Francesca Villette
FOR THREE days it was a “game of cat and mouse” between game rangers and four lionesses through remote terrain and thick bush along the Garden Route. Their mission: to lure the big cats back to the Gondwana Game Reserve near Mossel Bay from where they had escaped.
Five of the lionesses crawled through a hole dug under the reserve’s fence in the middle of the night. The hole was dug either by porcupines or bush pigs. But one lioness didn’t make it back alive.
Gondwana Wildlife manger John Vogel – tasked with bringing the felines back to safety – said the battery life of tracking devices inserted into the lionesses’ abdomens had ended.
At about 11am the next morning, a neighbouring farmer stumbled upon the lionesses gorging on the carcasses of three of his cows.
Vogel said the farmer opened fire, killing one of the lionesses.
“It is not at all the way we would’ve wanted her to go, but at least she did not suffer. Her death was instant.”
The game reserve was investigating whether the other lionesses had been injured, he added.
It took about 25 people to bring the four big cats back to safety.
Using spotlights, the rescuers found the lions by the reflection of their eyes.
“It was easier to find them in the dark. The terrain is so thick, it makes it impossible to spot them. But using the spotlights, the rangers could easily detect the yellowish reflection of their eyes. The lionesses did not give in that easily, though. They were very skittish and ran away every time we tried to get a hold of them. It turned out to be a game of cat and mouse for several hours,” Vogel said.
He said because lions were territorial creatures they did not drift too far from the fence. But the thick terrain made the search particularly difficult. The four surviving lions had split into pairs.The game reserve had also deployed a helicopter to search the surrounding area with thermographic cameras.
Game reserve manager Neil Davison said the management was consulting its lawyers and insurers to compensate the farmer for the loss of his livestock.
“Gondwana Game Reserve has taken full responsibility for this breach and will compensate the farmer for the loss of his livestock. We will also mitigate any further possibility of this happening again,” he said.
Police are investigating a case of malicious damage to property after the farmer laid a charge.
In April, a lioness escaped from the game reserve, but it was soon found by rangers, Vogel said.
Using spotlights, the rescuers found the lions by the reflection of their eyes.
“It was easier to find them in the dark. The terrain is so thick, it makes it impossible to spot them. But using the spotlights, the rangers could easily detect the yellowish reflection of their eyes. The lionesses did not give in that easily, though. They were very skittish and ran away every time we tried to get a hold of them. It turned out to be a game of cat and mouse for several hours,” Vogel said.
He said because lions were territorial creatures they did not drift too far from the fence. But the thick terrain made the search particularly difficult. The four surviving lions had split into pairs.The game reserve had also deployed a helicopter to search the surrounding area with thermographic cameras.
Game reserve manager Neil Davison said the management was consulting its lawyers and insurers to compensate the farmer for the loss of his livestock.
“Gondwana Game Reserve has taken full responsibility for this breach and will compensate the farmer for the loss of his livestock. We will also mitigate any further possibility of this happening again,” he said.
Police are investigating a case of malicious damage to property after the farmer laid a charge.
In April, a lioness escaped from the game reserve, but it was soon found by rangers, Vogel said.