Another Beloved Lion is KIlled by an American

About five hundred male lions are killed each year by trophy hunters in Africa. To a species as threatened as the African lions are, that is a major and perhaps unsustainable. Killing a large, dominant male lion has significant sociological effects for his pride. Fighting, sometimes to the the death, ensues to take his place, and worse cubs are killed to educe estrus in pride females. Another high profile male, Skye, who lived in Kruger National Park may be the lion killed Jared Whitworth from Hardingsburg, Kentucky on June 7th. Skye, the head of the Western Pride has not been seen since then. [photo] Whitworth baited and killed a male lion in Umbabat Private Reserve adjacent to Kruger.

Baiting is generally illegal and if the lion was six year old Skye, he was too young to be shot. Authorities have refused to identify the lion despite inquiries from the press. His skin is being stored by a taxidermist in South Africa until the trophy can be imported into the United States under the "new rules" for lion trophy hunting implemented by the Trump regime. The Fish & Wildlife Service has yet to clarify what those rules are now, despite a Freedom of Information Act request for details of the alleged "case by case basis". Certainly the killing of an iconic pride male does not enhance the survival of the species, if that finding is even relevant any more. Lion numbers have plunged 42 percent in just over 20 years. And if the lion was Skye, the importation of his body parts into the US would violate the Lacey Act since that requires an animal be taken in accordance with local regulations. Both the Center for Biological Diversity and the US Humane Society have asked the Service to block importation until the dead lion's identity could be independently verified. So far, no one involved with the hunt is talking beyond denial of any wrongdoing.

The hunt was organized by professional hunter Graham Sales. An informant told Don Pinnock, a South African journalist, that the hunt was billed as a baiting of a big Kruger Park male. The claim made by Umbabat Private Reserve that the target was an older non-dominant male in the area is not consistent with male lion behavior. A dominant male such as Skye would not have tolerated an older male in his territory even if the older male were not in top form. Would Whitworth have allegedly paid $80,000 for a skin-and bones trophy? Also significant is the fact that one of Skye's cubs has been found dead, which is a typical result of a pride takeover by another dominant male. Trophy hunting, even of animals that have a population size that can withstand human predation has very little, if any ethical justification during the Sixth Great Extinction. Lions are struggling to survive in a world radically changed for the worst by man industrial activity. To add the insult of sport hunting for human ego gratification to their great injuries at the hand of man is simply intolerable.