wish to make an appeal to our current President GEJ to please look into the plight on Nigeria's Lions, who need us most at this crucial hour. If a small budget of funds could be allocated into West African Lion Breeding and Conservation Program, me and many Nigerians including the Gods will be eternally grateful to you.
NIgerian Lion Cub
I am a Northerner and this affects me most since all the Nigerian Lions are located in our territory.
Our Lions cannot speak for themselves, so let us speak on their behalf.
The West African Lion is a different species from those lions you normally see on Nat Geo., etc., that are mainly South and West African Lions.
The West African Lion is more closely related to the now recently extinct Barbary Lions of the Maghreb (largest lion species in the world) and also share a relation with the Asiatic Lions of Gujarat, India.
The Barbary Lions and West African Lions don't subscribe to the Pride/Clan system like South and West African Lions. They roam solitary in pairs.
These are the same Brave lions that fought gladiators in Roman Arenas and the same lions that early christians were fed to in the Roman Empire. They are also the same Lions mentioned in Ancient West African Folk Tales, Aseop's Fables, etc.
If we lose them now, we lost them forever.
Senegal Lion
Lions are NOT difficult to breed. They even breed well in captivity. Therefore if we put some effort now, we can work wonders for our future generations and the stability of the ecosystem.
In 2009 , Kainji Lake National Park and Yankari Game Reserve were estimated to contain a
combined total of 44 individual lions (29 in Kainji Lake, and 15 in Yankari) , at which time the
current status of lions in Nigeria was described as critically endangered. In 2011 the combined
lion population of these two sites had declined to an estimated 34 adult lions (32 in Kainji Lake,
and 2 in Yankari) .
Lions 'facing extinction in (NIGERIA) '
There has been a "catastrophic collapse" in the number of lions in West Africa, with only around less than 400 left in the region, a new survey suggests.
With fewer than 250 mature lions of breeding age, there are concerns the entire population could disappear.
Of these , only 27 Breeding Lions are surviving today in Nigeria.
25 in Kainji National Park and 2 Lions in Yankari Reserve.
The rest are juveniles, with around 15 juveniles in Kainji and 2 juveniles in Yankari.
The report says lions now roam in just 1.1% of their historic range in West Africa. The majority of their habitat has been converted for agricultural use, says Philipp Henschel, co-author of the report.
Panthera is calling for the lion to be listed as critically endangered in West Africa.
"Our results came as a complete shock; all but a few of the areas we surveyed were basically paper parks, having neither management budgets nor patrol staff, and had lost all their lions and other iconic large mammals," Mr Henschel told the BBC's Sivaramakrishnan Parameswaran.
The conservation of lions in West Africa have been largely neglected , whereas in eastern and southern Africa where millions of dollars a year are spent , he said.
These lions have unique genetic sequence not found in other lions including in zoos or captivity. If they are lost then a unique locally adapted population will become extinct, researchers say.
Large-scale plantations for cotton and food crops have contributed significantly to the decline of the lions in the last decade, the survey found.
Today, lions are largely restricted to protected areas, and the poaching of animals - usually preyed upon by lions - to supply local bushmeat markets is probably the main threat, said Mr Henschel.
" In some areas, we also witnessed the retaliatory killing of lions by herdsmen that entered protected areas illegally with their herds of cattle and goats," he said.
As you see in the above map, Lion are left only in 3 Areas, with the largest population of 200 + lions in Benin Reserve. (Benin Republic).
Funding crisis
A lack of funding for conservation coupled with an increasing human population and impoverished economies, means lions are increasingly vulnerable, researchers say.
"We are talking about some of the poorest counties in the world - many governments have bigger problems than protecting lions," Mr Henschel said. (BOKO HARAM, etc.)
West African Lions have special significance in the culture of the region. They are a symbol of pride for the governments and people, and are represented on the coats of arms of several countries.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) says concerted international help is urgently needed.
Benin and Senegal are working with the research team to establish a National Lion Action Plan to identify ways and measures to save the lions in their countries.
Nigeria doesn't even care for its Lions meanwhile.
"Lions have undergone a catastrophic collapse in West Africa. The countries that have managed to retain them are struggling with pervasive poverty and very little funding for conservation," says Panthera's President Luke Hunter.
To save the lion will require a massive commitment of resources from the Nigerans themselves.
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