Suspected escaped lions blamed for cow killings: livestock owners urged to stay vigilant

Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife teams were on Friday dispatched to the Gluckstadt area under Zululand District to search for lions following reports of livestock being killed by wild animals.

The Ezemvelo team working alongside a second team led by a private professional hunter conducted a lion call-up.

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The lion call-up commenced at around 7pm and continued until after 1am on Saturday, but yielded no success.

The teams returned to the area on Saturday with a helicopter to assist in locating the lions, suspected to be hiding in nearby dense bush.

There have been three recently confirmed sightings of lions in the Gluckstadt area, which is under AbaQulusi Municipality, in the areas under Inkosi Zondo and Inkosi Zulu.

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Three cows have been reported killed by lions in the area. These incidents have raised concerns about the safety of both residents and their livestock.

Ezemvelo communications manager Musa Mntambo said they have issued a warning to communities around the Gluckstadt area to be vigilant and report any sightings immediately to local traditional leadership or at the police station.

“It is important to highlight a recurring challenge in the area as many livestock owners leave their animals in grazing areas day and night, only collecting them on dipping days or when needed.

“This practice leaves livestock vulnerable to predators. As a precautionary measure, Ezemvelo strongly urges all livestock owners in the areas around Gluckstadt to ensure their animals are collected and kept in secure enclosures overnight to minimise the risk of attacks as lions become active at night. It remains unclear where these lions may have escaped from. This information will only become apparent once the lions are destroyed,” said Mntambo.

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