The controversial topic of giraffe trophy hunting takes centre stage by the UK's Daily Mail Online edition under the title "Is this really fun for the family". Wealthy tourist trophy hunters from around the world are paying thousands of pounds to shoot giraffes in Africa. Click on the title for the full story reprinted. GCF's Dr. Julian Fennessy is extensively quoted articulating the hunting situation, other giraffe threats such as poaching and why GCF was formed.

We would like to thank everyone who has been in contact since a number of media outlets circulated an article on giraffe trophy hunting earlier this month. We appreciate the level of concern raised by the article and accompanying photographs. We would therefore like to reassure concerned members of the public as well as all the supporters of the Giraffe Conservation Foundation (GCF) that GCF does NOT actively support trophy hunting. Nor do we receive any support from trophy hunting operators.

The words of our resident giraffe expert Dr Julian Fennessy, who is also Chair of the IUCN SSC ASG International Giraffe Working Group, have been taken out of context in this article. The focus of our charity is the conservation and management of giraffe with a particular emphasis on field-based research and collaborative partnerships with governments, non-government organisations and individuals. Every penny of money donated to GCF is put towards this end, with particular focus on the three sub-species which are endangered or seriously in decline – the West African giraffe, Rothschild’s giraffe and the reticulated giraffe. 

GCF’s mission is to put workable measures in place to prevent the further decline of these giraffe before it is too late. We are a small charity operating almost entirely by volunteers who give their free time and expertise to forward the cause, working with passion to make a difference. We invite everyone who has an affection for, or who is seriously concerned about giraffe today to read our website and see for yourself what we stand for. We have a huge task ahead of us. Our primary goal is to make a difference but we cannot do this alone and your support is vital!

Giraffe numbers have nearly halved since the late 1990s from approx. 140,000 to less than 80,000 giraffe across Africa. This decline in numbers is due mainly to habitat loss, habitat segmentation, human population growth and illegal hunting.

GCF Research Associate JP Suraud successfully defended his PhD research at the University of Lyon and was awarded his doctorate in December 2011. JP conducted the field research for his PhD thesis in Niger, where he studied the population dynamics, home range and genetics of the last remaining West African giraffe population, Giraffa camelopardalis peralta. The project received financial and technical support from GCF over a number of years. With only approx. 250 West African giraffe remaining in the wild, JP's work was integral for having this subspecies listed as an endangered population on the IUCN Red List.

Just before Christmas, the seventh issue of the Giraffa Newsletter has been released and can be downloaded on the GCF website. Giraffa has a new look, as In the spirit of collaboration and coordination the newsletter is now a combined publication of the IUCN SSC ASG International Working Group (IGWG) and GCF.