Words by Jack Fletcher
Pictures by John Liebenberg / Barcroft Media
Lounging gracefully in the long grass these majestic White Lions wait
patiently for their release back into the wild.
Pictured here in the Limpopo Province of South Africa, the ghost-white
lions will soon become the second pride in three years to take their
first steps to freedom in the greater Timbavati region of South Africa.
For full story and pictures:
For Linda Tucker of the Global White Lion Trust (WLT), their
reintroduction will mark a significant step forward in the bid to re-
establish the rare White Lion back into its natural habitat.
“The lions have been tagged so they are now just days away from being
reintroduced in their endemic habitat” says Linda, CEO and founder of
the WLT.
“Our team, led by Jason Tuner, has worked tirelessly to ensure the
lions are ready for their reintroduction and the tagging is an
important part of the process as it will help to monitor the pride?s
hunting behaviour.
“Lions hunt predominantly at night, making it difficult to spot them
without being able to locate them in the dark.
“It is also important to be able to track multiple lions in the pride
to observe their hunting strategy so as to compare their hunting
behaviour with that of golden lions in the region.
“Two of the cubs, the female Nebu and a male Matsieng, had internal
tracking systems surgically implanted under their skin.
“This means we can keep and eye on them as they grow instead of having
to re-attach new collars on their necks every few months, which would
entail another round of darting.
“Their parents, Zihra (lioness, 6) and Mandla (11) were fitted with
external collars as they will not grow any bigger.
“Jason and the team spent several hours ensuring the tags were fitted
properly and once the cubs’ stitches have healed they will be ready to
be released.”
Residing in a protected area – or acclimation boma – lioness Zihra,
her mate Mandla (meaning ‘power’) and their three one-year old cubs
Zukhara and Matsieng (both male) and a female Nebu (meaning ‘pure
gold’), will be released into the WLT’s 2,500 acre conservation area.
Rarer than the Himalayan Snow Leopard, White Lions originate solely
from the Greater Timbavati region of South Africa.
Often mistaken for albino lions, their translucent fur and bright blue
eyes are the product of a rare gene, meaning they are seen by many,
including tribal elders in Africa, as the most sacred animal on the
African continent.
However their beauty has made them a prized hunting trophy and
following years of forced removals into zoos and captive breeding
camps around the world, the White Lion has become technically extinct
in the wild.
Unprotected by South African law, less than three prides are free-
roaming in the wild.
Founded by Linda in 2002, the Global White Lion Trust has worked to re-
establish the balance with carefully planned re-introduction programs
and scientific study into their genetic make-up.
“The White Lions currently being reintroduced to the wild were
identified for their high genetic integrity,” says Linda.
“We estimate there may be as many as several 100s of White Lions in
zoos and captivity around the world, but their genetics, in almost
every case, have been modified.
“This is serious.
“Captive breeders have sought to breed them as fast as possible for
purposes of commercial trading, with virtually no accountability in
keeping formal family tree records.”
The White Lion reintroduction program will form part of a PHD study in
which the lions’ behaviour will be carefully monitored and recorded by
a dedicated scientific team.
Senior lion ecologist, Jason Turner is hoping to determine a genetic
maker for the white lion, to establish their frequency of occurrence
in the wild.
“Between 1975 and 1980, twelve White Lions were recorded between nine
golden prides,” he says.
“The gene is still alive in the area, however, it appears to be all
but depleted and the White Lion genetic marker is still unknown.
“Until we can identify it, we cannot establish the frequency with
which White Lions occur in this region.
“This will help to classify them appropriately and to have them
formally protected as an endangered sub-species.
“With hunting still rife in the region – and with canned hunting
operations springing up on our borders – the last golden lion hunted,
could be the last White Lion gene bearer.”
With a buzz of excitement gripping all those involved in the re-
introduction program, Linda hopes this second pride will prove to be
as successful as the founding pride who were reintroduced in 2006.
In the first reintroduction program, a captive-born lioness, Marah,
was rewilded with her three cubs.
Despite the death of Marah in 2007, who tragically died whilst digging
for warthogs, the ‘world first’ reintroduction program has proved to
be a great success.
“The first reintroduction was highly publicised around the globe and
all eyes were on Marah and her ability to re-establish herself and her
three cubs in the greater Timbavati wilderness,” says Linda.
“We were anxious to see whether her two sons, Regeus, Letaba and her
daughter, Zirah, would survive without their mother.
“But exactly one month following Marah?s death, the siblings, who were
barely three years old, successfully hunted their own adult wildebeest
and have been self sufficient hunters ever since.”
According to Linda, there are two key aspects in any successful
reintroduction to the wild: self-sufficiency in hunting and the
ability to reproduce in their endemic habitat without human
intervention.
“There are projects trying to place White Lions in areas that are not
their original endemic distribution range,” she says.
“In these instances, the White Lions are not in their natural habitat
and therefore often unable to camouflage themselves to hunt self-
sufficiently.
“In the greater Timbavati, the white sandy riverbeds and pale-scorched
winter grass hide these apex predators from both human sight and their
preferred prey ? blue wildebeest and warthogs.
“Reintroducing White Lions to their natural distribution range is,
therefore, a critical factor for the success of any White Lion
reintroduction project.”
With the release just days away Linda and her team know their task to
protect these iconic animals is only just underway.
“The White Lion must be protected not only because of its scientific
value, but also its cultural value,” explains Linda.
“Indigenous people of Africa – particularly the XiTsonga communities
of the Greater Timbavati region – have revered the White Lion as
sacred for hundreds of years.
“Our emphasis now is on identifying the genetic marker so as to have
the White Lions appropriately classified and formally protected, both
in the wild and in captivity.
“We also look forward to more natural births occurring in the region
without human intervention or interference.
“With our founding pride of rewilded White Lions hunting self
sufficiently in their endemic habitat – and a second pride ready to
take their first steps to freedom – we believe the reintroduction has
been a resounding success.”
Related posts:
- White Lions Released Into Wild Walking like Kings into the unknown these majestic White...
- Lions of the Masai Mara By Jack Fletcher On a lazy afternoon in the...
- Bonobos Released Back Into The Wild Words by Jack Fletcher Pictures by www.friendsofbonobos.org / Barcroft...
- The Wild Cat Household These little lion and tiger cubs play happily together...
- Lioness Learns Some ‘Catty’ Paddle When Kevin Richardson decided to cool off in the...
- Incredible lion attack photos Stop that roving eye! Lioness gives her man a good...
- Lion Nearly Eats Tourists For Lunch At Oz Zoo A new mane attraction at a zoo is proving...
- Dog Becomes Surrogate Mother For Tiny Cubs Zoo keepers in China are employing dogs as surrogate mother’s...