On the African savannah, the plastic scourge rears its head
It appears there is no place on Earth that is free from the perils of plastic.
Pictures have now emerged of a group of lions playing with a discarded plastic bag in the heat of the African savannah.
It comes after the Daily Mail yesterday published distressing images of polar bear cubs playing with a black plastic sheet in the snow in the Svalbard Islands halfway between Norway and the North Pole.
the young lions were seen tussling over the black bag at the Sabi Sand Wildtuin wildlife reserve in South Africa. It is thought it may have blown into the reserve from a nearby lodge or brought in by a hyena that had been scavenging bins.
the two sets of images show the global scale of the problem of plastic waste. tackling it is now the target of the Mail’s turn the tide on Plastic campaign, which is seeking measures to tackle the waste that is poisoning the planet. there have been numerous cases of wildlife poisoned by plastic they have consumed.
the lion images show members of the Othawa pride at the reserve bordering Kruger National Park. One can be seen picking up the bag in its jaws and shaking it before climbing a tree with his new plaything.
two other members of the pride stroll over to check out the foreign object and a larger lion then chases the youngster through the bush trying to grab it before the group loses interest.
the photos were taken by a wildlife filmmaker known as Rob the Ranger, who disposed of the bag after the pride had moved on. ‘With all the wind we have had, all sorts of things have blown in,’ he said. ‘the bag may have got into the bush by hyenas or baboons taking it from a lodge.
‘All lodges have pledged to reduce their plastic pollution already so this sighting is not nice.’