Lion Falls From Tree During Rescue From a Wire Snare Injury | National Geographic
We pretty much picked up on finding that Orinda at a point where she was treated about two weeks back. So even though the snare was removed, we saw that over about a two and a half week period, her conditions started again to rapidly decline.
So we find that Orinda in a tree. We think that by darting her she'll run down; it's actually contrary to what happens. We darted her, she passed out in the tree. Somehow, we managed to get the vehicle under; she falls on a mattress. We managed to pull her off and actually treat her.
Cob antelope actually feed on the bushmeat. Snaring to catch animals using wire snares is one of the biggest threats to wildlife across Africa, especially in the savanna and forest areas. Animals walk into these snares, they get caught; they can't escape, they can't feed themselves, they can't get water, and then they inevitably die.
Now, what that does is it affects carnivore numbers, things like lions, hyenas, and wild dogs, because sometimes the carnivores themselves are caught. Also, the actual prey numbers get depressed, so they decline. Those carnivores have to move a lot bigger distances, and what the whole system actually collapses.
The lions in Queen Elizabeth National Park actually have a culture of tree climbing, and that's an important tourism and lion sort of flagship point. You know, it brings in tourism; it's an emblem for lion conservation in Africa. That's why this depletion of prey in that area is particularly alarming because it puts stress on lions in terms of harmony. The lions in that area can actually support.
I am optimistic in a lot of ways about lion conservation and big cat conservation in general. The good thing with cats, like house cats, is that they're very good at breeding, and if there's prey and if there's any slither of protection in the form of a fence or rangers on the ground, cats come back quickly. But it's just about giving them that chance of protection.
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