Trophy hunter who targeted elephants and lions gets eaten by crocodiles

All animal lovers are opposed to trophy hunting. It can be hard to believe that there are people who enjoy killing at-risk animals like lions and rhinos.

This “sport” has pushed many species to the brink of extinction, but despite controversy and pushback from conservation groups this kind of hunting remains legal in many places.

But sometimes the animal kingdom has its own sense of justice… and one hunter came to a demise that could be described as “karma.”

Scott Van Zyl was a prolific trophy hunter from South Africa. In addition to being a hunter himself, Van Zyl operated a “safari” company where he would take clients on big game hunts as well.

His targets included lions, cheetahs, giraffes and elephants.

In 2017, Van Zyl headed out on one of his hunting trip in Zimbabwe… only this time, he didn’t return.

According to the BBC, the hunter headed out with a pack of dogs and a local tracker. He went off on his own in search of crocodiles, and was believed to be missing when his tracker dogs returned without him.

They found his footprints and bag near the river bank. Local authorities investigated the crocodiles… and found human remains that a DNA test confirmed belonged to Van Zyl.

After the story broke, many people wrote that he had it coming: that it was karma for killing so many animals.

One Green Planet, while not celebrating the hunter’s death, said the case is just more proof of why we shouldn’t allow trophy hunting: it puts the hunters’ lives at needless risk.

“Let’s be honest, Zyl shouldn’t have been hunting in the first place,” they wrote. “We have to ask ourselves if the ‘thrill of the hunt’ is really worth risking your own life – while deliberately taking others.”