Escapees back in KNP

MARLOTH PARK – She was nicknamed Wandering Wanda and clearly did not enjoy her time in the limelight, perhaps because it was only the light of a game viewing vehicle.

Big trucks passing her at high speed  in an  unknown environment further upset her, but eventually a lone lioness was safely back in the Kruger National Park (KNP) after being spotted on the N4 near the Marloth Park turnoff early on Tuesday morning.

Game guides Mario Paul and David Quihampton from Vula Tours reported the rare sighting while on their way to an early morning game drive from Crocodile Bridge.

Authorities in Marloth Park, the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) and SANParks were alerted.
Paul stayed with Wanda until a construction worker arrived and took over the watch. He and a Marloth Park ranger kept her in sight while vets were dispatched to the scene.

She was darted and  released close to her pride in the park.

The authorities and rescuers thanked the guides, rangers, officials and people involved in the rescue attempt for their help. “We want to thank the community for caring and not killing her.

“We can take hands and do something, there is no reason to kill if we can make another plan,” Paul said.

The MTPA and Marloth Park rangers had been on the lookout for Wanda since Sunday. She was one of two escapees, reported then.

According to the Facebook page of the Marloth Park Honorary Rangers, they used a warthog killed by the other one, as bait to capture her.

She caught the warthog earlier, but abandoned the carcass and retreated to the bush.

The rangers tied the kill to the tree and waited with the vet for her to return.

When she did, they darted her and transported her back to the KNP.