The 'lion whisperer' of South Africa interacts closely with large cats.
South Africa's DINOKENG GAME RESERVE — In a South African wildlife refuge, the male lion walks into a clearing after stomping through the dense grass. The enormous cat is beckoned by a man who purrs. With a soft growl, the lion, Bayetsi, reaches out and strokes Kevin Richardson, dubbed the "lion whisperer," with its mane.
Kevin Richardson, popularly known as the "lion whisperer", interacts with one of his lions while walking in the Dinokeng Game Reserve, near Pretoria, South Africa.
Richardson hopes that by doing intimate acts with lions, he can draw attention to the predicament facing the declining population of African predators. Additionally, it forces him into a delicate discussion concerning how people should engage with lions. While some environmentalists find Richardson's message sound and sincere, others point out that there are limits to what he can do to address the larger issues that the threatened species faces.
According to some estimates, the number of lions in Africa's wild has decreased by more than 40% in the last 20 years, to roughly 20,000.
The sight of Richardson playing and relaxing with lions like a home pet might pass for an African bush circus act, and it was sure to go viral on social media. However, he makes use of the publicity to denounce the South African industry, wherein clients slaughter lions raised in captivity in rather small spaces.
Along with criticizing the tourist attraction of cuddling lion cubs in specially designed enclosures, he and others call that technique "canned hunting" and argue that the animals would not be able to survive in the wild and are frequently cycled into the "trophy" industry where they are shot for a fee.
Richardson used to work at a tourist site where visitors could pet lion cubs.
"Today's lion cub becomes tomorrow's trophy and the unsuspecting tourists have blood on their hands," Richardson said. He claimed that tourists "have been hoodwinked into believing that their contribution of funds is going into lion conservation."
A "dramatic and unexpected" decline in tourists and tour operators who sought out cub petting elsewhere forced one South African enterprise, the Lion & Safari Park, to recommence lion cub petting. It claimed that it does not sell its lions to hunters and instead retains them until they pass away from natural causes or donates them to "reputable" zoos and parks.
Today, 42-year-old Richardson, a married father of two, oversees a wildlife area in the Dinokeng reserve, north of Pretoria, South Africa, home to 31 lions. He claimed that several of the captive-bred lions, who are not allowed to be released into the wild, were saved from being sent to facilities where patrons would be able to shoot them.
A "dramatic and unexpected" decline in tourists and tour operators who sought out cub petting elsewhere forced one South African enterprise, the Lion & Safari Park, to recommence lion cub petting. It claimed that it does not sell its lions to hunters and instead retains them until they pass away from natural causes or donates them to "reputable" zoos and parks.
Today, 42-year-old Richardson, a married father of two, oversees a wildlife area in the Dinokeng reserve, north of Pretoria, South Africa, home to 31 lions. He claimed that several of the captive-bred lions, who are not allowed to be released into the wild, were saved from being sent to facilities where patrons would be able to shoot them.
Richardson stroked Bayetsi's chin, the lion, and remarked, "I have been accepted as part of the pride." Yet I must exercise extreme caution. They are big creatures that have excellent emotional communication skills."
Over the years, Richardson has been bitten and scratched by the lions, but perhaps more painful for him has been the backlash he has received after being seen on camera roaring or grappling with his pride.
Richardson's website states that he aims to encourage wildlife preservation through "education, awareness and funding." The goods includes T-shirts, key chains, and calendars.According to Richardson, the lions on his 1,300-hectare (3,200-acre) property are not raised by him; instead, they graze on donated cattle and antelope corpses.
Richardson stroked Bayetsi's chin, the lion, and remarked, "I have been accepted as part of the pride." Yet I must exercise extreme caution. They are big creatures that have excellent emotional communication skills."
Over the years, Richardson has been bitten and scratched by the lions, but perhaps more painful for him has been the backlash he has received after being seen on camera roaring or grappling with his pride.
Richardson's website states that he aims to encourage wildlife preservation through "education, awareness and funding." The goods includes T-shirts, key chains, and calendars.
The president of the conservation organization Panthera, Luke Hunter, praised Richardson for his "authentic" and passionate concern for lions, stating that "his messaging, for what he has and what he can do, is good."
However, Hunter underlined the need for more comprehensive lion conservation, which includes measures to save ecosystems and combat poaching, which results in antelopes and other lion-prey ending up in the bushmeat trade and lions becoming entangled in carelessly set snares.
Concerns about the demand for lion bones used in traditional medicine in some Asian nations are relatively new, and there may be a growing trend among poachers to target lions in order to satisfy this need. At the moment, South Africa permits the annual, authorized export of bones from hundreds of lions raised in captivity to China and Southeast Asia.
Richardson talked of his close relationship to the animals.
"The relationships I have with them are purely to give them a better quality of life in a captive situation," he stated. "I will look after them as long as I can.
"Richardson talked of his close relationship to the animals.
"The relationships I have with them are purely to give them a better quality of life in a captive situation," he stated. "I will look after them as long as I can."
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