When embarking on a safari in Africa, whether it’s in South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya, or Tanzania, one may not be aware that the lion, the king of beasts, is facing a concerning decline. During your game drive, you may encounter lion prides, witnessing their social nature, and hear their powerful roars echoing through the night. This decline constitutes a “silent crisis,” with wild lion populations plummeting from 450,000 in 1950 to a mere 23,000 today.
Disney has reignited its “Protect the Pride” campaign, originally launched in 2019 alongside the release of The Lion King, a photorealistic remake of the 1994 classic. Screenings of the film will feature information about this campaign, driven by Disney in partnership with the Wildlife Conservation Network and the Lion Recovery Fund. The article below, penned during the 2019 release, delves into the multifaceted reasons behind the lions’ disappearance and underscores the critical environmental repercussions of losing an apex predator.
On a more optimistic note, the Lion Recovery Fund has reported successful anti-poaching efforts, with over 5,800 poachers apprehended and 280 lion killings prevented through conflict response in recent years. To contribute to these conservation efforts, visit LionRecoveryFund.org/disney.
Disney’s Lion King saga continues with director Jon Favreau’s latest remake, featuring entirely computer-generated imagery and a star-studded cast including Beyoncé, Donald Glover, James Earl Jones, and Seth Rogan. Within five days of its release, the film grossed a staggering $242.3 million in the US and $595.1 million worldwide. Over the past 25 years, The Lion King franchise, encompassing the musical, tours, merchandise, and films, has amassed over $8.1 billion in revenue.
Despite this commercial success, the lion population, once numbering around 450,000 in 1950, has dwindled to approximately 20,000 today. Lions now inhabit only 8% of their historical range, found in just 25 countries, primarily concentrated in 8. They are extinct in North Africa, functionally so in West Africa, and under threat elsewhere. The urgency of their plight is underscored by their listing on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List, alongside other imperiled species like elephants and rhinos.
The 2019 iteration of The Lion King is hoped to draw attention to the lions’ plight, catalyzing conservation efforts and broader environmental awareness. Disney’s global conservation initiative, Protect the Pride, aims to raise awareness of this crisis and support lion population recovery through philanthropy. Through this campaign, Disney seeks to safeguard not just a species, but the delicate balance of the entire “circle of life” that encompasses all living beings, humans included.
In Disney’s The Lion King, Claire Martin, the self-proclaimed “resident conservation nerd” and senior manager of the Disney Conservation Fund and Disney’s corporate social responsibility, emphasized the potential to use their platform to inspire people. Disney has collaborated with the Wildlife Conservation Network (WCN) based in California, which works to identify and support organizations dedicated to saving endangered species worldwide. The Lion Recovery Fund (LRF), a constituent of WCN established with the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, has already provided $5.5 million to 53 conservation entities across 17 African countries within less than two years.
Peter Lindsey, the director of LRF, highlighted the importance of lions as an umbrella species, affecting the overall ecosystem health. Lance Williams, a founding donor of LRF, emphasized the aim to create a global movement for healthy human-wildlife coexistence. The focus is on innovative conservation strategies, with the Lion Recovery Fund acting as a clearinghouse to fund, nurture, and share successful initiatives.
Paul Thomson, director of WCN’s conservation programs, stressed the urgency of the situation, stating that there is no time to waste. Despite the decline in lion numbers, the casual observer in Africa may not realize the severity of the situation due to lions’ typically visible presence in prides. However, the reality is that lion populations are dwindling rapidly due to various factors, including competition with other predators, diseases, and human threats.
Joss Kent, CEO of the travel and safari company &Beyond, reflects on the consequences of human indifference towards wildlife, noting that lions are paying a heavy price for our lack of concern. While some level of natural attrition occurs within lion populations, the primary threats come from human activities. Lions are particularly vulnerable due to conflicts with humans, diseases, and territorial disputes. The need for urgent action to protect lions and other wildlife is crucial, as the current trajectory is unsustainable.
A significant portion of the population resides outside protected areas and national parks, often in remote and unmonitored regions where poaching thrives, or near human settlements and livestock. The interaction between humans and lions is complex, as these apex predators pose a threat to people and their livelihoods. Colleen Begg, a conservationist working in northern Mozambique, emphasizes the detrimental impact of lion attacks on human lives, leading to retaliatory killings and a loss of support for conservation efforts. In regions like southern Tanzania and northern Mozambique, lethal encounters between lions and farmers have been a common occurrence, driven by conflicts over resources. Begg and her team have implemented strategies to mitigate these conflicts, such as building shelters and promoting safety measures, resulting in a reduction of lion-related incidents in their area. Additionally, lions’ predation on livestock further fuels tensions, often culminating in retribution killings by affected communities. The escalating human population and livestock numbers in Africa exacerbate these conflicts, while the demand for lion body parts in Southeast Asia adds another layer of threat to these majestic animals.
In the realm of traditional medicine, a deceased lion can fetch up to $1,500, a significant sum for a villager whose typical monthly income may be $150. Tiger bone wine has been revered as a symbol of status in this region, believed to imbue the drinker with attributes of bravery, wisdom, and strength. However, due to the dwindling population of tigers, which are closer to extinction compared to lions, lion bones have become an accepted alternative. Lindsey expresses concern over the extraction of bones from wild lions, labeling it as ethically abhorrent.
Lions primarily feed on meat, but their natural prey is becoming scarce. As human populations expand, competition for grazing land between livestock and wild ungulates, such as antelopes, buffaloes, wildebeests, zebras, and warthogs, intensifies, leading to a decline in wild ungulate populations. Additionally, lions face threats from human poaching for bushmeat. Many instances of poaching in Africa are driven by the need for protein rather than valuable ivory or horn, with impoverished rural communities turning to poaching as a means to feed their families and earn income. This trend is on the rise, with national parks and reserves often littered with snares, inadvertently trapping lions as well.
The habitat of lions is shrinking rapidly, with 90% of their historical range now lost due to human settlement, agriculture, deforestation for charcoal production, logging, and other activities. The loss of habitat contributes to their diminishing numbers, as highlighted by the observations of Darwin and Wallace regarding extinction rates on smaller islands. Connectivity between protected areas is crucial for the survival of lions, enabling them to migrate in search of prey and maintain genetic diversity. If these corridors become unsuitable due to human encroachment or prey scarcity, it could transform natural habitats into de facto zoos, threatening the existence of lions.
It is essential to recognize the pivotal role of apex predators like lions in maintaining a balanced ecosystem. Lions are integral to the food chain, and the presence of these big cats signifies a healthy environment. Conversely, a decline in lion populations can indicate ecosystem degradation, with far-reaching consequences for human well-being.
The African savanna, where lions reside, covers a significant portion of the continent and plays a vital role in supporting biodiversity, carbon sequestration, watershed protection, and the sustenance of both wild and domesticated animals. Lions, as herding hunters, contribute to the ecosystem by preying on ungulates, a process that maintains ecological balance and sustains biodiversity. Despite their relatively low success rate in hunting, the impact of lion attacks on ungulate herds is significant.
The harsh reality of the savanna is also filled with wonder: Herds gather in fear, stamp the ground, then gallop away. In doing so, they disturb the soil, revitalizing the seedbed, leading to a resurgence of grasses, which in turn attracts the next migration. Without lions, the grass will not flower, migrations will not be triggered, and stationary herds will become infested with parasites. The absence of lions will result in medium-sized prey like zebras being more aggressively hunted by hyenas, causing their populations to dwindle and leading to a dominance of large prey like buffalo. This imbalance will push the environment towards collapse. Lions are essential for the ecosystem, hunting in prides to maintain balance across vast territories.
“I hope that people grasp the ‘circle of life’ concept from the movie. It’s about space and the significance of blood scattered across the savanna.” Keeping Focus
Despite the concerning status of lion conservation, there are signs of hope. African governments are showing strong political determination to address the issue. While there are substantial areas designated for conservation, the key challenge lies in funding shortages. Conservationists have clear strategies and methods, and lions have the ability to rebound swiftly due to their high reproductive rate.
The Lion Recovery Fund (LRF) has set an ambitious target to double the lion population by 2050 to 40,000. This goal has attracted support from Disney, drawn to the transparency of the initiative. Disney appreciates how involvement with LRF enables them to back various organizations, ensuring all donations go directly to field efforts, with partners covering administrative costs. The Protect the Pride campaign empowers people to make a difference, and Disney is proud to contribute to lion recovery efforts.
Progress is evident through organizations supported by LRF, which are implementing innovative approaches to foster coexistence between humans and lions. For instance, the Korongoro People-Lion Initiative (KopeLion) in Tanzania employs local warriors to warn herders of lion movements, promoting harmony between communities and wildlife. African Parks, another LRF grantee, led by Prince Harry, is working on restoring core lion habitats and reintroducing lions to areas where they have disappeared, such as Liwonde in Malawi.
Efforts are underway to combat the illegal trade in lion body parts through stricter law enforcement. The travel industry has also made strides in supporting conservation, with safari companies aligning their operations with wildlife protection. These initiatives are crucial for safeguarding Africa’s unique wildlife and landscapes, attracting global visitors seeking to experience the beauty of the continent.
First and foremost,” says &Beyond’s Joss Kent.) But they are naturally competitive with each other, and so their actions have been piecemeal—a lion collaring here, a rhino dehorning or translocation there. Now, they are coming together in LRF’s recently created Lionscape Coalition. Thus far, &Beyond, Wilderness Safaris, Singita, Ultimate Safaris, and Dazzle Africa have joined, and Joubert’s Great Plains Conservation has just announced that it will, too. The companies will each be donating $50,000 annually to LRF, and LRF will in turn deploy half of that to support lion projects in each company’s area of operation and half to projects beyond the tourism hotspots. Lion cubs in Tanzania. Godong – Getty Images All of this is encouraging. But to save panthera leo in a decisive way, says Peter Lindsey, who co-authored a scientific paper on the subject, “we need $1 billion a year.” This may sound formidable. “But remember, it is peanuts in geopolitical terms.” “Conservation is very expensive,” emphasizes Colleen Begg. (Niassa, the reserve where she works on easing human/lion strife, is 16,000 square miles—the size of Massachusetts.) “And the most important thing I realized sitting here in the bush is that we can’t do it alone. “We must involve local people in a meaningful way. We must incentivize them to address the disappearance of lions by developing economic opportunities for them. There must be revenue sharing. There must be performance payments for meeting conservation goals. Their children must be educated about conservation. These are among the poorest people in the world. If we don’t find a way for them to benefit and reduce the costs to their communities, conservation is never going to work. There will be no future for lions.” WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP Donate to the Lion Recovery Fund: With LRF, 100 percent of your donation goes to assiduously vetted fieldwork. Visit African Wildlife Areas: Paying to experience the wilderness economically helps preserve it. Travel Off the Beaten Path: Spread the love—all African countries with lions in them need contributions to their tourism economies. Don’t Buy Trinkets Made With Wildlife Products: Simple as that. Avoid Any Tourism Settings With Captive Animals Except for Accredited Zoos: The penned lion farms in South Africa are a travesty of conservation although they are marketed as supporting it. There is zero benefit to wildlife if you pet baby lions or “walk” with older ones, and some of the lion-bone trade originates here. You Might Also Like 12 Weekend Getaway Spas For Every Type of Occasion 13 Beauty Tools to Up Your At-Home Facial Game
