A hunter who killed a leopard has fallen foul of the law and traditional custom.
Sabelo “Miyane” Mthembu says he killed the leopard with his spear two weeks ago, outside the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in KwaZulu-Natal.
People living in Nsolweni, on the eastern boundary of the park, say the leopard had been terrorising the community and their livestock.
But Mthembu, 27, is now in trouble with the law for killing a protected species, and with the Zulu king for not presenting the skin and claws to the monarch, according to tradition. He has been served with a royal summons to apologise to King Misuzulu, and could receive a legal summons to defend himself in court.
Mthembu, meanwhile, has sold the evidence for R20,000. He could be charged under the Tops (threatened or protected species) regulations that forbid the killing of many species, including leopard.
He may also have contravened the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which controls the trade of wild animals and their body parts.
Locals said the leopard had terrorised the area for months, feeding on their livestock and posing a threat.
Mthembu said he will not apologise. He and four other hunters had set out to kill bushbuck and other antelope in the nearby bushes, he said. They had stumbled on the leopard and surrounded it.
“We had him cornered with no way to escape. Then we started hitting him with sticks until I stabbed him with my spear.”
Mthembu told the Sunday Times that after killing the animal, he skinned it and took some body parts to sell. These earned him R20,000. He refused to disclose the identity of the buyer.
“I did not know that there was a law forcing me to submit the animal to the Zulu king. According to my knowledge of my culture, I did no wrong because the king has amabutho [warriors] for the duty of hunting leopard for skin, which is skinned by them and he keeps the nails/claws of the cat.”
News of the leopard killing reached the king’s courtiers at Kwakhangelamankengane royal palace in Nongoma. The palace contacted the Mkhwanazi tribal authority’s acting leader, Solomon Mkhwanazi. Nsolweni is under the authority’s jurisdiction.
• 22 - The number of most common animals listed on the threatened or protected species (Tops) list
• 18,500 - The number of faux leopard skins that have been donated to the Shembe Church by Panthera, an organisation dedicated to the conservation of the world’s 40 wild cat species and their ecosystems, via the Furs for Life programme
— In Numbers
Mkhwanazi said: “The matter came to my attention days after it had happened, and then I received a call from the king’s regents informing me that they need that animal.
“When I got to the area I found that the leopard was no more. The boys had killed it, peeled its skin and cut off its body parts and they wouldn’t say who bought it.”
Mkhwanazi said he broke the news to the king at Nongoma.
“The law says I should take the hunter and the animal [as is, before it is skinned] to bayede [the king], but unfortunately the boys had peeled it. So I travelled to the king with my children, my wife, and we voiced our apology.”
Musa Mntambo, an Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife spokesperson, said the killing of the leopard would be investigated.
“The investigation will give a clear direction on how we proceed with the law. If his life was under threat from the leopard, then he had every right to defend himself. However, if only his livestock was in danger, the protocol is that they should contact Ezemvelo to deal with the animal,” he said.
Wildlife scientist Dr Peter Goodwin said there was “no shortage of leopards in the protected area and outside of the park”.
“The procedure is that if there is a problem animal preying on livestock, this has to be raised with Ezemvelo, who will then obtain a destruction permit.
“However, given the chronic staff shortages there, this is not always possible. While I don’t condone the killing of the leopard, I can understand the frustration of the community, but it is against the law to kill an animal on the Tops list.”
Goodwin, who is familiar with Zulu culture, said it was customary for hunters to kill leopard and present the skins — which are worn by the king and selected senior leaders — only at the behest of the royal household.
Mthembu, who comes from a family of 20 siblings, said he had been hunting in Nsolweni “since the age of seven ... with almost all the men in my family and community”.
“I come from a very big family. Hunting is a hobby I take pride in as a Zulu.”
Mthembu said he has never hunted a leopard before, but he could tell from the scars on the leopard that it was the same cat that had attacked people and livestock in the community and had escaped from a previous hunting attempt.
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