Lion Killed by Snare
In the last blog I spoke about animals crossing the border in to Mozambique. Sometimes they don’t come back!!
On Friday October 24th I went in to Mozambique together with Francois and Erin and ended up on the border with the Kruger National Park. About 80 metres from the fence we spotted a lioness that lay motionless against a tree trunk. She didn’t look like she was alive, so we cautiously walked towards her.
Upon arrival we saw that she was dead and had a big wound around her neck.
The deep wound was caused by a wire that was still tied to a tree trunk on the game path. Judging by the wound it looked like the animal died in the morning hours. The tree on which the snare was attached had been heavily attacked showing that the poor animal tried, albeit in vain to free herself from this wire that kept sinking deeper and deeper in to her neck with each attempt.
A lion killed by a wire snare.
That’s the thing about the snares; the more you struggle the deeper the wire sinks in to the flesh; I don’t think animals know that.
This snare must have been set to catch animals like antelopes. But sometimes the snares catch non-target animals like this lioness.
We later searched the area for more snares and found ten of them in an area of about 50 square metres.
On the other hand, people need to eat. How do you tell a man without any sort of income to stop hunting? What options do you give him to feed his family? The method of hunting stated above is extremely crude, but it is also very cheap.
I’m posing these questions so that you the reader will hopefully empathise with both humans and wildlife in certain parts of the world. What do you think?
As long as we have people and organisations like AWF there is always hope for our quest that together with people, the wildlife and wild lands of Africa will endure forever. In the next few weeks I hope to write a success story regarding the above mentioned.
It’s not all doom and gloom!!
Help us ensure that the wildlife and wild lands of Africa will endure forever with your monthly donation.
October 27th, 2008 at 6:20 am
Hi Nakedi,
Very sad to hear about the lioness caught in a snare. Its true – its not all doom and gloom, but sometimes it is hard to believe that when you see lions and other animals caught in snares or killed in conflict. I believe there is possibility of co-existence between humans and wildlife and trying to find the balance between the two is the key. Keep up the great work you are doing there and good luck!
Shivani
October 27th, 2008 at 10:59 am
Hi Shivani,
Thanks for your comment. True it is sad when such things happen. I want to feel chills on my spine when I see a lion or any other dangerous animal, not walk towards it. Lets hope we find a solution soon.
Good luck with your work as well.
Regards,
Nakedi
October 27th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Dear Nakedi.
It is indeed sad to see animals killed and especially a painful death like the snare. It is one thing to have human Animal conflicts either in fight for the same resources like land, or water and another when a man is hungry and has no other means to survive apart form living on what he can hunt, but surely, we humans have the capacity to choose our methods of hunting hence (if acceptable) hunt what we want. All in all, keep it up, with the love and passion you have to protect these God given wonder, you shall find a way. Kudos
October 27th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
Interesting!
October 27th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Hi Nakedi,
Thanks very much for your blog. It’s wonderful that I can be half way around the world and read about what you all are doing. I was very sad to read about the lioness – what a tragic death for such a beautiful and powerful creature. But I can certainly empathize with the hunter too – one must eat and feed the family, too.
Is there some sort of smell that might repel a big cat, that would not repel an antelope – or other target-animal? That a hunter could spread around his snare area? Just a thought.
Good luck, and thanks for the work you do.
Best,
Patricia
October 27th, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Nakedi,
I was shaken when I saw your lioness photograph and the horrifying death she must have experienced. I was in the Okavango delta last week and had 2 wonderful experiences of watching a pride of 2 lionesses and 3 cubs. The alpha lioness spent a lot of time playing with and grooming her 8 month old cubs and we were privileged to watch her stampede a herd of buffalo and bring down a calf for her family to feed on. As you said, the impoverished tribesmen in Mozambique also need to feed their families and we need to help them work out how to get protein but avoid the indiscriminate slaughter of wildlife. I wonder if the snared lioness had a family of cubs she was hunting for?
Thanks for your good work and I look forward to reading about your activities and the beautiful countryside you work in.
Babu
October 28th, 2008 at 1:57 am
Dear Nakedi
I like your Blog a lot, it brings me back to the bush!!! (I’m in cold and rainy Switzerland at the moment).
Last August, I was working in Botswana and we found a snared lioness (just outside the Moremi border). She had a wire around her neck and was dragging a 3 meter piece behind her. The cubs of the pride where playing and standing on it. There was a collared Lioness in the pride, so we could track them again. We’ve got our Dart Stuff ready and I could dart her and take off the wire. She had already some swelling around the neck, but was otherwise fine. She was a very lucky lioness!
I’m looking forward to read more about your great work! and I wish you good luck (sometimes it’s helpful
Angie
October 28th, 2008 at 2:23 am
Nakedi,
Its very sad that humans and wildlife are failing to coexist.
You are doing a great job but your efforts may have little
impact if the comminities around are not cooparative.
In malawi we using alternative means to livilihood like
1. Teaching the communities around improved methods
farming
2. Microfinancing the communities-financing businesses
3. Ownership of the resources-sensitizing the communities
on the need to take the resources as theirs.
All these endevours are done to help the communities around
find better ways to livilihood.
Its our job as human to take good care of natural as
commanded by God in the book of Genesis.
October 28th, 2008 at 8:03 am
hi
Are there some kind of reward system(food and blankets) for finding snares (with proof)for the local comunity members in place . maybe improve on this reward.
sieg
October 30th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
Hi Nakedi, I do strongly belief in tourism for the sake of
wildlife survival. It works for example in Zambia’s South Luangwa Valley. Although mostly non-local people make
the big money with it, it generates jobs for the locals.
Wilflife tourism is nothing without wildlife and this even
non-educated people understand. It even works in a
way that locals report poachers. That’s what it is: poaching. For whatever reason done, it is unexceptable.
As Salem Ahmed said already: humans have the capacity
of choosing the method of hunting – and governments should take their responsibility to create jobs for poor
people to secure the beauty of their own country which includes all beings. I know it pathetic and we “only” talk about animals, creatures which have no rights worldwide. It’s frustrating.
November 7th, 2008 at 11:44 am
Greetings, thank you all for your valuable inputs. Below I attempt to answer your questions
1. Salim: But surely, we humans have the capacity to choose our methods of hunting hence (if acceptable) hunt what we want.
Nakedi: Very true; this is where education comes in. People generally go for the most efficient hunting method.
2. Patricia: Is there some sort of smell that might repel a big cat that would not repel an antelope – or other target-animal? That a hunter could spread around his snare area?
Nakedi: I have not heard of any chemical that could be used in that way. The chemicals that I’ve heard of are the ones that farmers use on their livestock if they experience depredation by carnivores. The chemicals cause the predator to throw up vigorously. This will discourage the predator from preying on livestock should they comes across each other in the future.
3.Babu: I wonder if the snared lioness had a family of cubs she was hunting for?
Nakedi: The lioness was in her prime, but did not look like she was lactating. However, it could have been any other individual, even the ones with cubs.
4. Angie: Thank you!
5.Edson: In Malawi we are using alternative means to livelihood.
Nakedi: Please see the answer to Sieg below, thanks.
6. Sieg: Are there some kind of reward system (food and blankets) for finding snares (with proof) for the local community members in place.
Nakedi: We don’t currently have interaction with the community. It is in Mozambique and to go there one must drive for 500 km to go to a village that is just 10 km away.
7. Steffi: Humans have the capacity of choosing the method of hunting – and governments should take their responsibility to create jobs for poor
Nakedi: That is true Steffi. I think slowly but surely it is all going in the direction you suggest. Most of these hunting incidents are illegal.
Thank you again for your invaluable comments,
Nakedi
November 8th, 2008 at 6:46 pm
Such a beautifully written, heartfelt and convincing short story, Nakedi.
I am reading from Colorado.
I have helped with a solar micro irrigation project in Benin
and my 2 sons and I visited the Serengeti last summer.
Kitty
November 9th, 2008 at 8:52 am
Hi Nakedi, I could not believe it when I read about the job you
are doing. I always wanted those blogs to feed my crazy curio
sity!
That dead lion looks like the most peaceful thing on earth, well
from your picture of it. What a shame, but hey it gave me an
answer to ‘why the lions/predators regard humans as their
worst enemy.
I always thought poverty cannot be used as an excuse for
bad deeds, but after reading about what most poor Africans
go through on a daily basis, I sympathised with the hunters,
a hungry toddler in blankets at night does not give any father
a worry-free sleep, talk about it over a pool game. c u later
November 14th, 2008 at 11:44 am
THAT’S IS GROSE