U.S Groups Seek Protection of African Lion to Curb Trophy Hunts

A coalition of wildlife groups is filing a petition with the U.S. Department of Interior to list the African lion under the Endangered Species Act, a designation that would make it illegal to import stuffed lions or lion skins and body parts into the U.S. — including those killed by trophy hunters. Over the past 50 years, the population of African lions has plunged by 90 percent, from 450,000 to fewer than 40,000, largely as a consequence of overhunting, illegal trade, retaliatory killing, and loss of habitat and prey, according to the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), one of the groups seeking protection for the animal. From 1998 to 2008, nearly 7,450 wild lions were traded internationally, including more than 4,000 imported to the United States, nearly all of them to be stuffed as trophies. Officials say the impact of trophy hunting is even worse than it looks at first glance, since when a male lion is killed, other male lions seeking to replace it in the hierarchy may kill as many as 24 females and cubs. “The king of the jungle is heading toward extinction, and yet Americans continue to kill lions for sport,” said Jeff Flocken, director of IFAW’s Washington, D.C. office. A final decision by the Interior Department could take two years.