Where to hunt Cookson's Wildebeest
Cookson’s Wildebeest is found in just one region of the planet, the Luangwa Valley in Zambia. It is a subspecies of the Blue, or Common, Wildebeest, the animal you’ve all seen on TV and in illustrated magazines, doing the breathtaking annual migration in uncountable herds. Cookson’s Wildebeest is said to be bigger and lighter colored than other subspecies of Gnu. Hunting opportunities for this subspecies exist only in Zambia.
Price distribution
The trophy fees for a Cookson’s Wildebeest run in the neighborhood of $3,000-$3,500. The daily rates for a safari in the Luangwa Valley are not low either, and a minimum 7-day safari will cost about $14,000. Hunting Cookson’s Wildebeest in Zambia is usually done as a side-runner to Lion, Leopard, Buffalo or Hippo hunting, for which the area is renowned.
Learn more from our blog story
When you’re only beginning to consider your first African hunting adventure, it’s easy to get lost in all those “package deals”, “trophy fees” and “daily rates” in the hunt descriptions. How much to budget for travel, tips, taxidermy, and whatnot, is also an equation with many unknowns. While there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, this blog post covers all items of a safari budget and gives average spending figures for each, to help you plan your trip.
17 Aug 2017 All said and done: What’s the bottom line for an average South African hunt?When to hunt Cookson's Wildebeest?
Hunting season in Zambia begins in late June or early July, and runs to the late October. Early in the season the grass is usually too high for successful plains game hunts, and most outfitters advise to schedule the safari for Cookson’s Wildebeest for the end of the season, from mid-August to October.
Hunting methods
Luangwa valley is a unique area, with denser vegetation and fewer open spaces than in an average savannah Wildebeest habitat country. Spot-and-stalk hunting is preferred by most hunters. Hunting Cookson’s Wildebeest in the Luangwa Valley is often done opportunistically - if the hunter and the PH notice a good animal when laying bait for Leopard or Lion, or looking for Buffalo and Hippo, they may make a temporary switch of objectives and stalk the animals. The process of the stalk is familiar to most hunters, but it could be a problem keeping track of the biggest bull in a big herd, as the animals move about. Wildebeest’s hump on the shoulder makes unaccustomed hunters miss high. The antelope is hard to bring down, too; most PHs advise a rifle of the 7 mm - .300 Magnum class for it.
Why hunt Cookson's Wildebeest?
Luangwa Valley is sometimes called “Africa’s best kept secret”. With almost no human population, and an abundant supply of water, the valley features outstanding natural diversity and animal numbers. Trophy hunting helps finance the conservation of this exceptional area. The reason for this is that the trophy fee for a Cookson’s Wildebeest greatly exceeds the value the animal has in terms of meat (which is said to be tough and dry when fresh but a delicacy when converted to biltong) and the skin, a source for high-quality leather. And the short, curved horns of your trophy will become a material reminder of the moment when the wonders of the area come alive before your eyes!
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