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- A lioness that escaped while in transit in the North West has been located.
- Authorities say the situation is under control, and that the lion is nowhere near humans.
- They may not have caught it yet.
Conservation specialists have located the lion that escaped from the back of a bakkie while in transit in the North West, but it hasn't been caught yet.
The lioness was one of two lions that were being transported from a game farm in the North West on Wednesday.
On Thursday, Jonathan Denga, the director of biodiversity management and conservation in the North West Department of Economic Development, Environment Conservation and Tourism, said the situation was under control and that people were not in danger.
"We've managed to find the lion's tracks. It's in the bush around Stella, nowhere close to humans. It's not a danger," Denga said.
He added that a vet would sedate it.
Problem animal specialist Siyabonga Mseleku said the lion had chewed through its crate, created a hole, and escaped through it.
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Mseleku added that the inner lining of the crate was made of a plate of steel and that the outer lining was made of wood.
It is alleged that the lions' owner stopped in the vicinity of Tlakgameng to check on them when he discovered that one of them had escaped.
Nature Conservation spokesperson Jerry Matebesi said they were working with the police to find the lion.
Matebesi said:
Nature Conservation officials have advised communities in Setlagole, Stella, and Tlakgameng against catching the lion and have urged them to call the nearest police station instead.
Meg Wilson, the spokesperson for the National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said the Wildlife Protection Unit was investigating the incident.
