling for a ban on trophy hunting.
A rare wild goat species known as the Markhor (Ibex) lives in the mountainous areas of Central Asia, including parts of Afghanistan, India, and Pakistan.
Hunting, whether legal or primarily illegal, is the main source of Markhor’s endangerment. Its leather is utilised to produce clothing, while its horns have a high commercial value. They are also used to make medicines.
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Why it matters:
These species were once listed as being threatened on the “red list” by the IUCN. Hunting and poaching were the main causes of the threat. In fact, this practise was so widespread that people would hunt these wild goats in the hopes of obtaining their horns as trophies.
However, in cooperation with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WSC), Pakistan yielded positive results, and the population of Markhor has been successfully growing ever since. A research from 2018 states that there are 3500 Markhors living in Pakistan.
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