Loonkiito, one of world’s oldest lions, get speared to death in Kenya
2 min read . Updated: 13 May 2023, 02:16 PM IST
PremiumLoonkiito was old and weak and had wandered into the village from the park in search of food.
A male lion, believed to be one of the world's oldest, has died after being speared by herders in Kenya. The lion, known as Loonkiito, was 19 years old and died after preying on livestock in Olkelunyiet village, which borders Amboseli National Park in southern Kenya.
According to the Lion Guardians conservation group, Loonkiito was "the oldest male lion in our ecosystem and possibly in Africa". Typically, lions live for around 13 years in the wild. While almost all lions live in Africa, a small population can also be found in India.
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) stated that Loonkiito was old and frail and had wandered into the village from the park in search of food. KWS spokesperson, Paul Jinaro, could not confirm if Loonkiito was the oldest lion in the country but did confirm that he was "very old".
The Maasai-operated Lion Guardians group works to conserve the lion population in Amboseli National Park. They have noted that the end of a drought is often marked by an uptick in human-lion conflict, as "wild prey recover and become more difficult to hunt". In desperation, lions often turn to take livestock.
The killing of Loonkiito was a "tough situation for both sides, the people and the lion," according to Lion Guardians. They eulogised him as "a symbol of resilience and coexistence". Paula Kahumbu, a wildlife conservationist and CEO of WildlifeDirect, expressed her distress at the lion's killing and called for measures to protect wildlife in the country.
"This is the breaking point for human-wildlife conflict, and we need to do more as a country to preserve lions, which are facing extinction," Ms Kahumbu told the BBC.
The average lifespan of a lion is about 13 years in the wild, although they can live much longer in captivity. Lion populations have decreased dramatically in recent years, with just 20,000 remaining in the wild. The loss of each lion, especially those as old as Loonkiito, is a major blow to the species and to those working to preserve them.