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Wild Daze, A Documentary About the Illegal Wildlife Trade and Crime

by Jennie Richards · Published September 29, 2021 · Updated September 29, 2021

“Wildlife trade is not rooted in poverty at all, in fact poverty has nothing to do with this issue, it is the rich and powerful that are destroying and killing the animals in Africa.”
“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.”

The new documentary Wild Daze is a shocking and eye-opening examination into the real threats to Africa’s vanishing wildlife, by humans. Set in Sub-Saharan Africa, this compelling documentary reveals the unvarnished truth about how man’s excessive greed, corruption, bribery, self-interest, and illegal crime and extortion—is at the heart of the massive crisis that is annihilating Africa’s wildlife today. Done by criminal groups represented by terrorist organizations, rebel militias, organized crime networks and cartels, and state military and police units taking advantage of natural resources for their own profits.

The film examines the multiple threats to Africa’s wildlife including crime and corruption, sport and Safari hunting, wildlife conflict, and the bushmeat trade—and how each of these is responsible for causing these species to plummet in population to record low numbers. We see how human activity could literally cause the extinction of Africa’s wildlife species, and has already caused the destruction of 83 percent of all wild mammals and 50 percent of all plant life, in the past 40 years.

Featuring conservation experts ranging from Dr. Jane Goodall to wildlife trophy hunters, Wild Daze explores the relationship between international crime cartels, child soldiers, colluding and corrupt government officials, the illegal wildlife trade, and the Chinese and Asian marketplaces.

Wildlife photographers and seasoned cinematographers showcase Africa today aided by the powerful narration from Emmy-winning actor Keith David.

“Africa is not poor. It is being looted by commercial transactions through multi-national companies, criminal activities, and corruption. The UN estimates Africa loses $50 billion USD annually to illicit financial powers. In the last 50 years, illicit money outflows have cost Africa $1 trillion in USD.” (Source: Wild Daze)

Statistic: Three decades ago, we had 24,000 rhinos. Now, we have 1,041. Most of the rhinos that are dying now, are killed in protected areas.

Film Length: 1 Hour, 40 Minutes

Film Premier: 2020

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Wild Daze, A Documentary About the Illegal Wildlife Trade and Crime — Sunset at waterhole, Savuti Camp, Linyanti Reserve, Botswana

Quotes from the Film

“The real cause of wildlife crime is corruption. Corruption. Corruption. It is greed by men.”

“This is non-African problem. This affects you.”

“You have child soldiers that are just brainwashed to shoot anything in their path.”

“We need to work with these people to see them as an asset, there’s still time.”

“The fate of the tropical rainforest is inextricably tied to these meta-fauna, by saving orangutans and elephants—we are saving ourselves. But humans are very bad at saving for the long-term, we always want everything now.”

“There is a massive crisis going on with wildlife around the world, it includes a ton of smaller species that are under massive threat.”

“I cannot think of any other species that goes around trashing its own home, only humans.”

“We are part of the animal kingdom—not somehow separated from it. We are only different. How come the most intellectual of all species is wiping out the other life forms, destroying entire eco-systems, because this in the end will lead to our own destruction.”

“The sale of illegal ivory is actually being used to buy the weapons in Africa. All the crime in Africa is funded by the sale of ivory.”

“There is a link between wildlife trafficking and violence—extortion, kidnapping, slave labor, child slavery, it is all linked. In the Congo, children are kidnapped and abducted, raped, kept as sexual slaves, forced to do hard labor, all done by the money that comes from trading ivory.”

“Our mobile phones and laptops are made from resources and mining that comes from the DRC or Congo. The workers there are eating the bush meat, and killing animals, and mining these metals by slave labor. The local people don’t understand the importance of animals. There is a disconnect.”

“12 elephants were killed in the exact same spot last year, for 22 ivory tusks. This happened in a protected area with rangers, done by poachers. Something is extremely wrong in this country.”

“It is the responsibility of the Chinese, they are buying these products.”

“There are two fronts – The African front, and the Chinese front.”

“The single most important factor is the legal ivory market in China – China is the reason why you have an illegal trade in Africa to feed the legal Chinese trade in trinkets. The solution is you have to outlaw the legal ivory market in China and Asia. The legal market in China is providing cover for the illegal trade in China and Asia.”

“These men in China and Asia think they can get their Dick hard by snorting illegal and illicit rhino horn. That’s what Viagra is for! You don’t need to kill a rhino to get your F*ing Dick hard! These men have a sick problem.”

“In 2007, a CITES one-off Ivory sale created an insatiable Asian demand which drove this global poaching epidemic.”

“We have lost 95% of the elephants in Africa. We are running out of time. There is no margin of error now.”

CRIME & CORRUPTION

“The real wildlife killers are crooks, criminals, and corrupt African officials who enable large and organized crime cartels to fill supply chains from African forests to Asian consumers.”

“The real corruption is powerful people, many times government officials who are the ones at the heart of organized crime. They are activating hundreds of poachers across many countries.”

“The illegal wildlife trade is not rooted in poverty at all, in fact poverty has nothing to do with this issue, it is actually the rich and powerful that are the problem and destroying the animals.”

“These are people that have made reputations, and made a strong impact in the world, and they have become powerful all through extreme violence—killing entire families, killing people, bribing officials, putting people in office who can impact policies that they will benefit these powerful criminal men. They make people disappear if they don’t help them.”

“Wherever I went as a journalist all over the world, I found that the source of the problems, was always predicated on crime and corruption.”

“The U.S. government could have much more impact if we go after the networks that facilitate organized crime, instead of trying to fight specific types of organized crime. There are far fewer people that know how to launder illicit cash, than there are poachers sneaking into Africa.”

“If we could stop the money, make it harder for them to move money through the global financial system, we will have more impact shutting this down – including human trafficking, tax evasion, departure of revenues from corrupt countries.”

“This is an international security issue—the people who are moving elephant tusks, rhino horn, and illegal animal parts—are exactly the same people who are moving young women, and drugs into consumer markets. It’s the same people who have the capacity to move illegal products through the global transit system. And the people who have the capacity to launder the money.”

“They killed an elephant who suffered for days, still alive so the Chinese or Asian person can have a trinket—she is alive as her tusks are carved out of her body, her baby looking on. Then they leave her for dead—it can take days for her to die, suffering painfully. Often poachers shoot the legs to get the elephant to stop running and then take a machete to her tusks—all driven by the Asian market and extreme greed and profit.”

“Experts estimate 23% of all seized elephant ivory is smuggled through the Mombasa Port in Kenya.”

“Some of these criminal groups are designated terrorist organizations, some are rebel militias, some are organized crime networks, and some are state military and police units that are taking advantage of natural resources for their own profits.”

“One of the biggest and least discussed problem in the world today– is the illicit extraction of resources from developing countries is 10 times what they get in foreign aid.”

“More than 100 million small arms and weapons circulate across Africa.”

“The current rate of killing elephants is worse than at any other time in history, we could lose this land animal completely.”

HUMAN WILDLIFE CONFLICT

“Orphan rhinos and elephants are getting a second chance that have gone through severe trauma. There is a high mortality rate with these orphans, they have witnessed their mother being killed. The orphans have these emotional disorders like PTSD, if we don’t act fast enough, they lose their will to live.”

“Poaching is the main reason for baby elephants ending up as orphans.”

“Elephants distribute more seeds of many plant species further than any other source. Many animals work to distribute seeds across our forests and rainforests to help the forest ecosystem. It’s all inter-dependent. Elephants are the mega gardeners of the forest.”

“The single biggest threat to wildlife in the long run is the growing human population. If our current 7 billion people on the planet grows to 11 billion by the end of the century, will there even be room for wildlife anymore?”

“I feel very pessimistic as a wildlife biologist. The attitudes of the people who live with the elephants is a huge part of the problem. People feel elephants who raid crops, are problem elephants.”

“Poisoning elephants with poisoned spears is a new technique, it was never before used. And now African men are using pesticides too, they get them from the veterinary shop. It is more lethal that poisoning.”

RAISING LIVESTOCK IS KILLING LIONS

“It’s all about the cattle – there’s a lot more cattle than there ever was. There are a lot more people. Cattle are invading the wildlife space. Then the human goes after the wildlife.”

“I never thought in the 50 years I lived in Africa, that I would see the animal populations plummet and be seen in such a low light. If there’s crime, there should be punishment. Africa’s lions are poisoned from a poison that comes from the U.S. All kinds of animals then are killed who are eating the dead lion.”

“The owners of livestock and cattle are killing Africa’s wildlife – lions, leopards, etc.”

LEGAL & ILLEGAL HUNTING

“You need to weigh your ethics and morals in the field. Hunters are not conservationists – hunting is not conservation. These areas are just being depleted of life by hunters. I feel it is not right to take these animals’ lives.”

“These hunters feel entitled. The hunting clubs want you to shoot as many animals as you can, to become part of the ‘inner circle’ then you get a ring.”

“The monies spent by hunters, for hunting, does NOT go back into conservation efforts.”

“It’s not right that an elephant ends up as someone’s mantel piece—they are far too majestic for that and deserve their life as much as any human.”

“You—a trophy hunter tour guide–is a middle man for murder. Monies do not go to conservation, this is a myth, it goes to the government, to corrupt officials.”

“Very little of the money that comes from hunting – goes to the community, almost none benefits the community, and it does not conserve the animal species. Most of the money goes directly to the individual professional hunter guide, they make about $75,000 per private hunt.”

“It’s obvious there should be more photo-tourism, and they should greatly raise the fee to kill an animal to discourage sport hunting entirely. There aren’t that many animals left anymore.”

“Hunters have all kinds of justifications for their killing animals. And now there is little wildlife left. There is something missing in hunter’s brains and something completely wrong with their thinking. They are not helping conservation, just the opposite, they are destroying African wildlife and African animal species and the natural ecosystem.”

“The forest and land should be left in peace. God created it for us, not to destroy it. The scientific evidence does not support the outside “hunters conservation theory”—it is just the opposite, the scientific evidence completely refutes hunters’ theory of conservation. Their theory is completely wrong and false. It’s a false notion.”

BUSH MEAT TRADE

“The people who are doing the killing are making a killing.”

“Bush meat represents a potential risk to humans with disease. It often sells for even a higher cost than domestic animals.”

“It is eliminating the vast number of species. There will be nothing in the future, but the forest. The species will be wiped out.”

“The animals that play a keystone role in the forest need our protection, because we humans need to have healthy forests.”

“Illegal body parts of chimps and guerillas are being sold to the wealthy people. A poacher can kill a family of apes, then he would have a baby chimp who clings to her mother’s body. Then the poacher will take the baby chimp to the ‘pet trade’ who is mortified to leave her mother. But the criminal men just wanted bribes and money for the baby chimp. I took the baby chimp, and he adopted me, because he felt safe as a baby.”

“I can get a good night’s sleep if I know that we got just one more trafficker behind bars, one more meat poacher, one more cattle baron – these cowboys are killing and destroying everything in their path, for their domestic cattle.”