Author: admin

Cape Town – On 1 July 2015, Cecil the Lion was killed by an American trophy hunter in Zimbabwe, resulting in the professional hunter having his licence confiscated and facing criminal charges for poaching.

The incident sparked global uproar regarding canned lion hunting and poaching, with the Blood Lions film and campaign running worldwide with the goal to “bring an end to canned hunting and the exploitative breeding of lions and other predators on farms across South Africa”.

But despite all these global efforts to make the general public, tourists and professional hunters aware of the ramifications of pet cubbing and canned hunting, the futile death of lions in many of Africa’s parks continue at the hands of canned hunters.

Two years after the killing of Cecil the Lion, it has been reported that one of his cubs has been shot dead by a big game trophy hunter in Zimbabwe.

The six-year-old lion named Xanda, who was in his prime, was killed in similar circumstances as his father, just outside the Hwange National Park in north-west Zimbabwe, not far from where Cecil was killed in 2015.

“His death was discovered because Xanda was wearing an electronic collar, fitted by researchers monitoring his movements in the area,” reports the The Telegraph.

According to the UK news site, “when the Zimbabwean professional hunter on the shoot, Richard Cooke from RC Safaris, discovered the dead lion had a collar, he handed it back to the researchers”.

Andrew Loveridge from the Department of Zoology at Oxford University, which has a team supplying and fixing collars to monitor the lions in the Hwange National Park, says he fitted Xanda’s collar last October. “It was monitored almost daily and we were aware that Xanda and his pride were spending a lot of time out of the park in the last six months, but there is not much we can do about that,” he told The Telegraph.

“Richard Cooke is one of the ‘good’ guys. He is ethical and he returned the collar and communicated what had happened. His hunt was legal and Xanda was over 6 years old so it is all within the stipulated regulations,” he adds.

Loveridge says he hoped that there would soon be a 5km exclusion zone around the Hwange National Park so that hunters would no longer accidentally shoot collared lions that wonder outside the boundary of the Park.

“The client may have paid about £40 000 (R674 400 at R16.86/£) for the shoot and for Xanda’s head to be cured and mounted and sent to him wherever he lives,” says The Telegraph.

Remembering Cecil the Lion

Cecil the Lion’s death in 2015 placed the spotlight on trophy hunting in Africa. Although the practice is not a novelty, more and more pressure has been put on the industry’s distorted ethical arguments, in a bid to stop lion trophy hunting for good.

Cecil was killed by US hunting tourist, Walter Palmer, who reportedly has a hunting felony history, faced charges for the illegal hunt.

The 13-year-old big cat was shot at night near his birth place, close to the national park. He didn’t die immediately and was tracked down the following day. His head was cured in Bulawayo in preparation to be dried and mounted when police seized it.

The world united to bring attention to the crime committed and an image of Cecil was even projected onto the Empire State building in protest of the trophy hunt.

According to The Telegraph, more than 70% of funds to safeguard Zimbabwe’s wildlife and catch poachers come from revenue from professional hunters.

Overview of ground made to protect lions in Africa

– Australia and France have placed bans on importing lion trophies.

– The Netherlands has placed a ban on importing trophies from lions and 200 other endangered species.

– The US (the country with the most hunter-tourists) has made significant changes to have stricter import requirements.  Since January 2016, hunters wishing to import lion trophies must prove that the killing was necessary to protect lions living in the wild – which is in general very difficult to do. South African sources show that lion hunts involving hunters from the United States have decreased by 70%.

Great Britain is threatening to ban imports from 2017 if the African countries of origin do not maintain their lion numbers more effectively.

– Over 40 international airlines have banned or restricted the carrying of trophies.

– The South African hunting association PHASA has taken a firm stand against the official lion breeders in the country, the South African Predator Association (SAPA) and has distanced itself from this cruel form of hunting

Europe’s largest hunting fair, Germany’s “Jagd & Hund”, and the Austrian “Hohe Jagd & Fischerei” fair have undertaken to oppose canned hunting products and packages.

– Several African states have committed to calling for Africa’s lions to be promoted to the highest level of protection (CITES Appendix 1) at the upcoming international World Wildlife Conference, to be held in Johannesburg in September 2016. It is still uncertain whether the application will achieve the necessary majority.

Meanwhile, the South African Government plans to permit the annual export of 800 lion skeletons to curb poaching, but conservationists say this clearly supports canned lion hunting.

The recent announcement by the Department of Environmental Affiars (DEA) to set the export quota of lion skeletons for Asia to 800 has important implications for the conservation of wild lions in South Africa. Legalising the trade in lion bones has been enabled by the 17th Conference of Parties (CoP17) of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) failing to transfer all lion populations from Appendix II to Appendix I and thus prohibiting the international commercial trade in lions or any lion parts.

It is estimated that there are less than 20,000 wild lions left throughout Africa with a population decline of more than 40% in the past two decades. The wild lion population is at a similar tipping point as the white rhino and is fast tracking towards extinction. The main cause of lion population decline is habitat loss, with the constant encroachment of human activity into wild areas increasingly bringing humans and wildlife into conflict.

As the export of lion skeletons will be from farmed lions, the impact on the wild lion population may not be immediately obvious. The captive breeding of lions for the purpose of killing them to supply the bone trade is considered by many to be ethically unacceptable and has the potential to harm South Africa’s global image. Recognising the negative perceptions of killing iconic wildlife for scientifically unproven treatments, the Chinese themselves banned the use of tiger parts in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in 1993.

Prior to the ban, tiger body parts had been used in TCM, with tiger bone wine marketed as a potential cure for arthritis and other bone ailments. The consumption of tiger penis was also widely practiced for its purported role in the treatment of erectile dysfunction. With tiger populations also vastly diminished due to habitat loss and hunting (only 30-80 wild tigers remain in China and it is considered functionally extinct), and no legal market for the sale of their body parts, the demand has been drastically reduced.

Although their grandparents may have used tiger parts in the past, many modern Chinese consumers have rejected the use of these traditional medicines. In response to one of China’s pre-eminent public polling companies, an overwhelming 95% of respondents said that they would take action to save wild tigers,  including abstaining from the use of tiger products. Encouragingly, educated modern Chinese men are selectively switching from TCM to Viagra to treat erectile dysfunction, according to a study by an Australian university.

The proposed new trade in lion bones from Africa to Asia is clearly due to the fact that the lion is seen as analogous to the tiger by the powerful traditional medicine industry in China. This is despite there being no documented use of lion body parts in the 2,000 year long history of TCM.

The move by South Africa is clearly intended to create a market for the estimated 6,000-8,000 captively bred lions in the country. There have already been some legal sales of lion bones in much smaller numbers starting in 2008, which has confirmed the acceptability of the product to the Asian market.

The danger here is that a much larger market could be created, if the use of lion bone in TCM is validated. We have seen this before of course with rhino horn. Though rhino horn elixirs were first prescribed in TCM more than 1,800 years ago, by the early 1990s demand was limited due to trade bans and the removal of the product from most medicines. Only around 15 rhinos were poached in South Africa each year from 1990 to 2007.

Then came 2008 and a prominent Vietnamese politician claimed that Rhino horn had cured his cancer, which had gone into remission. Validated by a high level government source, demand surged across the region. The situation has now become critical and we get used to the shocking headlines such as this, where 20-30 rhinos are poached in South Africa in just one weekend.

Does the same fate lie ahead for lions? If the SA government further legitimises this trade and validates lion bones as a valuable medicinal product will we be looking at similar horrific statistics for lion poaching in the future? The signs are already ominous. Worryingly lion poaching has increased since the first lion bones were legally sold.

We are starting to see cases of lions being poached from easy targets in wildlife sanctuaries. The fear among conservationists is that this will begin to spread further into the poaching of the already threatened wild lion populations. The decision by the SA government to trade lion bones, and therefore validate their medicinal use and give them an increased economic value, is surely only going to increase this risk. This is even more frustrating at a time when there is growing evidence that demand for wildlife products can be restricted by better awareness and education programmes in the Asian marketplace.

In addition, legalising lion bone trade will encourage further captive lion breeding and its associated unethical wildlife interactions, such as cub petting, lion walking and volunteering, when the impact of the Blood Lions documentary and campaigns, such as #HandsOffOurWildlife and Wildlife.Not Entertainers, is slowly but surely starting to make some headway.

 

Cape Town – The issue of canned lion hunting has never received as much attention than before the death of Cecil the lion or the controversial SA based-documentary Blood Lions.

And while many strides have been made over the last two years against the unethical practices of canned lion hunting – questions have remained around what the future would be for SA’s estimated 7 000 lion in captivity if the practice was banned outright.

Lions in South Africa are listed under Appendix II which means their products can be traded internationally but only “if the trade will not be detrimental to the survival of the species in the wild.” The numbers of African free-range lions have declined alarmingly over the last few decades with only 20 000 remaining today, down from 30 000 just two decades ago.

Criticism has been leveraged against the sale, saying it would imperil wild lions as it is feeding demand within the market – as well as raising ethical concerns around the canned lion industry and the perpetuation of other industries associated with it.

Lion bone trade promotes canned lion hunting

According to a Conservation Action Trust report, in 2016, according to Panthera, 90% of lion carcasses found in the Limpopo National Park in Mozambique all had their skulls, teeth, and claws removed while rates of poisoning lions specifically for bones increased dramatically in Niassa National Reserve in northern Mozambique. In Namibia, 42% of lions killed in the Caprivi had their skeletons removed.

According to wildlife investigator, Karl Amann, the trade is fueling the demand in Asia. The south-east Asian country now dominates the lion-bone market.

Amann says the CITES trade data base shows that  between 2009 and 2015 Laos has bought over 2000 complete lion skeletons from South Africa. This excludes the 2 300 bones and 40 skulls sold separately as incomplete skeletons”

Lion bones arrive in Laos but are then illegally exported to Vietnam without the requisite CITES export permits. Here they are boiled down, compacted into a cake bar and sold at a price of around US$1000 (currently R12 830 – R12.83/$) to consumers who add it to rice wine.

“The DEA’s move is widely regarded as open support for the controversial practice of canned lion hunting. A captive lion breeder – one of 300 in South Africa – can be paid anywhere from US$5000 (R64 150) to US$25 000 (R320 750) for each lion permitted to be shot. Now they can add an additional $1500 (R19 245) per skeleton permitted to be sold to Laotian buyers.”

So how is the quota determined and what impact assessments were done? 

A zero quota on the export of bones derived from wild lion specimens was taken at the Parties to CITES at COP17 in Johannesburg in 2016, says the DEA.

Further to this the DEA put a stop to lion bone and other derivative exports at the beginning of 2017, until a quota had been set and the management process thereof had been determined, which it now has. It says the quota will be managed at a national level, with applications still dealt with and assessed via the provincial nature conservation authorities level.

“The South African population of Panthera leo (African lion) is included in Appendix II of CITES. In terms of Article IV of the Convention, an export permit shall only be granted for an Appendix II species when a Scientific Authority of the State of export has advised that such export will not be detrimental to the survival of that species, says Molewa.

During COP17 the CITES listing for lion was amended to include the following annotation, which SA agreed to as a risk-averse intervention.

“For Panthera leo (African populations): a zero annual export quota is established for specimens of bones, bone pieces, bone products, claws, skeletons, skulls and teeth removed from the wild and traded for commercial purposes. Annual export quotas for trade in bones, bone pieces, bone products, claws, skeletons, skulls and teeth for commercial purposes, derived from captive breeding operations in South Africa, will be established and communicated annually to the CITES Secretariat.”

Added to this, the DEA says a 2015 study commissioned by TRAFFIC raised concerns around the shift in lion and tiger bone trade; namely that when the trade in tiger bone was banned; the trade shifted and bones were sourced from South Africa, available as a by-product of the hunting of captive bred lions.

“A well-regulated trade will enable the department to monitor a number of issues relating to the trade, including the possible impact on the wild populations,” says Molewa.

Quota allocations going forward?

The DEA says the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) will conduct a 3-year-long study aimed at increasing the understanding of the lion bone trade in South Africa and the captive lion breeding industry – as well as inform the Scientific Authority on a sustainable annual quota.

“It will investigate how the trade in captive produced lion bone under a quota system affects wild lion populations, and will further strengthen the evidence base for the annual review of the quota in order to ensure it is sustainable and not detrimental to wild populations.

“The decision on the annual export quota was reached following an extensive stakeholder consultation process during which the Department considered all variables, including scientific best practice. It cannot be said, therefore that this determination was made arbitrarily or in a non-transparent manner,” says Molewa.

The decision continues to spark international condemnation from conservationists and local stakeholders alike.

“It is irresponsible to establish policy that could further imperil wild lions,” says Dr Paul Funston, Senior Director of Panthera’s Lion Programme earlier this year when the DEA first proposed its plans.

Those who included their voice of concern include Singita together with other prominent safari operators &Beyond and Great Plains Conservation, warning how it was damaging the safari industry.

Panthera also called it “irresponsible to establish policy that could further imperil wild lions—already in precipitous decline throughout much of Africa—when the facts are clear; South Africa’s lion breeding industry makes absolutely no positive contribution to conserving lions and, indeed, further imperils them.”

But the DEA insists they are acting within the environmental law, and says a “well-regulated trade will enable the Department to monitor a number of issues relating to the trade, including the possible impact on the wild populations”.

Panthera has warned legalisation of a trade in lion bones will stimulate the market and endanger both captive and wild lion populations.

“There is significant evidence that South Africa’s legal trade in captive-bred lion trophies is accelerating the slaughter of wild lions for their parts in neighbouring countries and is, in fact, increasing demand for wild lion parts in Asia — a market that did not exist before South Africa started exporting lion bones in 2007.”

Johannesburg – The Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) is poised to officially announce a government-approved annual export quota of 800 lion bone skeletons.

IT must have been a dead easy kill. Two former Colombian circus lions — one with brain damage — which, even if they were abused by humans, were also used to them, butchered in the sanctuary where they were supposed to live out their days in peace.

Their heads, paws and tails were cut off and their carcasses left behind, suggesting that the kill was the work of local muti hunters rather than poachers hoping to sell the bones to the lucrative Asian medicinal market for use as a substitute in tiger-bone wine.

The recent killings have up stirred up the bitter controversy over the breeding and hunting of captive lions.

There is a scene in Blood Lions, Ian Michler’s shocking documentary about canned hunting and lion-breeding farms, in which cameraman Nick Chevallier is threatened by a lion farmer.

“I’ll kill you. Don’t take a photo of me. I’ll fucking kill you … Shut your fucking mouth … Nothing’s happened, it’s what will happen.”

It is an ugly moment that does South Africa’s private lion farmers no favours. And watching Blood Lions, it is difficult to feel sympathy for the 200 or so farmers who between them own an estimated 8 000 lions, and whose businesses are now threatened by a US import ban on lion trophies.

The film and the illegal killing in 2015 of Cecil the lion at the edge of Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe fuelled lasting public outrage. In March 2015, Australia banned all imports of lion trophies in a stated attempt to crack down on canned lion hunting. In October last year, the US Fish and Wildlife Service followed suit with a ban on imports of trophies taken from captive-bred lions.

Since South Africa is the only country in the world where lions are farmed for hunting, the US ban will hit the industry — driven mostly by US hunters to the tune of about R100 million a year — hard.

There are, of course, complications. Because the US ban covers only captive-bred lions, anecdotal evidence suggests that some farmers may be looking for ways to present their lions to would-be hunters as wild.

There is another issue. The trade in lion bones — used to make a medicinal “tiger-bone wine” — is legal and demand has soared since China banned the use of actual tiger bones in 1993.

It is very likely, say some conservationists, that South Africa’s captive lions might in fact be a buffer against poaching.

“South Africa is the only country that has lion farming but it is also the only country where all wild lion populations are increasing,” said independent environmental economist Michael ‘t SasRolfes. “We need to understand why this is happening.”

The knife-edge on which activists and conservationists are walking is what a blanket ban on the trade in lion parts would do to wild lion populations.

“If the supply is suddenly cut off, it might well precipitate a lionpoaching crisis,” said ‘t SasRolfes. And the biggest likely loser would be the wild lion.

Africa has lost 43% of its wild lions in the past 20 years, according to a survey led by big-cat research organisation Panthera. The population is estimated at 20 000 throughout Africa, with just six countries harbouring more than 1 000 individuals each.

The decline — from more than 800 000 a century ago — has been driven by habitat loss and human conflict, specifically with cattle herders and ranchers.

“Contrary to popular belief, trophy hunting is a small factor in the fate of the African lion,” says the report.

But African herders killing lions in revenge for losing cattle do not make headlines; a rich American dentist shooting a big black-maned male lured from a national park does.

That rich hunters from the West are willing to pay eyewatering fees to shoot lions is not in doubt. Prices for a male lion range from around $16 000 R205 000 to $32 000.

While breeding lions just to shoot them is highly questionable on moral grounds, there is a case to be made for ethical hunting.

“I approve 100% of hunting,” said conservationist and former park warden Paul Dutton. “Every single protected area in South Africa was created by a hunter.”

Ethical hunters follow the principles of “fair chase” — the pursuit of a free-ranging animal living in a wild, sustainable population and which has the instincts and ability to escape from the hunter.

“I would prefer,” said Dutton of those pressed-for-time foreign hunters who want to bag their lions in a matter of days, “that these big, fat arses go and hunt [the lions] on foot in the bush. Then we’ll see who wins.”

South Africa’s lion farmers are confronting a crisis. Part of it is self-inflicted, with some rogue farmers and unethical breeders tarnishing the industry.

“Of course there are atrocities and these need to be stopped,” said ‘t SasRolfes.

For the others, what happens is largely out of their hands. Trade policy and decisions will be made in faraway corridors of power by people who may have little grasp of the realities on the ground. More transparency and some serious self-regulation could help swing public opinion in their favour.

And the wild lion might see out this century.

Whilst a palace revolution is taking place in the industry and a huge split within the ranks of its membership, President of the Professional Hunting Association of South Africa [Phasa], Stan Burger announced his resignation and will be replaced by Dries Van Coller.

Retha Van Reenen, spokesperson for Phasa told the media “many members decided not to sign an affidavit sent out last year that they would not support or promote captive lion hunting or captive lion breeding activities,” which is said to be the reason for the split.

None more so than the fallout after the 2015 announcement that it had adopted a resolution at its annual general meeting to distance itself from the captive lion breeding and captive lion hunting industries which led to several court cases. At the time. Burger said his organisation stood by its resolution to distance itself from captivebred lion hunting and would defend its resolution in court.

Andrew Venter CEO of Wildlands Trust and executive producer of the documentary film Blood Lions, told News 24, “It would be tragic for the South African hunting and tourism industries if Phasa were to backtrack on its commitment to stop the hunting of captive bred lions in South Africa. “Stan Burger has led the charge to clean up the hunting industry in this regard, something I can attest to that there is little doubt.”

He said Phasa had, for the past 18 months, been under significant pressure from the “unethical hunting fraternity in South Africa”. “It’s unfortunate that it appears that this faction may be prevailing. The fallout from the local and global outrage will further damage the industry and South Africa’s conservation reputation,” Venter said.

Johannesburg- Reeling under a massive backlash from supporters of the captive lion hunting industry and a huge split within the ranks of its membership, the president of the Professional Hunting Association of South Africa [Phasa], Stan Burger, unexpectedly announced his resignation on Tuesday with immediate effect.

In a statement, Phasa said its President-Elect, Dries Van Coller, will now be at the helm.

Asked what had led to Burger’s resignation, and why the executive was not supporting Burger against the backlash, spokesperson Retha van Reenen said, “let me put it into perspective. A lot of the members decided not to sign an affidavit sent out last year that they would not support or promote captive lion hunting or captive lion breeding activities.”

As a body representing and promoting the interests of professional hunters, Phasa has faced an inordinate amount of challenges.

None more so than the fallout after the 2015 announcement that it had adopted a resolution at its annual general meeting to distance itself from the captive lion breeding and captive lion hunting industries.

In November 2016, a group of 13 Phasa members challenged the resolution and its constitutionality and took Phasa to the High Court in Pretoria where it argued Phasa had acted illegally when it took steps to suspend their memberships.

In its affidavit opposing their application‚, Phasa said some of the applicants were members of another hunting organisation, known as the South African Predators Association‚ which was in favour of captive-bred lion hunting.

Phasa said after receiving responses from the 13 members‚ it decided to lift the suspension of three members who had explained that they were not involved in the breeding and hunting of captive lions.

At the time, Burger said his organisation stood by its resolution to distance itself from captive-bred lion hunting and would defend its resolution in court.

Phasa said it gave the applicants seven days within which to provide reasons why their membership should not be terminated.

According to the judgment that was eventually handed down, Phasa lost the case.

In a statement, Burger said, “It has been a privilege to serve the association, but the time has come for others to now carry the torch”. Van Coller said Phasa would continue with minimum disruption as the association continued to serve the members of the professional hunting fraternity of South Africa.

Andrew Venter, CEO of Wildlands Trust and executive producer of the documentary film Blood Lions, told News 24, “It would be tragic for the South African hunting and tourism industries if Phasa were to backtrack on its commitment to stop the hunting of captive bred lions in South Africa.

“Stan Burger has led the charge to clean up the hunting industry in this regard, something I can attest to that there is little doubt.”

He said Phasa had, for the past 18 months, been under significant pressure from the “unethical hunting fraternity in South Africa”.

“It’s unfortunate that it appears that this faction may be prevailing. The fallout from the local and global outrage will further damage the industry and South Africa’s conservation reputation,” Venter said.

Cape Town – Animal interaction is on a slippery slope to the end, digging its own hole as more and more people and companies are being made aware of the cruelty lurking in the industry’s very core.

Outspoken conservationist groups like Blood Lions have called out the disconnects bluntly, stating and proving that petting or interacting with lion cub leads directly to a canned lion killing later on.

As true as this is for lions in captivity, it is for all other wild animals.

Most recently, ostrich farmers and tourist farm operators in Oudtshoorn have stopped ostrich back rides acknowledging the “global tendency to keep and exhibit animals and birds in their natural environment as much as possible”.

Two farms, Cango ostrich farm and Safari ostrich farm, confirmed that ostrich rides and human-animal interactions will no longer be allowed on the properties. One ostrich farm, however, will still allow the interactions.

According to Renate Samoilhan, marketing manager Cango ostrich farm, the feedback from the public and tourism industry has been positive. “It is an ethical, positive and necessary step for the tourism industry,” she says.

Wild animal interactions continuing in SA… but for how long?

While the ostrich industry in SA is stepping up for conservation, many other wild animal interaction operators are continuing with the practice, citing financial gain as the main reason why.

The Lion Park in Johannesburg, after promising to end lion cub petting back in 2016, continued the practice.

A statement on why they shied away from the idea said, “We had every intention running the new park without cub petting and we tried to replace this with other activities. Unfortunately, this led to a dramatic and unexpected drop in the number of visitors and tour operators.”

South Africa’s elephant-back ride operators are equally stubborn to end the interactions. This despite the fact that our neighbouring countries like Botswana and Zambia have banned the practice altogether.

But conservationists and a changing public opinion is slowly but surely tightening the leash around wild animal interaction operators’ necks.

New criteria spells end of interactions

New policies outlined by Fair Trade Tourism (FTT), with specific regard to the highly-confusing (and sometimes damaging) volunteer tourism industry, are also helping to identify companies operating under the veil of conservation.

Fair Trade Tourism says since the organisation’s initial review of its standard to include additional criteria on volunteering in 2009 there has been a significant upsurge in both the supply and demand for volunteer products in Africa, many focused on so-called conservation or orphanage programmes.

This upsurge has brought with it concerns from various organisations regarding malpractices, which were especially evident in programmes dealing with vulnerable children and captive wildlife.

The Fair Trade criteria does not allow for any physical interaction by tourists or volunteers with a range of captive animals, including all large and medium-sized carnivores, big cats, elephants, rhinos, large apes, hippos, ostrich, crocodiles and venomous snakes. They also do not allow for tourists or volunteers to interact with any child or vulnerable person unless this takes place under continuous, qualified adult supervision.

Kapoet kussingvoet Uit soos ‘n kers … Die leeumannetjie is verlede week van die private wildreservaat AndBeyond Phinda in KwaZuluNatal na die Somkhandareservaat in die provinsie verskuif. Die projek, wat deur Wildlands, Empowers Africa en ander groepe ondersteun word, is deur die dokumenthe rolprent Blood Lions geInspireer. Die leeus word eers in ‘n afgesperde gebied gehou sodat hulle aan hul nuwe omgewing gewoond raak voordat hulle in die reservaat van 30 000 ha vrygelaat sal word. Leeus het voorheen natuurlik hier voorgekom, se David Gilroy, Wildlands se strategiebestuurder. Nathi Gumbi van die Gumbistam en Wildlands se strategiebestuurder vir gemeenskapsbetrokkenheid in die noorde van KwaZuluNatal se die gemeenskap verwelkom die leeus. Dit skuif die fokus na oplossings om leeus se toekoms te verseker, se Gumbi.

THREE lions are scheduled to start life in a new home today in the Somkhanda Community Game Reserve, near Mkuze, in the north of KwaZuluNatal.

The two females and one male will be brought in from the andBeyond Phinda Private Game Reserve, where lion breeding has been so successful that the sanctuary has been able to stock other reserves.

“Wild lion numbers are declining across Africa, due mainly to habitat loss and poaching,” said conservation manager for andBeyond, Simon Naylor.

“It’s crucial for the future protection and conservation of the African lion that we expand and protect new ranges.

“The introduction of lion into the Somkhanda Game Reserve is a massive boost for lion conservation in KwaZuluNatal, South Africa and Africa.

“It will help reverse the current trend of declining lion numbers and wild lion range.”

“This lion translocation was inspired by a groundbreaking feature documentary, Blood Lions, which exposed the captive breeding and canned hunting industry” said wildlife organisation, Wildlands, which is overseeing the operation.

“The lion will be housed in a boma for about six to nine weeks to adjust to their new environment, and Wildlands hope to release them onto the Somkhanda Reserve at the end of July”