Kafue Lion Project

The overall aim of the project is to establish a strategic management plan for lions in the greater Kafue National Park (KNP) system, including the surrounding Game Management Areas (GMAs), which would contribute towards a better understanding and the sustainable management of the lion populations of KNP and Zambia as a whole.

Researcher: Mr Neil Midlane

Background
National parks in Zambia are state-run, fully protected, and under the mandate of Zambia Wildlife Department (ZAWA). Most national parks are surrounded by GMAs where some consumptive utilisation of wildlife is permitted. Although GMAs fall under the jurisdiction of local chiefs and Community Resource Boards, ZAWA retains ownership of all wildlife, and generates significant revenue from hunting concessions (lease fees) and quotas (license fees).

Zambia currently has the fourth largest lion hunting industry in Africa. Long-term harvest data (1977-2008) show that the number of lion hunted nationally decreased markedly after 1992, then remained stable (with the exception of 2001-2002 when hunting was temporarily banned) at approximately 50 trophies per year, until 2008 when it dropped to its lowest level ever with just 10 trophies taken. Lion quotas remained relatively constant throughout this period, suggesting that the decrease in offtake was reflective of an overall population decline. Despite this, and a lack of population data for GMAs and national parks in general, quotas continue to be negotiated for and allocated annually. There are also allegations of underage (<3 years) male and female lion being shot, and of hunts occurring inside national parks. 

The legal destruction of lion from hunting (and, to a lesser extent, problem animal control due to conflict with livestock owners) is compounded by illegal poaching. It is difficult to accurately assess the impact of snaring on lion populations, but it appears widespread in all of Zambia's national parks, and even more so in GMAs.

Objectives
This study will investigate the conservation concerns facing lion in KNP and adjoining GMAs. Two main study areas will be reflected: a protected site on the Busanga Plains in the north of KNP, and a non-protected site with similar habitat composition in the adjacent Kasonso-Busanga (KB) GMA.

It will assess whether the KNP acts as a source population for hunting in adjacent GMAs, and if those GMAs draw entirely from the protected population rather than fostering resident populations of their own. The prevalence of wire snaring in KNP and GMAs will be investigated, along with its impacts on the lion population and their prey. Finally, it will investigate whether levels of persecution from legal and illegal killing of lion outside the KNP are so high that the protected population is unable to increase and may be diminishing.

Methodology
Lion density, pride composition, causes and rates of mortality, reproductive performance, and spatial patterns of lions in the two study sites will be examined. Prey abundance in the two study sites will be estimated, and expected lion density (based on prey availability) will be compared with observed lion density. The total population size of lion in KNP will be estimated and mapped.

The study will compare lion offtake with annual quotas in all GMAs surrounding KNP to determine the proportion of hunts that were successful. Hunting success will be related to the methods used and effort expended during hunts. In addition, it will examine lion trophies to determine whether underage (<6 years) or female lion were hunted.

Questionnaire surveys will be conducted with different stakeholders on their perceptions regarding the consumptive and non-consumptive utilisation of lion in Zambia, and other factors pertaining to lion conservation.

Outputs
The aim is to produce, in conjunction with relevant stakeholders, a management plan setting out the principles for sustainably managing the lion population in the Kafue National Park system.