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ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - B - THE LION (Panthera leo)

Guatemala GuateGojira Offline
Expert & Researcher
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#2

Dead is never the solution:

The lion (Panthera leo) is one of the most charismatic of the land mammals. He is very deep in our minds, most than other animals, because we evolved with them. Lions and humans are tied in a form that can’t be comparable with other animal. Both rise in Africa, both evolved with the same prey and the same competitors. Lions and humans travel from Africa to Europe in the same time (Cromerian era) and it was the first animal admired (not yet worshiped) by earlier humans. Cave paints show how they lived, from the eyes of these first humans, but it was until the history time (Egypt) that humans worship them. Interestingly, the mysticism that we create over them NEVER saves them from the hunt.

I recently buy the book “The story of Asia’s lions” from Divyabhanusinh (2006), and there is a great chapter about how evolved the relation between humans and lions. The point is that ALL human populations had hunted lions in greater number than lion had hunted men.

Humans had been the only real treat for lions since the beginning and the relation between these two species had not changed and seems that it will not.

According with official data, the population of African lions is about 35,000 animals, but the great bulk of them live in the East and Southern African region. Just a few countries like Kenya, Tanzania and South Africa, have populations over 1,000 specimens, while all the other countries have populations much more smaller. The lions in the West of Africa are the most endangered, with less than 250 specimens, they are even worse than the Indian lions or the Amur tigers! Let’s take in count that this population, together with the Indian lions, are a relic of an ancient subspecies that lived from Greece, north Africa, passing to Babylon, Persia and up to India (some dispute this last place, it will be discussed latter).

Indian lions, despite been highly inbreed and with a more or less stability of habitat and prey, are now a pretty well managed population, with over 411 specimens according with the last census of 2010. There are plans to relocate some of them into the Kuno region, but even with the order of the high Court of India, it seems that this is not going to happen, not in a near future, at least.

According with an interview with Dr Craig Packer, he predicted that in a near future, there will be only three places where lions would live:
1. The Kenya-Tanzania region: The Masai Mara, with the Serengeti and probably the Selous reserve.
2. The great Okavango region: surrounded by a desert, is well protected from the human intervention.
3. The Kruger National Park: protected with a large fence, it is like a huge “Jurassic Park” that if it is well managed, could be the last stand for the lion in the south.

The proposal of the lion farms is a controversial solution or could be also the worst solution ever stated. The premise is that as crocodiles or like domestic (specifically created for human consume, please take this in count), people could rise lions like cattle, feed them, use them as a show and later, when they are large-fat-useless, they could be used for the “fun” of the hunt. From my point of view, this is DISGUSTING AND NAUSEATING.

Humans had dignified themselves so much that had forgotten that God (if you believe in him, Evolution if not) had created every single creature with its own dignity and humans are like they caretaker. We can use animals, that is true, but we most dispose of them with dignity and with sense. But, where is the “sense” or the “dignity” in raising an animal just to kill it for fun???

Yes, money is the principal way, but how many times we most learned that money is not the solution for the world? The terrible dispersion of the wealth is the real problem, with the great capitalist piling all the money and the proletariat living with the crumbs. And check this out, the Communist countries ARE DOING THE SAME THING TOO!!! Hippocrates, this is they true, Capitalism or Communism, is the same sh……

Well, returning to the point, this hunting known as “Canned” lions is just a business of rich people that leave nothing to the communities around. Yes, they pay the taxes, yes they could be good citizens, but damn, Nazis in Germany were also good citizens, even when they were the pure evil!!!

Why people just respect this animals and they habitat and learn to earn money with tourism??? Check the model of East Africa at Masai Mara-Tanzania, there is no hunting there, and this are one of the places that are practically safe for the future. Even the great Dr Valmik Thapar say that India should learn from Kenya and Tanzania, that this is the best form to save tigers.

What South Africa has done is a bad move and a terrible solution. I am 100% sure that the hunting problem will be NOT resolved with the canned lions, with time, the same hunter sill say “hey, do you want the strength of a lion? Kill the wild ones, they are over “there””. Check this webpage:
http://endtrophyhuntingnow.com/2014/03/13/global-march-on-15th-march-against-canned-lion-hunting/
Check the smile of these monsters with them dead lions. Do you think that this is the solution for lion conservation???

The conservation of wild animals is possible, Kenya and Tanzania shows this. What South Africa is doing is a stupidity and take in count that no, many if not ALL the canned lion’ bones, are now send to Asia to be sale like tiger bones!!! The conservation most be based in the free of the wild animals to live in them habitat, population polities must be created in the countries with overpopulation, like India, with education and support for the people.

Lions and humans have born in the same cauldron of Africa, they and us are more related than we think, why we could just stop killing them and treat them for what they are: a wonderful gift of nature? Sad
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Messages In This Thread
RE: ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - B - LIONS (Panthera leo) - GuateGojira - 04-04-2014, 08:58 AM
Panthera leo in Europe - brotherbear - 04-28-2017, 07:46 PM
RE: Panthera leo in Europe? - Polar - 04-28-2017, 10:24 PM
RE: Panthera leo in Europe? - GrizzlyClaws - 04-29-2017, 01:43 AM
RE: Panthera leo in Europe? - brotherbear - 04-29-2017, 03:01 AM
RE: Panthera leo in Europe? - GrizzlyClaws - 04-29-2017, 03:17 AM
RE: Panthera leo in Europe? - GrizzlyClaws - 04-29-2017, 03:29 AM
RE: Panthera leo in Europe? - brotherbear - 05-20-2017, 04:15 PM
RE: Vintage - Ngala - 01-02-2018, 03:22 PM
Lion Population Numbers - jordi6927 - 04-09-2018, 03:45 PM
RE: Lion Population Numbers - Rishi - 04-09-2018, 05:13 PM



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