Hello Uintaelkhunter.....I can feel your excitement and am happy for you! I'm hoping you have prepared for the handling of your elephant back to the USA and I would be remiss if I did not remind you of the current situation with bringing the elephant back. As of my last update with the Chief Permit Officer of USFWL and our SSI USFWL attorneys, the elephant will require an Import Permit but none are guaranteed to be issued...see the response directly to us below.
On Thu, Jun 16, 2016 at 12:41 PM, Vannorman, Tim wrote:
Afternoon, Rosella.
Hope all is well with you as well.
I know that the application form has been updated, but will need to consult with our web person to see when it will be posted. The only difference between the current form and the update one is that the current form states that no import permit is needed for Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana (this language has been removed from the revised form) and language on the limit of two trophy imports per year was added to the revised form.
As for required information, as you are aware, we need to make a finding that the import would enhance the survival of the species in the wild. While we typically rely on the exporting country to provide sufficient information for us to make a positive finding, we would welcome any information the applicant can provide directly to us. We are not, however, expecting the applicant to possess all of the information we would need to make a positive finding - typically this is more than any individual hunter may be able to obtain. IF they have some information, we would love to see it.
The revised regulations does not change the current situation in Zimbabwe, other than a permit would be required. We still have to make a positive enhancement finding and to date have not been able to do that. Again, if the hunter has additional information that could assist us in making the finding, we would welcome it.
Tim
Timothy J. Van Norman, Chief
Branch of Permits
Division of Management Authority
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
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