TIG Post

Tag: lion

  • Lion fatally mauls zookeeper in Nigeria

    Lion fatally mauls zookeeper in Nigeria

    A tragic incident occurred at a wildlife park in south-western Nigeria, where a zookeeper was fatally attacked by a lion after failing to properly secure its enclosure, according to police.

    The 35-year-old man, employed at the Presidential Library Wildlife Park in Abeokuta, owned by former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, was mauled during a feeding session.

    Police spokesperson Omolola Odutola confirmed that the lion inflicted severe injuries to the zookeeper’s neck, leading to his death. To free the victim, officers were forced to shoot the lion.

    The Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library later issued a statement indicating that the zookeeper had taken some guests to observe the lion’s feeding routine after official hours on Saturday evening.

    “The zookeeper, apparently, feeling comfortable with the animal, left the safety protection gate open and proceeded to feed the animal. He was mauled by the animal and died on the spot.

    “To prevent further mutilation of the body, the animal was put down immediately by personnel of the park.”
    The victim has been named Babaji Daule, described by police as a trained lion handler.

    It comes less than a year after another zookeeper was attacked and killed by a lion at the Obafemi Awolowo University, also in south-western Nigeria.
    The incident has triggered concerns with people raising questions about the country’s regulations and management of zoos and handling of wild animals.

  • Lion kills zookeeper at Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria

    Lion kills zookeeper at Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria

    A devoted zoo worker, Olabode Olawuyi, in a shocking incident at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Nigeria, has met a tragic end at the paws of a lion he had been caring for over the past decade.

    The dreadful event unfolded while Olawuyi was carrying out his routine duty of feeding the lions. According to OAU officials, the lion attacked him, inflicting severe injuries. Despite the efforts of his friends to intervene, the wild cat’s aggression proved fatal.

    The university authorities confirmed the unfortunate incident, stating that the lion responsible for the attack has been euthanized to prevent further harm.

    Olawuyi, not only a zookeeper but also a vet tech, had been dedicatedly looking after the lions since their birth at the zoo nine years ago. The male lion, which he had nurtured from infancy, turned on him during a routine feeding, leading to the tragic outcome.

    The news of the incident has prompted Nigerians on social media to share images and express their concerns about the safety protocols at a government university in Osun state.

    The university community is grappling with sorrow over the loss, prompting the college to dispatch a team to offer condolences and support to Olawuyi’s grieving family.

    Prof Adebayo Simeon Bamire, the university’s head, expressed deep sadness about the tragic event and called for a thorough investigation to ascertain the circumstances leading to the attack.

    Adding to the narrative, Abbas Akinremi, the leader of the university students’ union, disclosed to a Nigerian newspaper that the attack may have occurred due to the zookeeper forgetting to secure the door after feeding the animals.

    Akinremi lamented the incident, hailing Olawuyi as a compassionate and caring individual who consistently looked after visitors to the zoo.

  • Two to face charges by Thai police after pet lion was seen driving in Bentley

    Two to face charges by Thai police after pet lion was seen driving in Bentley

    A lady was detained by the Thai police after her pet lion was observed riding around in the streets of Pattaya.

    A very popular video now shows a baby lion with chains on it sitting in the back of a white Bentley car with no roof.

    A man from Sri Lanka was taking the lion around, but he left the country. People think he is a friend of the woman, Sawangjit Kosoongnern.

    In Thailand, it’s okay to have a lion as a pet as long as you register it with the government.

    Officials in Thailand said Sawangjit said she bought the animal from a man in Nakhon Pathom province and he helped get it to Pattaya.

    But he didn’t get permission to transfer or own the animal, so it was illegal.

    She is in trouble for having a wild animal without permission. If she’s found guilty, she could go to jail for a year and have to pay a fine of up to 100,000 baht.

    The police wanted to charge the Sri Lankan man because he kept the lion in his rented house. But they couldn’t because he left Thailand. He was going to be charged for bringing a wild animal into public places. This can result in up to six months in jail and a fine of 50,000 baht.

    The person who sold the lion to Sawangjit will also be in trouble for taking the animal without permission.

    Authorities say there are 224 lions in Thailand that are owned legally.

  • Zookeeper killed by lion after ‘forgetting to lock cage door’ in Fukushima – witnesses

    A Japanese zookeeper died after being attacked by a lion while feeding it.

    Kenichi Kato, 53, was found unconscious and bleeding from the neck in the lion enclosure at Tohoku Safari Park in the Fukushima region on Thursday.

    His colleagues said he was trying to lure the lion into the cage with food at the time of the attack.

    He entered an area separated from the main lion enclosure through a gate, which could not be locked.

    Norichika Kumakubo, vice president of the park, said:
    “This process includes opening the door and ordering food. After placing food, the door must be closed and locked.

    But “at that moment, the door was open,” he added.

    Kato was described as a beloved veteran of the zoo who worked there for 27 years and had experience with dangerous animals such as lions, tigers and bears.

    Kumakubo added that “We deeply apologize to Mr. Kato and his family.

    “We take this extremely seriously. We will take measures to prevent similar accidents.

  • Bob Junior lion killed by rivals after 10yrs dominance

    Bob Junior lion killed by rivals after 10yrs dominance

    A lion in Tanzania known as the Serengeti’s King has been murdered by competitors after almost 10 years of dominance.

    Tour operators and visitors to the national park have paid tribute to the “legendary” Bob Junior – also known as Snyggve – online.

    The “photogenic” and “coolest cat” in the Serengeti, Bob Jr had a fearsome reputation among his rivals and had ruled for seven years with the help of his brother, Tryggve.

    Younger rivals are believed to have killed the pair.

    “They wanted to overthrow Bob Junior,” Serengeti conservation officer Fredy Shirima told the media.

    “These incidents normally happen when the head of a pride becomes old or sometimes when the other male lions are not happy with his control over a large territory,” he added.

    “It is assumed his brother also met the same fate, but we are trying to confirm this,” Mr Shirima said, adding that the two were killed in separate but seemingly coordinated attacks.

    Some conservationists said Bob Junior – who was thought to be around 10 years old and named after his father Bob Marley – relished his celebrity status because he was always easy to spot.

    Bob Junior reportedly did not put up a fight when he was attacked and killed on Saturday.

    Wildlife officials are preparing a special burial on a day yet to be announced.
    The Serengeti in northern Tanzania is home to about 3,000 lions, and is popular with local and foreign tourists.

    Tributes to the fallen king have been posted online, including by tour operators.

  • Elderly lioness grows mane, baffles zookeepers

    An 18-year-old lioness has baffled staff at a zoo in Kansas after growing an “awkward teenage mane” after the pride’s last male lion passed away.

    Looking at Zuri, you’d think she was a young lion growing his mane for the first time, but she is actually an 18-year-old female.

    That makes the mane around her neck pretty unusual, with only a handful of similar cases reported in the past. The lioness reportedly started growing a mane soon after the last male lion at Topeka Zoo in Kansas passed away in October of 2020.

    Although zookeepers don’t believe there is any connection between the lack of a male lion and Zuri’s mane, they do admit that the lioness has gotten feistier since growing the new fur, growling, snarling, and roaring more often than before.

    “I don’t think there’s really any kind of evolutionary reason for this, either lack of males or too much competition with other females or anything like that,” Kris Everatt, a conservation scientist, told Live Science. “I think it’s just a random event.”

    But Zuri’s curator, Shanna Simpson, believes that there is some connection between the death of Avus, the last male lion at Toopeka Zoo and the lioness’ awkward mane.

    “She feels like she needs to protect her pride, so her testosterone increases,” Simpson told CJ Online. “And boom, she’s got more fur around her neck.”

    Topeka Zoo has yet to conduct any hormone tests for Zuri, but all standard test results came back normal, so there is no reason to suspect that her mane is a result of any kind of cancer or any other serious condition. Hormonal imbalance could be the cause, given her old age, but the zoo doesn’t plan on conducting invasive testing just to be sure.

    “We have no reason to believe she’s unhealthy in any way with what’s going on with this faux mane,” Simpson said. “She’s just very weird-looking.”

    In 2016, cases of wild lionesses in Botswana growing impressive manes made international headlines, and there were also a 2011 case in South Africa and a 2018 case at the Oklahoma City Zoo, but female lions growing manes is considered extremely rare.

    Source: Complex.com

  • Southern Mozambique is in fear due to a lion that is on the loose

    Residents of a neighbourhood in southern Mozambique‘s Massingir district are afraid of a lion that is on the loose.

    It is believed that the animal, which has been seen travelling around in Massingir and the nearby Mabalane district since last week, escaped from the Limpopo National Park.

    The lion is said to have already killed some cattle and residents say they are living in fear.

    A joint team of rangers from Limpopo park and the police has been deployed to hunt for the feline.

    Benito Thomisssene, the head of the administrative post in Zulo area, has appealed to locals to move in groups as a security measure to avoid possible attack by the lion.

     

  • Eight lions killed in North West ‘poisoning’

    Eight lions at a North West bush lodge have been killed during an alleged poisoning, police have confirmed.

    The carcasses were found on Friday morning at the Predators Rock Bush Lodge, near Rustenburg.

    Their paws and snouts were cut and removed, said police spokesperson Sabata Mokgwabone.

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    “A case of illegal hunting has been opened … at Koster Police Station after eight lions were killed at one of the lodges in the vicinity of Swartruggens. It is alleged that the lions were found dead in the morning,” said Mokgwabone.

    Gert Blom, owner of Predators Rock Bush Lodge, said it appeared the poison was hidden in chicken carcasses.

    He added that each lion had been named and that they were “quite tame”.

    Two male lions and six females, three of which were pregnant, were poisoned.

    One of the lionesses had three newborn cubs, two of which also died.

    The property is registered as a zoo and, working closely with nature conservation organisations, works to educate the public on wildlife, Blom explained.

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    Following a poisoning attempt on two white male lions last year, the zoo closed to the public for the safety of the animals, he said.

    Predators Rock is also a CITES breeding facility, that aims to improve the numbers of endangered animals and often provides animals to other zoos, Blom added.

    Mokgwabone said: “No one has been arrested and investigation into the matter continues.”