Threatened & Protected Species (TOPS)

How does DEAT national legislation work?

• National Environmental Management Act (NEMA)
  • National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (NEMBA)
    • Regulations on threatened or protected species (TOPS)
    • Regulations on alien and invasive species (AIS)
    • Regulations on bioprospecting (access and benefit sharing ABS)
  • National Environmental Management: Protected Areas Act (NEMPA)
• Tools provided for in legislation:
  • Norms and Standards (elephant populations, hunting)
  • Biodiversity Management Plans for Species and Ecosystems
  • Bioregional Plans for Bioregions

Application of TOPS Regulations:

These regulations are only applicable to the TOPS listed species listed as:

• Critically endangered species (only indigenous)
• Endangered species (only indigenous)
• Vulnerable species (only indigenous)
• Protected species (currently only indigenous species listed but may include alien species).

Date of entry into force of the regulations have been postponed from 1 June 2007 to 1 February 2008

Restricted Activities

A person may not carry out a restricted activity involving a specimen of TOPS without a permit.

Game farmers will register with Parks Board and will then issue the hunter of a TOPS animal, a permit to hunt a species listed under TOPS. (As for animals not listed under TOPS, the status quo remains, where the hunter has to purchase a hunting licence or protected animal permit as he did in the past.)

Which activities are restricted?

• hunting, catching, capturing or killing by any means / method / device, searching for, pursuing, driving, laying in wait, luring, alluring, discharging a missile or injuring with intent to hunt, catch, capture or kill;
• gathering, collecting or plucking;
• picking parts of, or cutting, chopping off, uprooting, damaging or destroying;
• importing into the Republic, including introducing from the sea;
• exporting from the Republic, including re-exporting from the Republic;
• having in possession or exercising physical control over;
• growing, breeding or in any other way propagating, or causing to multiply;
• conveying, moving or otherwise translocation species;
• selling or otherwise trading in, buying, receiving, giving, donating or accepting as a gift, or in any way acquiring or disposing of a listed threatened or protected species (TOPS)

Damage Causing Animals (DCA)
May be hunted (but not by foreign client) by means of:

• Poison;
• Traps, except gin traps;
• Dogs, only to track or flush a wounded DCA;
• Darting for translocation of DCA;
• Luring with bait, sound or smell;
• Motorised vehicle;
• Flood / spot light.

Purpose of TOPS Regulations:

• Regulate the permit system set out in Chapter 7 of the Biodiversity Act;
• Registration of captive breeding operations, commercial exhibition facilities, game farms, nurseries, scientific institutions, sanctuaries and rehabilitation facilities and wildlife traders;
• Regulate hunting;
• Prohibit specific activities;
• Protection of wild populations, in particular cycads; and
• Provide for a Scientific Authority

Prohibited Activities No permits may be issued for:

• Translocation of TOPS species to protected areas from outside natural distribution area;
• Translocation to extensive wildlife system where possibility of transmitting disease or hybridization;
• Listed large predators & rhino
  • Captive bred put and take;
  • Hunting in controlled environment;
  • Hunting adjacent to holding facilities for listed large predators;
  • Hunting by using gin traps
• Poison;
• Snares;
• Automatic weapons, .22 rim fire or smaller caliber, air guns;
• Hunting animals under the influence of tranquilisers;
• Hunting animals trapped against a fence;
• Hunting listed large predators, rhino, elephant and crocodile with bow and arrow;
• No traps, except for:
  • Hunting/catching marine species;
  • Collecting invertebrates for scientific purposes;
  • Trapping terrestrial vertebrates for scientific, veterinary or management purposes;
• No dogs, except for:
  • Tracking a wounded animal;
  • Flushing, pointing and retrieving;
• No darting, except for:
  • Management purposes, disease control procedure or scientific experiment;
  • Veterinary treatment;
  • Translocation;
• No luring (bait, smell, sound or any other) except for:
  • Lion, leopard or hyena – dead bait;
  • Marine or aquatic species – dead bait;
  • Invertebrates for scientific purposes – dead bait;
• No flood/spot lights, except for:
  • Culling;
  • Hunting leopard or hyena;
• No motorized vehicles, except for:
  • When darting is required;
  • Tracking when hunting over long ranges;
  • Culling;
  • Allowing a disable person to hunt;
• No aircraft, except for:
  • Tracking when hunting over long ranges;
  • Culling.