A lion is still at large in Zululand after first being spotted nearly two weeks ago.
Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife has been combing the Nhlungwane area – about 30km outside Ulundi – for clues and tracking the animal, while following up on leads from the community.
Community members reported the sightings to the conservation authority at the weekend.
The big cat is suspected to have escaped from the iMfolozi section of the Hluhluwe-iMfo- lozi Park.
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife spokesperson Musa Mntambo told The Mercury it had been spotted several times this week and reportedly killed three cows in Mlaba and one in Biyela.
“We have several trackers and rangers looking for the animal. We are trying to determine its route through the area.”
He said it was not clear whether it was male or female.
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Mntambo said the decision to “destroy” the animal or not depended on several factors.
“We have to assess the situation at the time. We have to see where it’s found, its proximity to people in the area, and so on, before we make the call.”
One of the rangers on the ground told The Mercury they had enlisted the help of professional hunters to track the lion.
“They have dogs that are trained to sniff out animals in this kind of terrain, so we will be using them.”
He said the search would continue until the lion was located.
“The grass is long, making it difficult to spot the animal.”
KZN Conservation expert Tristan Dickerson said the situation was a tricky one.
“If they are considering the live capture of the lion, they have to look at its safety as well as the safety of the community. They have to avoid any person sustaining any injury during the operation.”
He said the reasons for it being “pushed out” of the reserve by other lions or its pride had to be taken into consideration.
Dickerson said tranquillising the animal would be tricky.
“The lion won’t allow you to get close enough to administer the dart.”
Last month, four male lions escaped from the Kruger National Park and wandered about 15km towards Mbombela. One of them killed the cow of a local farmer, who shot it dead and wounded another.
About a week later, the rest of the lions were killed.
Report sightings of the lion to:
Inkosi Zulu of Biyela
078 024 7070
Induna uNgubane under Inkosi Mlaba
082 057 9905
Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife field ranger
Benjamin Myeni
072 430 0390