News

Reported by the Conservation Action Trust, as recently related by the news outlet Daily Maverick, captive lion hunting still occurs in South Africa. In 2023 a total of 521 lions were shot for trophies, and the vast majority (468) were hunts conducted in North West, a province renowned for its captive-bred lion hunts. The North West Province allows captive bred lions to be hunted as “wild” after a “release” of no more than 96 hours into a small, fenced area for an easy and guaranteed kill. Designating lions as “wild” is important for the “pride” of the hunter, and allows trophy entry in nations that have banned imports of captive bred lions from SA – like the USA.

According to the Daily Maverick – “Misinformation abounds regarding the legality of captive lion hunts, which have gained euphemisms such as “ranched hunts” to hide the reality that canned or captive hunting is still occurring in some South African provinces, particularly in North West. Regardless of the terminology used, these hunts use captive-bred lions…”,  

 “North West’s hunting appeal is due to its lack of legislation, which permits hunting outfitters and their clients to kill captive-bred lions a short time after release, but also permits the hunting of exotic predators. No formal permits are required to bag a tiger or other exotic species in the province – a landowner’s written permission is considered sufficient, confirmed Blood Lions’ researchers in their 2022 paper.”

Despite South Africa’s Environment Minister Dr Dion George’s stated intentions to close the captive lion breeding industry and all its associated activities with lions, it seems to be ongoing. Also, the further inclusion of an “animal wellbeing” clause in the revised SA National Environmental Management Laws Amendment Act has created enormous backlash from the SA Hunters and Game Conservation Association, which has now taken the Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment to court to have this clause removed.

The Daily Maverick article concludes “As trophy hunting faces increasing international opprobrium, ethical tourism increases in importance and as both the numbers of animals hunted and international visitors decline, the continued focus of South Africa in supporting trophy hunting remains highly questionable.”

LionAid would agree, and hope that Minister Dion George will take strong action against this continued hunting of “canned lions”, especially in SA’s North West Province.