Lion Cecil’s son killed by trophy hunter
HARARE: Two years after Cecil the Lion was killed in a national park in Zimbabwe, sparking international outrage, his son Xanda was killed in a trophy hunt.
The lion was shot on July 7 in a hunting area just outside Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe, according to Andrew Loveridge, an Oxford University researcher who had studied both Cecil and his son. Xanda, who was six years old, was wearing an electronic collar that was put on by researchers to monitor his movements.
“As researchers we are saddened at the death of a well-known study animal we have monitored since birth,” Mr Loveridge said.
The Telegraph reported Richard Cooke of RC Safaris had led the hunt, although it was not clear who killed the lion.
“Richard Cooke is one of the ‘good’ guys,” Mr Loveridge told The Telegraph. “He is ethical and he returned the collar and communicated what had happened. His hunt was legal and Xanda was over six years old so it is all within the stipulated regulations.”
Mr Cooke could not be reached for comment.
The pride spent “considerable time outside the protection of the park”, Mr Loveridge said. Xanda was shot about 2km from its edge in Ngamo Forest, in an area where hunting is legal.
The lion, who was part of a pride of three females and seven cubs, was first collared for study in July 2015, with a GPS satellite collar added in October 2016, Mr Loveridge said. The researchers traced his whereabouts until his death.
Cecil was 13 when he was killed by Walter Palmer, a US dentist, in July 2015. Like Xanda, he had wandered outside of his sanctuary in Hwange National Park.
“The killing of Xanda just goes to show that trophy hunters have learned nothing from the international outcry that followed Cecil’s death,” said Masha Kalinina, an international trade policy specialist for Humane Society International.
“Xanda was a well-studied lion like this father and critical to conservation efforts in Zimbabwe,” she said.
The Humane Society said that fewer than 30,000 African lions remain.