Hoodwinked and Extinct: The King of the Jungle, with a Kingdom in Rubble

A male African lion (National Geographic)

What happens when the king of the jungle is thrown off of his thrown? Chaos of course! Lions are some of the most vicious, yet majestic animals that humans have ever come in contact with. Lions are a perfect demonstration that the forces of extinction are unforgiving to even those animals that we think are abundant. It would seem that lions, which are some of the most powerful animals on the planet, would be able to persevere against factors of nature. Unfortunately, this is not the case, as humans, an extremely powerful force of nature, is taking its toll on lion populations around the globe.

Africa's trading partners (Direction of Trade Statistics Yearbook)

Lions are interesting and everything, but what real impact will a lion extinction have on me? This question can be answer by observing the amount of imported goods. The United States receives the largest amount of goods from Africa. In 2008, the United States recieved over $90 billion dollars worth of goods from Africa, according to the International Trade Administration (1). This is an economy that is without a doubt affected by the biological forces that surround it.

Although the animal kingdom isn’t exactly a monarchy, it does rely on the significant keystone species that determine the constant circle of life within an ecosystem. Lions, being the “lords of the animal kingdom” are actually an excellent example of a keystone species. A lion serves as the prime predator in an environment where it is the dominant carnivore. This status puts all animals by which a lion feeds in check by maintaining their population sizes. Carolina Tiger Rescue, a non-profit organization that specializes in preserving and monitoring large carnivorous cats, paints us a picture by which lion extinction would affect its ecosystem. The situation would, according to the CTR, “result would be excessive competition for food between the prey species, and also between these prey species and livestock” (2).

The pisaster starfish is a keystone species as it consumes other barnacles and mollusks. (Nature Education)

Lions are at risk because of a number of factors. Every one of these factors is a product of human impact. Human land development has increased across the globe and has caused habitat loss for lions. This habitat loss in turn leads to the hunting and displacement of lions. Lions are hunted in certain areas of the world for tribal rituals and for medicines. CTR also makes a note of a health issue lions are facing as an indirect result of global warming. This sickness is described to cause, “canine distemper and a tick-borne parasitic disease during times of severe drought; together, the diseases cause high mortality” by the Carolina Tiger Rescue.

This detailed explanation of the lion’s current status is by no means the first sight of the degradation of the global lion population. Lawrence Seretse points out that, “The report asserts that lions are now extinct in 26 countries, with only seven countries, Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Tanzania having an estimated number of more than 1, 000 lions” (3). These countries have put lions on the front lines of war in an attempt to hunt them for their goods.

Sultan the Barbary Lion at the New York Zoo

An example of a lion that has suffered a recent extinction is the Barbary Lion. A Barbary lion was characterized by its large build and dark mane. The lion was thought to be extinct in 1922 until recent records observe the possibility that they may have lived in the late 1960’s. The extinction of the “Royal” lion is unanimously agreed upon to be attributed towards over hunting. John R. Platt explains in his Scientific American article that, The Romans killed thousands of lions in their games, the Arab empire that followed squeezed the remaining animals into smaller territories, and the arrival of European hunters in the 19th century polished them off.” By the 19^th century, this species of lion’s populations dwindled, similar to that of the American Bison whose populations fell from habitat loss during migrations to the American West. (4) (5).

Cat Haven, a 100-acre refuge in the Sierra Nevada foothills (USATODAY.com)

In order to prevent today’s lions from the same fate as the Barbary Lion, humans must make an effort to realize the impact of human development of the habitats of lions (as well as other animals). One way in which we can do this is by setting up reserves by which lion populations can thrive free from the harm of human development. India’s supreme court brought such an idea to the table last week on April 18^th. In an effort to protect the populations of the Asiatic lion, the Indian government proceeded to translocate and breed Asiatic lions in the Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary. The only drawback of such a system is that epidemics could be quite fatal in a concentrated lion population. (6)

Another way in which lion population loss is observed and prevented is in the actions of the Walking for Lions (WFL) group. They yearn to spread awareness about the importance of lion populations and to educate people all around South Africa about the impact of lion extinction. Nampa-Sapa paints the picture of the organization’s actions. It is noted that, “the group will walk 30km per day and film the campaign to promote global awareness through social networking sites” (7). This way, people can actually know the drawbacks of a lion-less world, and the methods by which lions are killed.

The animal kingdom works a lot like a Medieval kingdom (hbo.com)

The animal kingdom has a lot in common with the kingdoms of men. Both royal foundations depend of fragile structures that allow the system to flourish and thrive. They also both operate on the basis of a hierarchy, one that cannot be damaged. If the hierarchy of a government like a food chain, were to break down, it would have unimaginable and irreversible affects on the kingdom by it is part of. The extinction of the lion will truly be one for the history books. However, this great travesty can still be prevented through actions that reflect those of the Indian Supreme Court or the Walking for Lions group. It turns out that this kingdom is more significant than any human institution. It’s about time we ALL HAIL THE KING!