Six lions have been found dead in the Queen Elizabeth National Park in Western Uganda. The carcasses of lions were found last evening at the Ishasha Sector with most of their body parts missing.
Eight dead vultures were also found at the scene which points to a possible poisoning of the lions by unknown people.
Bashir Hangi the UWA’s communications manager said that they were “saddened” by the killings. UWA cannot rule out illegal wildlife trafficking due to the fact that some of the body parts of the lions were found to be missing.
A team of investigations is on the ground and collaborating with the Uganda Police in Kanungu District in the handling this matter.
Death of Lions, A Big Stroke to Tourism
UWA strongly condemns the illegal killing of wildlife because it doesn’t only impact negatively Uganda’s tourism but also revenue generation which supports conservation and c0mmunity development in protected areas.
“Nature tourism is an important part of Uganda’s economy, contributing about 10% of its GDP, and plays a vital role in the conservation of animals “Bashir Hangi furthermore stated.
He said UWA strongly condemns the illegal killing of wildlife because it does not only impact negatively on our tourism as a country, but also revenue generation, which supports conservation and community work in our protected areas.
Tourism revenue plays a critical role in improving the livelihoods of the people that live around Uganda’s national parks. UWA gives back 20% of gate entry fees to the communities neighboring through the revenue sharing scheme. In the last five years, a total of 4,457,283,992 was shared by the communities living around Queen Elizabeth National Park to enhance their livelihoods.
In the previous incidents, a number of lions have been believed to have been poisoned in Queen Elizabeth National Park. For example in May 2010, five lions were found dead due to similar incident and 11 lions – including eight cubs – were found dead after a suspected poisoning in April 2018.
The Uganda Wildlife Authority assures the public that it shall continue to strengthen the protection of lions and other wildlife in Uganda. The Authority assured that the matter of the death of six lions will be pursued to its logical conclusion.
