Lion escapes reserve

WOUNDED: BEAST WAS POSSIBLY INJURED WHEN FARMER SHOT AT IT

Communities around Pilanesburg National Park asked to be vigilant.

Apossibly wounded lion is on the loose after it escaped from the Pilanesberg National Park in North West on Saturday. The lion was first spotted by a farmer in Mahobieskraal after it mauled his goat.

“The farmer took a couple of shots at the lion and it ran away” said park ranger Steve Dell in a Facebook post on Sunday.

“Yesterday, park management and rangers did an extensive search of the area. The search was also conducted by air in our Bathawk and a helicopter.”

Dell said a bait trap had been set up with the hope the lion will be lured and be captured. He said the lion was possibly injured when the farmer shot at it.

Wild animals periodically escape from parks across the country.

In 2020, seven lions made a dash for it and escaped from the Alldays Lodge in Limpopo.

They were all kept in an enclosure at the registered captive breeding facility. The lions were darted and captured within 11 hours.

In the preceding year, a pride of 14 lions escaped from the

Kruger National Park.

Locals spotted them roaming around the Foskor Mine in Phalaborwa, prompting warnings from local officials. The pride was eventually darted and brought back into the park.

Perhaps the most famous of them all is Sylvester, who escaped from the Karoo National Park in 2015 and 2016 after coming under pressure from older males and led rangers on a more than 300km merry chase for three weeks.

The errant big cat now lives on the edge of the Addo Elephant National Park at Kuzuko Lodge in Eastern Cape.

Pilanesberg is situated in the Bojanala district and is an hour away from the Sun City resort.

Named after Tswana chief Pilane of the Bakgatla, the park spans 50 000 hectares of land, according to the South African Nature Reserves website.

Pilanesburg game reserve is managed by the North West Parks Board.

Dell appealed to communities around the park to call the park’s control room should they spot the lion.

“We ask the communities around the park to be vigilant when they see the lion outside the park. Please call our control room on 014-555-1606 or your local SA Police Service, who are in contact with park rangers,” said Dell.

It is not yet clear how the animal escaped.

The search was also conducted by air