Lions are a symbol of Africa’s last wild places. It’s a species central to many of the continent’s cultures and religions. But lion populations have reportedly declined over the past 50 years, especially in parts of west and east Africa.
Concern over this decline has prompted large financial commitments to shore up numbers. These investments must go hand in hand with the critical work of closely monitoring lion populations. It’s important to understand how their numbers and their distribution respond to conservation actions such as anti-poaching, managing conflicts with cattle farmers, and securing protected areas.
Many traditional methods used to count lions can produce unreliable results. And many existing estimates are based on assumptions about vast expanses which have not been surveyed.
