Wildlife Photography in Lebanon
This blog is by far the most one I thought off, running it through my head several times before I was able to write down my thought. I have done wildlife photography for many years, been to many areas, and I have seen and experienced a lot, met many people, some became close friends.
Lebanon is a country with amazing nature, magnificent biodiversity, and many natural habitats where sea, mountains, and all in between are within reach in a 3-hour driving maximum. Not only that, but when it comes to birds, Lebanon is one of the most important routes for bird migration. Hundreds of thousands of birds pass by every year, but unfortunately, many get killed by illegal hunters using all the prohibited techniques, including military-grade weapons.
From the total population of around 5 million, 600,000 of them are hunters. Those hunters kill 2,500,000 every year. Yes, you read right, two and a half million birds are killed in Lebanon every year. This mind-blowing number doesn’t account for reptiles and mammals.
Lebanon survived the civil war but never ceases to achieve its full potential, always moving from crisis to another. Although many parties have laid down their arms, the fight still ongoing with a huge crack between religious groups. Mutual respect is not there, and zero trust, everyone pushes the envelope to their end. In the people's minds, there will always be us and everyone else.
Lebanon is one of the most dangerous places on planet earth. Car theft, kidnapping, occasional manslaughter, and assault can happen everywhere and anytime, not only due to the absence of law enforcement but also due to the fact that hunting is a huge part of the culture and this leads to many people carrying guns.
In Lebanon, carrying a camera to photograph nature will put you in harm's way more than carrying a gun openly or even driving a car without official plates.
Sadly, like everything in the third world country, problems are bigger and much more rooted than any microscopic unfunded half-cocked solution.
Sources:
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