NELSPRUIT – A male lion which probably escaped from the Kruger National Park (KNP), had to be shot after it caught cattle in a village near Clau Clau. A photo of the dead animal was circulated on BBM and Facebook last week, severely upsetting animal lovers.
According to an informed source who did not want to be identified, a male and female lion were spotted near the village where they had killed a calf last Tuesday. “Rangers of Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) had no choice but to shoot the male as there are children who walk to and from school there. It posed a huge risk to the community.”
He said the female had fled. “There have been no sightings again, so I hope she ran back to the park.”
Last week Lowvelder also reported on lion that were apparently heard in the Claremont area. MPTA ranger Mr Chris Hobkirk said they had a call-out last Sunday night from a man who claimed a lion had growled at him near his compound in the area.
“We drove around for three hours looking for spoor or any signs of the lion, but to no avail. There was nothing,” said Hobkirk. This after the lion roaming the Claremont area were heard on or near a farm about a kilometre off the dirt road last Saturday at dusk.
Ms Riekie Beyleveld, who lives on a plot just before the Claremont turn-off, said she and her family clearly heard them at about 18:00. “We could hear them roaring. My dad went to put the three donkeys back into their enclosure. We did not want the lion to catch them,” Beyleveld said.
No sightings of the felines were made since they had first been spotted two weeks ago. Hobkirk added that these lion were also probably from Kruger. He confirmed that three or possibly more had been spotted in the Claremont area near town.
Their exact whereabouts are still unknown and the agency is monitoring the situation. Should the felines be sighted, the MTPA will attempt to capture and relocate them. “Destroying the lion will be a last resort,” he said.
