Tag: zoo

Man killed by zoo lion in East London

Buffalo City Metro spokesperson, Thandy Matebese told eNCA.com the victim who was killed by the lion after the mauling, had deliberately jumped into the enclosure.

Matebele said, “This person deliberately went in to the enclosure.”

Officials at the East London Zoo have moved to assure visitors of its safety after a man was mauled by a lion on Tuesday.

Asked about general security measures, he told eNCA.com that the zoo had been revamped two years ago with a new gate and proper access control; but stressed that it was not easy for security to be manning each enclosure.

“We try to maintain a friendly and secure environment, for this reason security are on patrol and not at each feature,”

Matebese said they still didn’t know what had led to the man jumping to his death the way he did.

Police had found a lot of blood close to the fence and security wall.

From the security footage, police determined that the man had used the wall for support and climbed over the netted fence into the enclosure.

The incident was spotted by feeding staff around 10am.

“It was not a gruesome scene, a full body was found with all the parts attached. There were scratches to the body but it wasn’t ripped apart. The lions went for the neck as they do with their prey,” said Matebele.

Matebese said it would be easy to identify the man, who still had his phone and wallet on him when he was found.

He’s described the incident as “unfortunate”, saying a visiting school group from Kings College Primary, had to be turned away when the body was discovered.

Metebele said; “They had to be turned away as the removal of the body had to take place.”

Matebese said the zoo had offered counselling but that no one had taken them up on that offer.

Source: eNCA

Namibia satisfies Cuba’s animal attraction

Etosha
Etosha

Namibia will airlift 10 rhinoceros and five elephants to Cuba in September, concluding a massive translocation project of 135 animals taken from its national parks, the environment ministry said Wednesday.

The 15 animals will be captured from the Etosha National Park in northern Namibia — one of the country’s major tourist attractions — plus a nearby smaller game reserve, the Waterberg Plateau, environment and tourism deputy-minister Pohamba Shifeta told AFP.

The ambitious project, dubbed Noah’s Ark II, has populated Cuba’s 342-hectare National Zoo outside Havana.

A total of 120 animals of 23 species — including endangered black and white rhinos, cheetahs, leopards and lions — were already transported to the Caribbean island nation in November.

Animal rights groups have protested the capture of wild animals.

But Shifeta defended the translocation as Namibia’s “token of appreciation” to Cuba for its support.

Cuba gave the southern African country political and military backing during its struggle for independence from South Africa in the 1970s and 1980s.

“Cuban people were not complaining when their government was supporting us,” Shifeta told AFP.

The donation is also aimed at helping Cuba establish a “proper wildlife programme”, he added.

Several other species including the warthog, waterbuck, wildebeest and zebra did however not make the cut for veterinary reasons, according to local media reports.

Authorities are now racing to complete the translocation by September 6.

Meanwhile, the Namibian government has ordered over 400 springboks, kudus — another kind of antelope — and other non-endangered animals to be culled from four national parks to feed people threatened with hunger from a severe drought.

Authorities estimate that at least 400,000 people are facing hunger while Unicef has said more than 778,000 people — including 109,000 children under the age of five — are at risk of malnutrition. – AFP