--- description: Several African countries are upset about airlines' ban on lion heads and other hunting trophies, saying it will cost their economies money. title: How Much Delta’s Lion Head Trophy Ban Could Cost Africa image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1fdf7fbe5c9e980e/69885e680a4a227c809c5846/ap_466759735127.jpg?branch=production&width=1920&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [cecil the lion](/tag/cecil-the-lion/) ## cecil the lion Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # How Much Delta’s Lion Head Trophy Ban Could Cost Africa’s Economy by [Jen Wieczner / Fortune](/author/fortune/) ## Jen Wieczner / Fortune Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 7, 2015 7:57 PM CUT  In this frame grab taken from a November 2012 video made available by Paula French, a well-known, protected lion known as Cecil strolls around in Hwange National Park, in Hwange, Zimbabwe. Zimbabwean police said Tuesday, July 28, 2015 they are searching for Walter James Palmer, an American who allegedly shot Cecil with a crossbow while on a big game hunt in a killing that has outraged conservationists and others. (Paula French via AP) In this frame grab taken from a November 2012 video made available by Paula French, a well-known, protected lion known as Cecil strolls around in Hwange National Park, in Hwange, Zimbabwe. Zimbabwean police said Tuesday, July 28, 2015 they are searching for Walter James Palmer, an American who allegedly shot Cecil with a crossbow while on a big game hunt in a killing that has outraged conservationists and others. (Paula French via AP)Paula French—AP by [Jen Wieczner / Fortune](/author/fortune/) ## Jen Wieczner / Fortune Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 7, 2015 7:57 PM CUT Amid the [outrage over the killing of Cecil the lion](http://fortune.com/2015/07/29/cecil-the-lion/ "undefined") by an American dentist in Zimbabwe last month, several major airlines, including U.S. carriers [Delta Air Lines](http://news.delta.com/shipments-lion-leopard-elephant-rhino-buffalo-trophies-banned "undefined") and [American Airlines](https://twitter.com/americanair/status/628397606989918208 "undefined"), said they would no longer transport lion heads or other leopard, elephant, rhinoceros, and buffalo hunting “trophies.” While wildlife conservationists praised the bans as a way to discourage the poaching of endangered species, not all environmental groups were pleased with the new policies. In particular, South Africa’s Department of Environmental Affairs announced on Thursday that it was “disappointed” with Delta’s decision, saying the airline’s “blanket ban” does not distinguish between animal “specimens” that were acquired legally versus those killed illegally. The trade of animal trophies is a significant contributor to South Africa’s economy, with the country’s hunting industry worth nearly $500 million, the environmental agency said. Namibia also complained that the airline bans would actually endanger more animals by reducing hunting tourism, which funds the country’s protection efforts, according to the [Associated Press](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/115162ecb97342e3b14c5adef82ad762/south-africa-namibia-criticize-airline-ban-trophies "undefined"). An editorial in _The Wall Street Journal_ on Thursday, titled [“How Trophy Hunting Can Save Lions,”](http://on.wsj.com/1hmmtUT "undefined") argued a similar point. The editorial cited statistics that Kenya’s 60% to 70% of Kenya’s large wild animals have been wiped out since the country banned hunting in 1977: “Lion conservation succeeds when it provides incentives for local people to protect lions and their habitat. In other words, if it pays, it stays,” the authors wrote. “When done responsibly and legally, trophy hunting is a way to ensure African lions are here to stay.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3989474/how-much-deltas-lion-head-trophy-ban-could-cost-africas-economy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3989474/how-much-deltas-lion-head-trophy-ban-could-cost-africas-economy/"},"headline":"How Much Delta’s Lion Head Trophy Ban Could Cost Africa’s Economy","datePublished":"2015-08-07T19:57:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T10:00:58.992Z","description":"Some say hunting actually promotes animal protection","url":"https://time.com/3989474/how-much-deltas-lion-head-trophy-ban-could-cost-africas-economy/","keywords":["cecil the lion","South Africa","Africa","Airlines","Ban","Delta","pubdesk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1fdf7fbe5c9e980e/69885e680a4a227c809c5846/ap_466759735127.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jen Wieczner / Fortune"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1fdf7fbe5c9e980e/69885e680a4a227c809c5846/ap_466759735127.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Zimbabwe Lion Killed","caption":"Zimbabwe Lion Killed","creditText":"Paula French—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/cecil-the-lion/","name":"cecil the lion"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3989474/how-much-deltas-lion-head-trophy-ban-could-cost-africas-economy/","name":"How Much Delta’s Lion Head Trophy Ban Could Cost Africa’s Economy"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Major Airlines Ban Shipment Of Big-Game Trophies From Africa","description":"United, Delta and American Airlines announced they will no longer ship hunters' big-game trophies from Africa.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/GlwCAaoV/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-08-04T14:21:08.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/GlwCAaoV.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3989474/how-much-deltas-lion-head-trophy-ban-could-cost-africas-economy/","duration":"PT1M22S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3989474/how-much-deltas-lion-head-trophy-ban-could-cost-africas-economy/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```