If humans have rights, what are their responsibilities? If a lion has the right not to be hunted to death, does it also have the responsibility not to eat me? Frankly, I don’t trust the lion to keep his half of the deal.
—Adam Roberts, New Scientist
Roberts is a smart man. A lot of people were outraged about Cecil, the lion who was lured out of Hwange National Park and killed for a trophy hunter — after being wounded and stalked for two days. But how many people have heard of Quinn Swales and Nxaha? Swales was a guide leading a walking tour in the park, following tracks to a pride of lions. When they got there Nxaha, an adult male, fatally attacked him.
Apparently Nxaha had showed aggressive behavior in the past, and Zimbabwe’s National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority will investigate and decide his future. It’s hard to believe they won’t put him down because tourism is so important to Zimbabwe’s economy, and it provides the money for conservation efforts.
The attack has not affected the popularity of walking tours through Zimbabwe’s wildlife parks, a safari operator said.
“It’s a safe experience and a great experience too. It’s not as if these attacks happen daily,” said Trevor Lane, a member of the Safari Operators Association of Zimbabwe. “It was an accident and we are still recording huge interest from tourists. It’s popular and will remain so.”
But tourists must be warned of the potential risks of guided walks, said police spokeswoman Charity Charamba.
“Tracking these animals on foot on their habitat may seem fun but it is dangerous, very dangerous,” she said, adding that villagers living near parks were also attacked by wild animals.
“People should never forget that these are wild animals,” she said.
—U.S. News
It reminds me of tourists in Yellowstone being gored by bison. Some animals don’t like being pestered, and it’s the humans who have to behave responsibly.
August 31, 2015
I find it all so stupid, Jean. A lion does what a lion does. You can’t hold animal behaviour against the animal. And I say this as someone who once came eye to eye with a bull – by accident, not design. I was about ten at the time – always a fast runner I beat my own record across that field and over the fence. Don’t tell my parents.
Sure, I do understand the tourist attraction argument – after all, money often speaks louder than sense. So here is a suggestion: Why not dope those poor bastards in the enclosures so that humans can their have “fun” and “adventure” without danger? But then, maybe, the punters would miss the “thrill” of it. We can’t have it both ways. To put it another way: If I enter a snake pit it stands to reason that I will be bitten.
U
Roberts was joking, of course — I thought he was funny. You didn’t?
I do think tracking lions on foot is foolish, especially when one of the lions was known to have attacked research vehicles. He was wearing a radio collar, which means he had probably been tranquilized and had to endure the nuisance of the thing around his neck. No wonder he didn’t like humans.
i am so tired of mankind who has to be constantly ‘entertained.’
tourism dollars. always tourism dollars. the hordes have to have their fun.
we are encroaching into habitats now . . . either by clear cutting the precious forestation for god only knows why . . . MONEY. always money.
and encroaching upon all the wild things’ habitats for sport and play.
like their home is some kind of huge amusement park put there for US.
then when they do what is natural behavior for them . . .
we are all aghast!!! OH MY!
now we have to go and KILL the one who harmed the human.
i’m sorry.
my response is like ursula’s.
WE are the interloper. if they eat us. it’s their business to do so.
and we should respect them and know enough about them and that fact
before going in.
it irritates me no end. and i have very little sympathy for it.
Unfortunately humans are part of nature too, even if a lot have traits we don’t admire. I do think it’s unfair to kill Nxaha, if that’s what they decide to do. The argument would be it’s the tourist dollars that make the parks possible.
http://exit78.com/safety-minute-follow-the-rules-or-die/
The bad thing is when tourists throw rocks at the animals it’s often not the rock throwers who get killed. It’s the people the animal encounters next.
Aggressive behavior? Lions are aggressive carnivores. It’s their nature. I’m not sure the lion should be put down for doing what African lions do, especially when the Swales had guided his group into the lions territory.
American mountain lions (cougar), on the other hand, are secretive and largely solitary by nature, mostly avoiding humans. Fatal attacks are “extremely rare and occur much less frequently than fatal dog attacks, fatal snake bites, fatal lightning strikes, or fatal bee stings.” (Wikipedia) If a cougar killed a person, I think it should be put down because it would have done something out of the norm for its species and may have become habituated to humans to the point that it poses a continued danger.
It’s amazing there aren’t more animal attacks. People just get too close to wild animals. I posted another example on my most recent blog post, Way too close!
I agree, people get too close. Andy and I remember driving in Canada and seeing an elk off to the side of the road. A crowd of people got at close as they could to take pictures — it’s amazing that the elk didn’t attack. The worst was the time (years ago) a Park Ranger in Yellowstone saw a fellow trying to urge a bear into the driver’s seat of a car so the fellow could take a picture of the bear with the wife in the passenger’s seat.
Thanks for the link. Those are great rules. How well are they enforced?
The rangers try to enforce the rules, but there are so many people there AND it’s such a big park that it’s almost impossible to make much of a difference.
the problem with Zimbabwean culture and tourism is that in actual fact none of the tourist dollars will arrive in the pockets of the ordinary people – I have a friend [husband/son/her] who fled that country a couple of decades ago leaving behind everything, a house worth millions and arrived here with a suitcase each and around $100 only…
left behind her relatives including her mother and the status of ordinary folk is just dreadful…
something doesn’t seem right to me…but I can’t pinpoint it for now
I know, I’ve heard that. Apparently most Zimbabweans never heard of Cecil — it was just the rich tourists who knew of him — and they don’t understand the fuss about killing a lion because there isn’t much fuss made when the lions kill the villagers. It’s sad.
I agree with Tammy.
I’m so sick of this all.
People killing animals and using any argument they can find so that it will sound like it’s a good thing,.
Thinning the herd or helping tourism or whatever.
Most times they go out with a gun and vehicles and crew of people to assist.
How is that a sport?
And when people are killed, then they scream for the life of the animal to be sacrificed.
I think that people WANT the danger of what could happen.
That death is lurking around the corner and yet when it happens, they run crying.
What did they think could happen?
They were purposely following a pride of lions.
Nxaha did only what was natural for him to do.
To protect.
They should be grateful he didn’t take out the whole tour.
I was surprised that humans are allowed to go on walking tours to track the lions. Sounds like looking for trouble to me!