Marketing and Management of Exotics Eugene R. Fuchs South Fork Ranch Hunt, Texas Exotic big game ranching had its start by the mid1940s, and interest has steadily increased both in the stocking and hunting of exotics. An exotic game animal enterprise for profit requires the sale of animals to generate income. "Trophy-class" heads bring the highest gross fee from hunters. Surplus breeding stock also may be sold, but usually for less money. The opportunity to market surplus exotics will depend upon the skill of the operator in selling his product. The success of marketing these animals will be based on how effective the overall management program has been in producing a high quality and quantity of animals. A management plan should be initiated prior to the first release of any exotic species. Controlling numbers of all animals utilizing a given rangeland is of utmost importance in a successful management program.
Introduction Exotic big game species were introduced to Texas ranches as early as 1930. By the mid-1940s, axis, fallow, sika, sambar and barasingha deer, mouflon sheep and blackbuck antelope had been stocked on a handful of ranches, primarily in the Edwards Plateau. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has conducted state-wide exotic censuses since 1963. These censuses have shown a rapid increase in numbers of exotics on Texas rangelands. Presently, the most common exotic species are axis deer, sika deer, fallow deer, mouflon-barbados sheep, aoudad sheep, blackbuck antelope and nilgai antelope. These seven species make up about 90 percent of the total population. Exotic big game animals are distributed throughout most of Texas; however, the majority are found in the Edwards Plateau and South Texas Plains. The original introduction of exotic big game species by the pioneers in this field were most likely initiated for the novelty of having "something different." As populations increased on these few ranches, surplus animals were given or sold to other ranches. Schreiner (1968) stated that one of the first known commercial hunting operations for exotic big game began in 1951 on Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker's ranch, presently the Patio Ranch, located in Kerr County. Today, there are numerous ranches and hunting businesses that offer exotic big game hunting for a fee. Also, the selling of surplus exotic "stockers" to both new and existing exotic ranches is a large, year-round business for game breeders, game "traders" and some ranchers. Whether selling exotics as
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trophies or stockers, the marketing of these animals can present a challenge that must be dealt with continually because of the competition created by the demand for good quality exotics.
Marketing Exotics Most exotic game ranch owners have stocked their property expecting an economic return on their investment as soon as possible. Assume that a ranch has been stocked with several exotic species and the production of each species has met the expectations as far as quality and quantity of animals. Now the rancher is faced with harvesting and/or selling surplus animals in order that the proper stocking rate for this given property is maintained and the rancher does not become overrun with exotics. Marketing these surplus animals annually can be accomplished by several methods. Commercial sport hunting for trophy males enables the rancher to obtain the highest gross fees per animal. If the exotic game rancher desires to conduct the hunting operation on his own, he will need to advertise for hunters. Advertisements should be placed in major outdoor magazines that reach the hands of readers who can afford to pay $1,000 for either an axis deer or a blackbuck antelope trophy. Personal contact with hunters at major big game hunters' conventions is an excellent means for booking persons who will pay premium prices for record class trophies. Booth spaces are available for a fee to commercial hunting operators at these conventions. An attractive display of photographs and trophies that are representative of the product for sale will create hunter interest, and the opportunity to book hunters does exist. I do not recommend attending such shows as boat and sports shows or camper shows in hopes of booking exotic hunters. Of utmost importance when advertising for exotic big game hunters is honesty in representing the product to be sold for hunting. The majority of exotic big game hunting is conducted on a "guaranteed basis." That is, the hunter pays for what he harvests in the form of a trophy fee, and many operators also charge a daily guide fee. Additional fees associated with the hunt may include fees for lodging and meals if available on the ranch, a transportation fee for airport pickup, a fee for capping and skinning the trophy and a fee for processing the meat or arranging for processing. The hunter should know in advance of the hunt all the fees
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that will be involved for a successful hunt. Hidden fees are bad advertising! Many operators have a "sliding scale" for trophy fees. That is, the fee is based on certain measurements of the trophy with average heads costing less than outstanding ones. Most hunters want to take the best head of a species on a ranch, but many hunters are not happy when they have to shoot an animal before they know what the cost will be. I feel that the "sliding scale" for trophy fees often turns away hunters. Another method of acquiring hunters to harvest surplus mature males is to lease hunting rights, for a set number of animals annually, to large companies, hunting clubs or booking agents. The gross fees per animal from this type of operation usually will be less than if you conducted the hunting, but the net fee may be more if the leaser accepts the labor cost of conducting the hunt. Primary labor cost for conducting a hunt, once a ranch has exotic populations that will sustain a certain amount of hunting, will be the hiring of experienced guides to ensure that mature animals are taken. This may include furnishing the guide(s) with a vehicle, fuel, lodging and meals. Booking agents for exotic hunting are numerous and are always looking for new ranches for their ever increasing hunting clientele. These booking agents will charge a hunting fee to their clients that is a percentage (usually 25 to 50 percent) above the fee that you charge for the hunting rights. Some booking agents furnish everything required for the hunt, except the animals and the property to hunt on, while others only furnish the hunters. Occasionally, hunters are booked that you, yourself, would not book. Believe me, there are "hunters" you do not want on your property. The second facet of marketing surplus exotic big game animals deals with the selling of surplus females and immature males as stockers. There are many "exotic game dealers" or "traders" who capture these surplus animals and sell them to other ranchers or game dealers. If you plan to undertake the frustrating task of live-capturing your surplus exotic animals yourself, additional investments in equipment and facilities will be necessary. Equipment will include such items as a drop net, wing nets, a tranquilizing gun and a game-hauling trailer. Facilities will include a building that is dark and well ventilated for holding animals, in order to minimize injury to the animals prior to delivery or while trying to fill an order. Remember, seldom will these exotics handle like domestic livestock. When you undertake the challenge of live-capturing your surplus exotics, problems are inevitable. Animal mortality is always a factor that must be dealt with when live-capturing wild animals, and this can affect the value of marketing certain species that are more susceptible to stress than others.
If a game dealer does not handle the selling of your surplus stockers, then you must also advertise the availability of these animals. Live animals available for stocking can be listed in your hunting advertisements and
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with the Exotic Wildlife Association, Kerrville, Texas, if you are a member. The only guarantee that I feel should be made when selling live exotics for stocking is that the animals are healthy when delivered. The purchaser should assume all the risks once the animals are released. In marketing animals for hunting and stocking, the cost of advertising can be quite an investment. However, if a well planned management program has produced top quality animals in sufficient numbers, the cost of advertising will be reduced by satisfied clientele. The cheapest advertisement is satisfied clientele who have gained a rewarding experience in dealing with you, the producer of the exotics.
Management of Exotics Once you have decided to become an exotic big game rancher, there will be many steps necessary to ensure a successful operation. As any businessman does, you should investigate, plan and talk to others who have experience before jumping head first into exotic ranching. Even if you already own the land, the capital investment will be high in constructing a deer-proof fence of 7.5 feet in height and in stocking the property with the exotics of your choosing. If your ranch already has a deer-proof fence, it was probably constructed for a white-tailed deer management program. If this is the case, I personally would continue managing for quality whitetails and think twice about inhibiting the whitetail population with exotic competitors. I quote a report to the Bureau of Land Management (Craighead and Dasmann, 1966) on exotic big game on public lands that definitely applies to ranchers interested in producing top quality native big game species:
"(a) Exotic species can create further land-use conflicts in areas already fully stocked by domestic ungulates and native wild game. (b) Exotic big game may displace native species from habitats where these natives still exist.
(c) Exotic species can disrupt the balance within natural communities and thus destroy those areas that we hope to maintain in a natural state. (d) We should concentrate on preserving an American biota in America and not accelerate a worldwide trend toward biotic uniformity. (e) The money spent for exotic introductions would do more good if used in improving habitat and preserving environments for native species. (f) Exotic ungulates can be difficult or impossible to control where circumstances favor their rapid spread and increase."
Before you stock the first exotic animal on your ranch, you definitely should initiate a management program that will not be detrimental to existing native
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wildlife and domestic livestock programs. This means understanding the basic life-sustaining requirements of the exotic species along with the biological makeup of the species. You should know the food habits, home-range size, shelter requirement, reproductive potential, rate of maturity, animal unit equivalent, aggressive behavior patterns and breeding seasons. Federal restrictions make it impossible to import foreign species directly to private ranches from their native ranges. Brood stock must be obtained from existing game ranches or from surplus zoo stock. Again, before releasing the first exotic, you must compensate for these additional animal units by reducing the domestic livestock from one of the pastures to permit desirable forage plants to recover and increase. Presently, most ranches are fully stocked with both native game and some form of domestic livestock, and space and forage must be made available to the new animals to be released on the ranch so they will quickly and successfully adapt to their new surroundings. Grazing pressure (competition) between exotics and native white-tailed deer must be dealt with at all times in order to be successful with both forms of wildlife. Food habit studies have determined that the principal exotic species are primary competitors with white-tailed deer for their preferred forage. The feeding flexibility of exotic species on native game ranches enables the exotics to flourish, while white-tailed deer populations are depleted as range conditions deteriorate. An important item in a management plan is scheduled checking and maintenance of the deer-proof fences. If your property is subject to flash flooding during heavy rains and you have water gaps, you must repair them immediately in order to reduce animal losses to neighboring properties. You should not wait several days for the roads to dry out before repairing water gaps. Another item in the management plan will deal with supplemental feeding. It is not economical to maintain an exotic herd through supplemental feeding. However, for some of the exotic species that are susceptible to severe winter conditions, it is important to have a supplemental feeding program that will sustain the animals through stressful periods and consequently minimize death losses. If animals are restricted to breeding pens or small pastures it will be necessary to have a scheduled feeding program. Proper management of larger pastures dictates that little supplemental feeding will be needed. One advantage to supplemental feeding is that animals that readily eat this feed can be somewhat successfully treated for internal parasites by feeding medicated feeds. Internal parasites and diseases can definitely be detrimental to animals under crowded conditions, as in breeding pens. Animals that are in breeding pens should have a scheduled herd health treatment program.
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Many exotic ranchers are attempting to raise "super exotics," such as the larger antelope species from Africa. These animals are usually acquired solely for the purpose of raising brood stock to sell to other ranchers for stocking. Little is known about the effects the larger exotic species have on the more common exotics, native big game and domestic livestock. The one thing that is known is that the investment is high in purchasing the animals and the survival and/or reproduction rate can be low. So far, most of these animals have been confined to small pastures or breeding pens where care and handling is feasible on a scheduled basis and little is known about their survival in the "wild" in large pastures. A basic fact for wild and domestic ungulates is that a proper sex ratio must be maintained in order to realize the maximum reproductive potential for the species. Also, it is known that as populations increase beyond the carrying capacity of the rangeland and animals are subjected to stress due to inadequate availability of high nutritional forage, the reproduction rate will drop for that species. As the exotic game population increases on your ranch you will eventually reach a point when there are too many mature males in the population. This is the time to begin harvesting the surplus males. A problem that can develop from having too many mature males in a population is that of intense fighting. This creates an animal not acceptable to the paying hunter. Interest in exotics by ranchers and sportsmen is at an all-time high. The rapid decline of hunting opportunity as habitat shrinks and the ranks of hunters swell means that the exotic rancher will have a maximum return on his investment in time and money if a well planned management program is seriously carried out. Raising and marketing exotic game animals is not a "get rich quick" proposition, but with proper management of native game and domestic livestock, an increased source of revenue can be realized from the exotics.
Literature Cited Butts, G.L., W.E. Armstrong and D.E. Harmel. 1977. "The status of exotic artiodactyls in Texas." Kerr Wildlife Management Area. Note No. 77-1. Craighead, F.C., Jr. and R.F. Dasmann, 1966. "Exotic big game on public lands." U.S. Dept. of Int. Bur. of Land Mgmt., Washington, D.C. Schreiner III, C. 1968. "Uses of exotic animals in a commercial hunting program." In Introduction of Exotic Animal: Ecologies and Socioeconomic Considerations. Caesar Kleberg Research Foundation in Wildlife Ecology. Texas A&M University. p. 13.
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