Strategic Response and Rescue Unit (SRU) members search for missing lion in Hennops on 9 March 2023. Picture: Neil McCartney
First, it was two tigers, then three buffalos and now a lion is on the loose around the R511 road, near the Hennops hiking trail and surrounding areas bordering Gauteng and North West.
It is still unclear who the missing lion belongs to or how it escaped.
Arthur Crewe from Strategic Response and Rescue Unit (SRU) and his team, along with SDS Protection, met early Thursday morning at the hiking trail to continue the search for the missing lion.
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The lion was first spotted in the early hours of Wednesday morning by an SDS Protection officer patrolling the area.
“Progress is slow,” he said.
Crewe said they were slowing down the search during the day and waiting for more information or another sighting.
“We have guys out there and have expanded the search into the North West and Gauteng areas. Unfortunately, there are so many rumours going around,” he said.
Crewe said the community initially thought the lion killed a donkey found dead close to where the lion was spotted, but added the donkey died in a car accident the previous day.
“At 2am, a security officer patrolling the area spotted the lion on the R511 in the Hennops area. He saw the lion cross the road and snapped a photo and posted it on various groups,” he said.
Crewe said some residents had threatened to shoot the lion if it was not found soon.
“It’s a slow search because during daytime lions don’t move around, they operate during the night,” he explained.
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Crewe said Conservation North West and Gauteng were checking all their facilities to find out where the lion escaped from.
He said they were working closely with the conservation authorities and the NSPCA.
“I would estimate if you roughly calculate everybody involved from the chopper to the vehicles the cost is over R100 000, in terms of time, staff and fuel,” he said.
Crewe thanked Henco Ingram from GST for supplying a helicopter to conduct an aerial search.
“The lion could be anywhere from the trail in a five-kilometre radius,” he said.
Keagan Crewe and Marshant Burger from SRU and Kyle Vosloo from SDS Protection were searching for the lion at two watering holes on the off-road trail on the mountain.
When the vehicles couldn’t drive up the steep rock routes, the group walked into the bush to check for trails or paw prints.
Crewe said because most of the trail was very rocky, it was difficult to spot any tracks. Most prints found at the waterholes were from hyenas or buck.
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They found a print possibly belonging to the lion at one of the waterholes which was larger than the other prints, but it was unclear.
The team planned on returning with drone thermal cameras to try and spot the animal by night.
National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) spokesperson Keshvi Nair said they were working with the Tshwane SPCA and would remain on high alert until the lion was located.
“It’s a serious issue,” she said. “Wild animals should not be kept captive, the animal belongs in the wild.”