A hundred years ago, there were close to 200,000 lions roaming free in Africa. According to recent surveys, the population of wild lions is now between 30,000 and 20,000. The population of African lions has rapidly dropped, and around a third of them have disappeared. Across much of Africa, lion populations have been wiped out. By 2050, African lions may be extinct in the wild and all lions living right now are considered endangered (“Brilliant Maps”). Big-game hunting is the shooting of large game animals for meat (such as horns, furs, tusks, bones, body fat/oil, or special organs). People also hunt for trophies or recreation sporting. The term is frequently associated with the hunting of Africa's "Big Five" (lion, African elephant, African leopard, Cape buffalo, and rhinoceros), as well as tigers and rhinoceroses in India. 

Supporters say the benefits of Big game hunting are: It increases the tolerance for people who live near dangerous animals and helps local communities. Prohibiting Big game hunting will not help bring back vulnerable species. By hunting, you can control the population of wild animals, and hunting is also good for the environment since it helps protect certain plant species. For instance, a higher deer population can impact the reproduction, growth, and survival of different plants. Opponents say Big game hunting is an immoral, brutal, and meaningless hobby. Big game hunting does not benefit local populations or conservation efforts, and it has contributed to the extinction of species such as African lions due to poor regulation. The government should ban the importing of large game trophies. Lions were once widely distributed across most of Africa, Asia, and parts of Europe. Asia is now amounting to only 20% of its range. 

After researching both sides of the issue, I think big game hunting is a horrible and disgusting sport that should be banned. I believe Big game hunting should not be allowed anywhere and banning it will have a lot of benefits. It will help local communities instead of not helping them and It will help endangered species. Hunting can hurt the overall population of a species, and it causes animals to suffer. In the article 'Pros and Cons of Hunting' It states, "Deer can cause a lot of damage in a short period. They are opportunist animals that can safely eat more than 700 different plant species; hunting is a way to maintain control of the local wildlife population." In my opinion, Hunting does help protect certain plant species, but there are other better ways to do that. Hunting helps plant species but also reduces animal populations. Several animal species have been hunted to endangered levels because some part of the creature was valuable. Some species have been driven to extinction because of hunting. Why should these animals even be killed? Hunting heavily contributes to animal extinction, and banning it will have a lot of benefits.