Hunter Faces Backlash After Killing Rare Black Giraffe And Posing With Its Carcass

An American hunter has come in for criticism after posing with a rare black giraffe that she killed.

Tessa Thompson Talley, a known trophy hunter, killed the giraffe in South Africa and, as is common with big game hunters, posed with the carcass of the giraffe for a photograph.

She then posted the image to Facebook with the caption: "Prayers for my once in a lifetime Dream hunt came true today!

"Spotted this rare black giraffe bull and stalked him for quite awhile. I knew it was the one. He was over 18 years old, 4,000 lbs and was blessed to be able to get 2,000 lbs of meat from him."

The photograph was picked up on by a local news website who in turn shared it on its Twitter page.

The internet has reacted to the killing in a huge way, with users asking for karma against Talley.

"Tessa Thompson Talley likes to shoot giraffes and other beautiful animals. Let's let Tessa know what we think about people who shoot giraffes for fun," wrote one user.

"Disgusted. People like Tessa Thompson Talley need to go. This is unacceptable. SPREAD THIS! #PETA #GunReformNow #socialjustice #stophunting #huntingforsport" wrote another.

South Africa is a huge destination for trophy hunters, who take advantage of lax hunting laws to shoot big game such as giraffes, lions and elephants.

African countries such as Kenya and Botswana have banned the practice, as have other nations like Brazil and India, while several Western states, including the Netherlands and Australia, have banned trophy carcasses from being imported into their jurisdictions.

It is thought that almost two million animals have been killed and imported across borders in the last ten years, with America providing the largest number of trophy hunters, roughly half of all worldwide.