We have had a report of an incident of lion attacking cattle so we are going to see the problem.The report has come from an area called Empopongi . When we arrived we found the family that owns the cattle herd and listened to the report. They told us it happened at 3:00 in the afternoon. The cattle could smell the lion which made them panic and they scattered and the lions then attacked. Two females and one male lion attacked three cows. The herdsman in charge was a ten year old boy and he ran to get help.When he had returned with help the lions had eaten two of the cows and they ran away before any retaliation was attempted. This was in an area of heavy bush and acacia woodland and this gave the lions the opportunity to ambush.
We talked to the herdsmen and also to the family owners of the cattle and we have asked them to try and avoid areas where lions can attack easily and to try and involve an older more experienced herdsman. Lions rarely try this when an adult is taking care of the herd. The family did also agree the boy was too young for this responsibility
These quick responses and reports on predator attacks are very helpful in these communities for Predator Aware and we are asking them to communicate with us when this happens.
We have targeted the area as being one of our priority areas of building better bomas and also in training the livestock guardians along side the Kenya Wildlife Service. This area has been prone to lion and leopard attacks as it lies on a permanent river so it is therefore a vital water source for the Maasai and their livestock and of resident herds of wildlife including predators.
The three cattle skins from the lion attack.
Daily life in Mara Maasai land naturally leads to interaction with wildlife and predators. Avoiding attack and likely areas of attack as well as training techniques in avoidance of likely predator areas are key factors in living with predators and hopefully balancing lion, leopard, and cheetah populations.
We will go back in to this area to patrol on foot looking for any signs or footprints also in a vehicle looking for the lions at night to see if these lions are part of any pride that we know and also to try and get ID pictures.
Donations made here are
Feb 20th Carolyn S USD 92.00
One Comment
i am so sorry that the family has lost its precious cows. yet i am so glad that they listened to you and would let older and experienced person to guard their animals. by letting a boy to be in charge to me is also unfair for the boy whose life could have been in danger along with the precious lives of the guilty or innocent lions. i include innocent lions because if the boy had gotten help to track down the predators, the men could have come across some lions who were not the guilty ones. sort of like when a human being being in the wrong place at the wrong time and is arrested for something he has not done. and i am pretty sure the innocent lions would have been killed instead.
will the kenyan government give any kind of compensation to the owner of the killed or eaten cows? at least the lions were well fed; thus the lives of the cows did not die for no good reason.
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