A US hunter who paid US$350,000 (HK$2.7 million) to kill a black rhinoceros in Namibia has successfully shot the animal, saying that his actions would help protect the critically-endangered species.
Corey Knowlton, from Texas, killed the rhino on Monday with a high-powered rifle after a three-day hunt through the bush with government officials on hand to ensure he shot the correct animal.
Knowlton, 36, won the right to shoot the rare rhino at an auction in Dallas in early 2014 - attracting fierce criticism from many conservationists and even some death threats.
He took a CNN camera crew on the hunt to try to show why he believed the killing was justified.
“The whole world knows about this hunt and I think it’s extremely important that people know it’s going down the right way, in the most scientific way that it can possibly happen,” Knowlton told the TV channel in footage released Wednesday.
“I think people have a problem just with the fact that I like to hunt... I want to see the black rhino as abundant as it can be. I believe in the survival of the species.”
Since 2012, Namibia has sold five licences each year to kill individual rhinos, saying the money is essential to fund conservation projects and anti-poaching protection.