A new use for lion tracking expertise
Many of the Lion Guardians are murrans (Maasai warriors), respected individuals whose legendary lion tracking skills were previously used to find and kill lions.
Olubi killed seven lions before becoming a Guardian. Among the lions he killed was a female that was pregnant with five cubs. He regretted killing this lioness so much that he volunteered to become a Lion Guardian instead of continuing to kill carnivores.
Now, this deep knowledge of lion tracking – acquired through life as a Maasai warrior – gives the Guardians a distinct edge when it comes to surveying lion populations.
And because the Lion Guardians are well-respected, they are uniquely qualified to handle community conflicts which arise over lions.
Given that the Guardians come from the communities in which they work, and are older murrans (many have also killed lions in the past) they are very well respected by their communities and can assuage a tense situation with angry warriors seeking revenge for their dead cow.
Tradition meets technology
Lion Guardians use their exceptional lion tracking experience – along with GPS units and telemetry receivers – to monitor lions in their areas. Each Guardian has a cell phone for reporting ant significant lion sightings – or any illegal activity.
In addition, the Lion Guardians learn how to educate communities about carnivore importance and conservation – and they work to prevent further killing of lions by deterring other murrans from carrying out lion hunts.
The Guardians also play an important role in their communities by:
- Informing herders where carnivores are present – so those areas can be avoided
- Improving livestock enclosures (bomas)
- Helping herders locate livestock that have gotten lost in the bush – especially weaker livestock – which has been a particular problem during Kenya’s drought
Becoming a Lion Guardian
Maasai who wish to become Lion Guardians are selected by an interview process that considers a variety of criteria:
- Poverty levels
- Physical fitness
- Leadership qualities and tracking skills
- General wildlife knowledge
- Lion killing history
Once the applicants are narrowed down to a short list, they begin a one month volunteering period, working with experienced Lion Guardians.
About Rhishja Cota-Larson
“The project’s goal is to secure a sustainable future for carnivore conservation” ??
What ?! “carnivore conservation” is worried that it could work itself out of a job ? Oh that would be just tooo bad !
Do we really want a world without Lions (even if they are carnivores)? It’s so great to see a project developed and run by the local people affected. Read the Lion Guardians blog at http://lionguardians.wildlifedirect.org/ You can also donate to support their wonderful work.
From the author:
Thank you, Pat. I personally think Lion Guardians is an excellent concept – and there is certainly an urgent need in the world for new conservation strategies!