Rangers searching for a lion that escaped from Karoo National Park outside Beaufort West a week ago said on Friday they had spotted the animal and were confident of returning it to the park.
Park manager Nico van der Walt said the lion was briefly spotted by ranger and tracker teams for the first time at midday on Thursday since being on the animal’s trail from last Friday.
“The trackers followed fresh spoor yesterday morning in the same gorge where the search ended the previous night. The lion was briefly spotted at midday and a helicopter assisted in the search from then until late afternoon, with a veterinarian on board,” said van der Walt.
“The ground team swept the thick bush area for most of the afternoon where they found the fresh running spoor but the lion escaped the area.”
The ranger and tracker teams had headed out again at first light on Friday in search of the lion.
“Although they are tired, they are confident that they will successfully return the lion back to the park," van der Walt said.
He urged residents on farms around the park not to approach the lion if spotted, but rather to report sightings to park officials or the police.
- African News Agency (ANA)
