social and psychological aspects of communal hunting (pieli) among residents of tamale metropolis in the northern region of ghana

The practice of communal hunting (also referred to as “mob” hunting) has been the pastime of the people of the Northern Region of Ghana for as long as many may remember. It has recently come to the fore for all the wrong reasons primarily due to its perceived environmental impacts. While the generally held notion is that this form of hunting is essentially for the acquisition of meat, little has been done to establish other factors that continue to entice people to engage in this activity. Through a combination of participant observation and administration of structured interviews to hunters in the Tamale Metropolis, this paper brings out the social characteristics of participants, as well as the motivations for engaging in this activity. It is suggested that the practice should be modified to include the strict observance of hunting rules, issuance of licenses, and designation of areas for hunting. This could be the genesis of controlled recreational hunting in the region.