The Fochville area was still abuzz with activity this week with many people trying to track down the lions that have
reportedly been roaming there.
While various authorities and private organisations were still searching for them this week, the actual number was
under dispute.
According to a West Rand Police spokesperson, Capt. Appel Ernst, the police are still searching for five lions.
‘So far, we have found nothing but the search is still on. Some private organisations have installed cameras and
put out bait but nothing has been found,’ she said on Tuesday.
But at least one private owner believes there is, in fact, only one on the loose in the area.
Mr James Lang of the South African Predators’ Association (SAPA), confirmed this on Tuesday, saying the tracks
that have been found so far point to one adult male, which, they believe, most probably comes from the Vredefort
area.
Between 13 and 15 September, SAPA, the governing body of private lion breeders in the country, brought in expert
trackers and breeders from the Kalahari to search for the lion. They also used AngloGold Ashanti’s helicopter
to aid in the search. Although they could not find him, they discovered a lot of tracks. ‘They show that this lion
knows the area exceptionally well. He has certainly been around for at least three months,’ he said, basing his assumption on dried tracks originally laid down in mud. The local farmers say it last rained more than three
months ago.
The team believes the lion has managed to go undetected for so long because it has avoided human contact. It is
still roaming the area towards the hills west of Kokosi. SAPA suspects it has not threatened the livestock because its
favourite diet is baboon and there are a lot of them in the area.
‘I would advise people in the area against going out into the veld at night.
Some of the tracks have been as close as two and a half kilometres from Kokosi and we have found some on a footpath,’ says Lang.
While the local farmers see the visitor as a welcome crime deterrent, according to law, a lion on the loose poses
a danger to humans and property and must, therefore, be captured. Private organisations like SAPA assist with the
tracking operations but it is the state’s responsibility to capture them.
Lang says no one has been able to photograph the lion and only three people have actually seen it. It may have
temporarily left town because of the increased human activity but the trackers have also confirmed the presence
of leopards in the area.