The conservation of the wildlife heritage of Zimbabwe is and always has been one of the main aims and objectives of this Association, which was first established by a group of wildlife enthusiasts in 1947. It is the opinion of this Association that of all the bounteous natural resources of Zimbabwe, the wildlife is the most important and the most valuable.

It may not be the most valuable in terms of money, but it has a value that far transcends materialism.  It both arouses and satisfies aesthetic instincts and other and even more fundamental instincts which defy definition.  Listening to the call of the lion and the cry of a fish eagle, modern man can shed the burden of his civilization and attain a fleeting return to simple humanity.

To some people it may seem anomalous to put the heading of hunting immediately following that of conservation, but this is done deliberately to emphasize the fact that controlled hunting properly conducted is one of the most important tools of game management, which itself is the proven modern basis of conservation of wildlife species.

It is now common knowledge that increasing population and agricultural and other developments have drastically reduced the areas available to wildlife throughout the world, and that the concentration of game in restricted areas will result in destruction of the habitat if such populations are not held within the bearing capacity of the land concerned.  Therefore, as a basic conservation measure game population must be reduced by hunting.

Also not so generally known is the fact that with certain species of game the old bulls collect large harems of cows which they are incapable of servicing and the killing of such bulls by trophy hunters allows younger bulls to share the cows between them and result in an increased breeding rate.

Hunting is, therefore essential to conservation as well as being a deep-rooted instinct in man which, although once know as the sport of kings, actually appeals to a much wider spectrum of sportsmen.

It is therefore, one of the main objectives of this Association to provide controlled hunting facilities for its members and a natural corollary to this object is the promotion and the conservation of game in perpetuity.

The twin objects of game conservation and hunting naturally covers a wide field of associated activities, and the Association makes every endeavour to encourage interest in bush pursuits, whether hunting, bird shooting, game or bird watching or just plain camping in wild places away from the concrete jungles of modern civilization.

Another primary concern of the Association is the promotion of hunting ethics, which have changed tremendously.  In the early days of exploration and development of Southern Africa the sportsmen of that era, who were often wealthy of titled or both covered vast distances on food or on horseback shooting everything which took their fancy, and with no apparent concern for large numbers of animals wounded and left to die in agony.  Early settlers were not better and indiscriminate slaughter carried no stigma in an age when it was accepted that men must kill the ‘wild beasts’ which were thought to be inimical in temperament, limitless in numbers and apparently without feeling.

Fortunately attitudes have changed with increasing knowledge and today the true hunter is a sportsman who is moderate in his desires, painstaking in the clean killing of selected animals whether for food or trophy and who has a genuine love and respect for the animals hunted.

Wildlife is our most precious heritage.  Preserve it for ourselves and our posterity.