“I know I’m not alone here when I choose the lion. There is something truly awe-inspiring about the power and beauty of these magnificent cats.

Lions have enthralled humans for as long as we have existed. Living alongside cave lions shaped our earliest behaviours. Lions were the first animals that humans represented in figurative art, and their importance has persisted throughout human history, playing a vital role in our heraldry and culture.

Even today, more countries have the lion as their national animal than any other creature. They might seem rather generic, just a sandy-coloured large, sleepy cat. But watching their sinewy staking, looking into their gaze, and hearing that roar close-up at night takes me straight back to a primal human. The fact that lions have been so central to human culture for millennia and yet we have only one or two generations to decide on their future as a wild predator is deeply concerning to me and is a major reason for my work. I hope more than anything else that future generations live in a world where lions and all the other amazing wildlife thrives in the wild, and that lions become a true asset to people locally and internationally.”

www.ruahacarnivoreproject.com
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My Big 5

Lion
Leopard
Cheetah
Spotted Hyena
African Wild Dog