The CEO of the Thaba Tholo Game Reserve, Rubin Els, says the buffalo which sold for R168 million on Friday is a brand name that will be able to generate hype and attention from all over for the next 10 to 15 years.
Els says the bull sold for that much because of its special features such as horn size, one of the three largest in South Africa, as well as his high safari club international score.
The buffalo bull, Inala, was the main attraction at the eighth Thaba Tholo Auction.
Els says huge offers to obtain Inala have been coming in for years since he was spotted as an exceptional young bull while he was part of a free roaming herd in 2011.
“We managed to capture very good photographs of him. Obviously, our clients over the years saw the photographs and he got quite a bit of exposure to the industry as such. The name Inala and the brand were built over many, many years. And so, when we decided earlier this year that we would actually sell him, there was an active marketing campaign to say to the people out there that Inala would be on auction this year.”
Els adds that the money that came in for the bull will go towards the conservation enterprise of the 37 000 hectare game farm, which breeds other rare species, such as Steenbuck, Gemsbuck, Duiker, Bushbuck, and Wildebeest, among others.
“This money will ensure that the other buffalo and some other very valuable species on this property are being kept and will ensure sustainability for other animals as well. We also have other projects, releasing animals back into Africa again where some animals, like the black rhino, are extinct. This money isn’t just going into rich people’s pockets, enriching them further.”
Moeketsi Mogotsi/Courant News
