Tanzania: 10 lions found dead, poisoning suspected

The macabre discovery was made on September 18 in the Ndutu region in northern Tanzania. Employees of the Ngorongoro reserve found 10 dead lions there. The authorities said in an official statement that preliminary results indicate that the lions may have been poisoned.

This is a growing problem in many regions of East Africa. According to experts, lions that attack farm animals are sometimes targets of retaliation from humans.

Ngorongoro authorities emphasize that similar cases pose a serious threat to the balance of ecosystems. Just last month, four people were detained on the Kenyan side of the border on suspicion of poisoning 18 elephants.

A wealth of fauna protected by UNESCO

The Ngorongoro Reserve is one of the largest and most famous wildlife ecosystems in Tanzania. Since 1979, it has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Over an area of ​​over 8,000 square kilometers there are upland plains, savannahs and forests inhabited by an extremely rich fauna - from lions, through elephants, buffaloes, to the endangered black rhinos.