A powerful roar rocked the forest before the silhouette of a lioness appeared at an Indian reserve, a potent image of how conservation efforts have brought the creatures back from the brink.
In Gir National Park, Asiatic lions reign over a 1,900sqkm expanse of savannah and acacia and teak forests, their last refuge.
Gir’s success stems from more than three decades of rigorous conservation to expand the lions’ range, which now raises questions about the future of coexistence with humans.
Park chief Ramratan Nala celebrates the “huge success”: lion numbers have risen by a third in five years, from 627 to 891.
“It’s a matter of pride for us,” said Nala, the head of government forests in the sprawling Junagadh district of the western state of Gujarat.
The Asiatic lion, slightly smaller than its African cousins, and identified by a fold of skin along its belly, historically roamed from the Middle East to India.
By the early 20th century, only about 20 remained, nearly wiped out by hunting and habitat loss.
“They’ve been resurrected from the brink of extinction,” said wildlife biologist Meena Venkatraman.
After India broke free from British rule in 1947, a local prince offered “his” lions sanctuary.
In recent decades, the authorities have invested heavily by protecting vegetation, securing wells and roads, and even building a hospital.
“The thing about lions is that if you give them space, and you protect them and you give them prey, then they do extremely well,” said Andrew Loveridge, from global wild cat conservation organisation Panthera.
In 2008, they were removed from the IUCN Red List of species threatened with extinction, and moved to the “endangered” category.
Unlike in Africa, poaching is virtually absent.
“The local people support the conservation of Asian lions,” Nala said, reporting zero cases of poaching for more than a decade.
“These are our lions,” his deputy Prashant Tomas said. “People are very possessive about them,”
Local communities fiercely protect the lions for cultural, religious and economic reasons, because they attract tourists.
Loveridge said that people accepted some livestock would be lost.
“In general, they’re less likely to kill the lions in retaliation for livestock losses, which is something that is very prevalent in many sites in Africa,” he said.
“Indian wildlife managers have managed to contain that conflict, to a large degree – in many ways, that’s their secret to success.” — AFP
