CHITRAL, March 23: A young man from Germany hunted so far the biggest Kashmir Markhor at the Toshi Shasha conservancy near Chitral.
Irshad Ahmed, an official of the wildlife department, said 24-year-old Philips Hermann had obtained the hunting permit from the department at $95,000. He said that as per records of trophy hunting in the district, the largest markhor ever hunted measured 43 centimetres that was exceptionally long and strong. “The German man was fortunate enough to search a markhor of such a size in a short span of time. He had not wasted much time in the process of searching,” he said, adding he happened to be consummate in shooting as the animal fell to the ground after the first shot. Mr Ahmed said that using his Magnum 300 rifle, the hunter fired from a distance of 250 metres. It was quite a difficult range keeping in view the steep and mountainous terrain of the conservancy while the recent rains had made the ground slippery and it was difficult to maintain balance, he added. The official said that the hunter fired a second shot to make sure that the animal was dead and stood no chance of rolling in the mountainous slopes in injured condition as it happened mostly. Mr Ahmed said that 80 per cent of the income accrued from the permit fee of the trophy hunting of markhor, went to the local community through the village conservation committee that were organised in different villages. He said the committee members played a pivotal role in conservation of markhor in different villages of the district. He said that keeping in view the strength of markhors in a certain conservancy, the wildlife department issued hunting permit for $94,000 to $105,000 every year.–Zahiruddin]]>