The “king of the savannah” is increasingly at risk of extinction. To sound the alarm on Wwf, clarifying how the responsibility is to be attributed, once again, to the action of man and in particular to degradation of natural habitats, al poaching and al illegal trade. In fact, lions are hunted because their teeth and claws are highly sought after by collectors and used in Chinese medicine. In 100 years, the lion population in Africa (Panthera leo) is collapsed by 90% (today there are only 20 thousand specimens) and among the causes that put their future at risk there is also “the pandemic, an unprecedented threat that has had significant consequences on all the activities carried out in the protected areas, aggravated by the chronic lack of personnel” .
Inclusion in the “Vulnerable” category
The data is reported in the recent survey conducted in 19 African countries by IUCN, World Commission on Protected Areas, in collaboration with the African Wildlife Foundation, which analyzed the impacts on basic activities normally carried out in protected areas: protection of biodiversity for operations necessary to guarantee the safety of these territories According to the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), between 1994 and 2014 there was a 43% decline in the lion population on the African continent and the situation has worsened and a further decimation of 50% is expected over the next 20 years. Pending the adoption of a new definitive classification, the lion has been included in the Red List of endangered species in the category “Vulnerable”. Lions have already become extinct in 26 African countries and are present only in 27 states of the continent.
The present range of the species
The role of local communities and tourism
The report also highlighted a less considered aspect: the lack of tourism caused by the pandemic. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, naturalistic tourism generates – in fact – every year about 340 billion dollars and guarantees over 21 million jobs and it is estimated that the pandemic has caused a total loss of 174 million jobs. and a lack of contribution to global GDP of $ 4.7 trillion. Thanks to tourism towards lions and wildlife in general, communities receive gods important direct benefits, including the possibility of creating entrepreneurial activities and generating employment and income. In Africa, nature tourism generates more than a third of all tourism-related revenue and before the pandemic, protected areas received around 8 million visitors a year. An emblematic case is that of Namibia, which in 2019 received about 1.7 million foreign tourists and where the pandemic completely blocked tourism. The pandemic has also brought crisis the work of the rangers, which play a key role in maintaining the balance between the natural and human components, protecting and managing natural resources. Due to the pandemic, the fight against poaching, deforestation and other environmental crimes has become much more difficult (here the story of World Lion Day).
The solidarity campaign
To save this extraordinary species from extinction, WWF has launched the “Sos Leone” project: until May 23 it will be possible to donate to number 45585 with a text message or a landline call, and support the global program to save the big cats. . Target? Double the number of lions by 2050 living in nature, reversing a trend that risks leading them to extinction. The territory affected by the project is located on horseback between Kenya and Tanzania (in the area nicknamed “Soknot” / Southern Kenya – Northern Tanzania) and it is the most important of the 8 priority territories selected by the WWF to double the number of lions. It covers 13,400,000 hectares and currently hosts a population of about 4,000 lions.
May 13, 2021 (change May 13, 2021 | 11:35 am)
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