Maasailand Lions—A Desperate Situation
今日阅读涉及背景知识：演化（Evolution）-物种灭绝
National Geographic has created an emergency fund to help avert a potential conservation disaster: the complete loss of lions in and around Amboseli National Park, one of Kenya’s most important tourist destinations. As they teeter on the brink of extinction, these lions do not have the luxury of time. The decline in the lion population in this region has reached a critical status that needs addressing on a major scale.
In partnership with Explorers-in-Residence Beverly and Dereck Joubert, filmmakers and conservationists who have worked in some of Africa’s most remote wildlife areas for more than 25 years, National Geographic is committed to this urgent conservation issue. In addition to the fund, National Geographic is providing an emergency $150,000 grant to the Maasailand Preservation Trust, co-led by Richard Bonham and Tom Hill. The grant will aid the trust’s Predator Compensation Fund, which provides compensation to local Maasai herdsmen for livestock killed by lions in and around Amboseli National Park.
Lions are threatened throughout most of their African range. But nowhere is their condition as perilous as in Kenyan Maasailand, where this large male was photographed. Lions there, which number less than 150, are under imminent threat of extinction from Maasai herdsmen thought to be retaliating against prides who prey on their cattle.
Beyond the Lions
Lions are more than an iconic symbol, more than a tourist draw to Africa’s savanna. As large predators, their status indicates the health of ecosystems. According to Dereck Joubert, “if they—the driving force—are removed, then the ecosystem’s functionality is ultimately affected.”
What results can be a chain reaction where other ecosystems are affected, including humans and our own means of survival. It becomes not just a conservation issue, but a humanitarian one as well.
Why Numbers Are So Low
National Geographic is working to avert the lions' extinction with the Maasailand Emergency Fund. Donations will be used to support animal husbandry education and job creation for the Maasai, among other endeavors.
Although there are no reliable data on exact numbers of lions from earlier years, researchers agree that current numbers represent a dramatic drop in the lion population in this region. Why the large decline? Lions are being killed at an alarming rate. Without an abundance of prey to feed on, such as wildebeest, lions are leaving protected lands to hunt the domestic livestock of the Maasai tribe, who then spear and poison the lions to death. Says Dereck Joubert: “When lions raid cattle, the herdsmen understandably retaliate. Lions are eating the one means of survival the villagers have.”
An adult male lion walks through grasslands in Botswana's Okavango Delta. Biologists think one of the reasons males evolved their impressive manes was to provide neck protection during fights.
Three female lions and a pair of cubs rest in the grass in Botswana's Okavango Delta. Females remain with a pride for life and often have to defend their cubs from males, who will kill young lions when taking over another male's territory.
Solutions and Hope
The situation in and around Amboseli is grave, but there is hope. In order to stop the killings, the Maasai need to be compensated immediately for their cattle losses.
Pilot projects, such as a previous Mbirikani Predator Compensation Fund, have shown that if the health and livelihood of the community are secured, there is a greater chance to protect the lions. By offering immediate compensation for cattle losses, the pressure to kill lions as a form of retaliation is alleviated. Areas absent of any compensation program see significantly greater lion kills by local tribespeople.
Two young male lions lie in the grass of Botswana's Okavango Delta. A pride of lions may be headed by a single male or a coalition of up to seven males who cooperatively defend the group's territory.
"A compensation program was initiated in the Maasai-owned Kuku Group Ranch last year, and we’ve already seen results,” says Bonham. "In comparison, the rate of lion killing in Olgulului Group Ranch, also owned by the Maasai, is alarming. … More than 40 lions have been killed by the Maasai in Olgulului in retaliation for livestock losses."
Once lions are no longer viewed as a threat, a dialogue with the communities about conservation can begin.
National Geographic and the Jouberts believe that helping the Maasai through education efforts and conservation awareness, in addition to compensation, will ensure a way for the lions of Africa’s savanna to survive. "The great thing is that there are solutions,” says Dereck Joubert. "We know already that this can work."
A female lion in Botswana's Okavango Delta stretches as other members of the pride lounge nearby. Pride size can range from 2 to 18 females and cubs, all related to one another.
Add Your Support Today
Take the first step toward saving the lions of Kenya’s Maasailand. Outside contributions will not only pay for a lion’s life, but the money raised will be used to support the following:
- Education for students and adults
- Animal husbandry solutions
- Jobs for the Maasai people
- Community conservation efforts
About twice the size of the average house cat, the dappled fur of the ocelot serves as camouflage in the jungles of South and Central America.
It is time now not just for public awareness, but for public action. By working together, we can prevent further lion population decline while helping the Maasai as well. Although we call the work being undertaken a conservation effort, what we are truly facing is a conservation emergency.
Join National Geographic’s efforts to save the Maasai lions. Donate today!
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