Endangered animals: found the lion population believed to be "lost" in Africa, in the Alatash National Park, Ethiopia
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
A good news! The lion of Africa showed up in all its majesty. In a remote area in the north-west ofEthiopia, in fact, on the border with Sudan, a surprising discovery was made that makes animal rights activists rejoice: the population of lions that everyone believed lost - given the dramatic decline of the species on the African continent - has been found.
The proof is given by some videos shot in Alatash National Park during a shipment supported by the Born Free Foundation and led by Hans Bauer, who specializes in lion conservation for Oxford University's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU).
The African lion, like the snow leopard and other animals, is included by the IUCN (World Union for Conservation of Nature) in the "Endangered" category of the Red List of threatened species and according to some estimates this species would have suffered a decline of between 50% and 75% since 1980.
This is why such news marks an important novelty.
Alatash is a vast African region that few people know: despite the belief in the presence of lions in the area, the international community has never been able to find evidence of their existence. But now, Dr. Bauer and his team have instead brought them to the fore evidence of the presence of these felines in the region, complete with identification of animal tracks.
The researchers assume that lions are also present in the nearby Dinder National Park, on the border with Sudan, but "since water and prey are scarce, the density of lions is also low, with one or two individuals per 100 square kilometers", concludes Bauer.
Now that the expedition is complete, the next step is to communicate with the governments of Ethiopia and Sudan and pay attention to the conservation needs of the area, so that this lion stronghold can be adequately protected.
Born Free has meanwhile declared 2016 the year of the lion on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Oscar-winning film of the same name (Born Free), which tells the story of the reintroduction of the lioness Elsa into the wild.
Read the expedition report here.
Germana Carillo
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