Pretoria – The 3-year-old male lion that escaped from the Karoo National Park outside Beaufort West has been successfully recaptured.
This follows an extended three-week operation in mountainous terrain and through a number of river valleys.
The lion was located by spotters on Monday above steep cliffs in the Nuweveld Mountains, at 5800ft above sea level.
He was darted by a SANParks vet from a helicopter and brought to safety under extremely difficult conditions.
Nico van der Walt, Park Manager at Karoo National Park, said the lion had to be loaded onto a sling underneath the chopper while lying immobilised on the mountain side. “This was the most dangerous part of the operation as the helicopter blades were not more than two meters from the mountain edge with the lion lying three meters from a high cliff.”
It is suspected the young male was chased away by older lions and escaped from the park on 5 June 2015 through a place in the fence that had been damaged following heavy rain.
The lion has now been released into a boma and has been fitted with a tracking collar. “We are happy to report that it is in good health and it would be put under observation for the time being,” said van der Walt.
SANParks Chief Executive Officer Fundisile Mketeni congratulated the team for their professionalism in tracking and recapturing the lion.
“This has not been an easy task to perform by any measure – we therefore thank all stakeholders from the neighboring communities and all those that assisted in this operation, including a tracking team that came from as far afield as Botswana to assist in bringing the lion back home.”
Assistance in tracking the lion was provided by a range of organisations including Cape Nature, South African Police Services, Northern Cape Conservation, the farming community, Berg Kwagga Trackers, and Shimane Safaris from Botswana.
“It has been a momentous task to track this lion over a period of three weeks under extremely difficult conditions through the mountains and valleys of the Great Karoo, and to effect the safe capture and return of the lion to the Karoo National Park.
“The efforts of SANParks staff, and all those who assisted, have really lifted conservation to another level and for that we are extremely grateful,” said Mketeni. – SAnews.gov.za
