The race to save the kings
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Xanda the Lion’s death spark outcry among many animal activists.
Xanda, a 6 year old male Lion in his prime was shot and killed by poachers earlier this month. The unfortunate event took place in western Zimbabwe and just two years after the death of his father Cecil, which was also killed by poachers. Xanda’s death is now creating a wave of uproar and the complete ending of poaching in its entirety.
Xanda was being tracked by officials at Hwange National Park using an electronic collar, when it came to the realization of park officials that the lion had started to venture, off of park grounds. Xanda was under the protection of the park and kept from poachers long as he stayed within his normal vicinity. Once Xanda ventured off grounds, poachers who possessed valid permits were free to shoot and kill Xanda.
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According to Andrew Loveridge, a colleague who works with the team that provided the collar issued, “I fitted it last October. It was monitored almost daily and we were aware that Xanda and his pride was spending a lot of time out of the park in the last six months, but there is not much we can do about that.”
Xanda now leaves behind a pride and the fact that a big male such Xanda was removed, this leaves little protection for the pride. Opportunist big males who seek a pride of their own, will not hesitate to kill the cubs he now leave behind.
The fight to end poaching has been a long and grievous struggle which involves money and outreaching. The last big outcry before the death of Xanda was on part of the death of his father Cecil. In fact according to Sam Webb writer for Daily Mirror News, it is stated, “When details of the killing emerged there was a public outcry and call for change to hunting animals such as Cecil.
But despite the global attention and petitions signed by more than a million people, Africa still needs around [pounds sterling]1.02bn a year to save the endangered big cat.”
The death of Cecil did not go unnoticed and most assuredly, neither will the death of his son Xanda, be overlooked. As noticed the fight to end this will be quite expensive, but the attention this will bring possibly on a global scale will easily get the needs meet and beyond.
The struggle to prevent and end senseless deaths of big cats such as Xanda was an ongoing operation, since the death of his father Cecil. Cecil the lion’s death brought much needed attention to the issue of poaching and now hopefully, Xanda’s death will save the life of many lions and hopefully, wildlife in general.
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