A permit to hunt a rare black rhino in Namibia raised $350,000 at an auction in the United States.
A hunting club in Dallas, Texas, conducted the auction, which will help to fund conservation efforts in the African state where the hunt will take place.
The auction is controversial because black rhinos are a disappearing species with a number of subspecies extinct or extremely endangered.
Organizers of the auction, and some conservationists, say limited hunting that raises funds to protect remaining members of the species offers a way to preserve them.
Black rhinos are gravely endangered by poaching across southern Africa particularly due to demand for their horns in Asia, where they are believed to have medicinal value.
Namibia has a population of some 1,800 remaining black rhinos.
A Namibian government quota allows the killing of five black rhinos per year.
A hunting club in Dallas, Texas, conducted the auction, which will help to fund conservation efforts in the African state where the hunt will take place.
The auction is controversial because black rhinos are a disappearing species with a number of subspecies extinct or extremely endangered.
Organizers of the auction, and some conservationists, say limited hunting that raises funds to protect remaining members of the species offers a way to preserve them.
Black rhinos are gravely endangered by poaching across southern Africa particularly due to demand for their horns in Asia, where they are believed to have medicinal value.
Namibia has a population of some 1,800 remaining black rhinos.
A Namibian government quota allows the killing of five black rhinos per year.