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Most lions now live in eastern and southern Africa, and
their numbers there are rapidly decreasing, with an
estimated 30–50 percent decline over the last two decades.
Currently, estimates of the African lion population range
between 16,500 and 47,000 living in the wild in 2002–2004,
down from early 1990s estimates that ranged as high as
100,000 and perhaps 400,000 in 1950. The cause of the
decline is not well-understood, and may not be reversible.
Currently, habitat loss and conflicts with humans are
considered the most significant threats to the species.
The remaining populations are often geographically
isolated from each other, which can lead to inbreeding,
and consequently, a lack of genetic diversity. Therefore
the lion is considered a vulnerable species by the
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural
Resources, while the Asiatic subspecies is critically
endangered. The lion population in the region of West
Africa is isolated from lion populations of Central
Africa, with little or no exchange of breeding
individuals. The number of mature individuals in West
Africa is estimated by two separate recent surveys at
850–1,160 (2002/2004). There is disagreement over the size
of the largest individual population in West Africa: the
estimates range from 100 to 400 lions in Burkina Faso's
Arly-Singou ecosystem. |
Conservation of both African
and Asian lions has required the setup and maintenance of
national parks and game reserves; among the best known are
Etosha National Park in Namibia, Serengeti National Park in
Tanzania and Kruger National Park in eastern South Africa.
Outside these areas, the issues arising from lions'
interaction with livestock and people usually results in the
elimination of the former. In India, the last refuge of the
Asiatic lion is the 1,412 km² (558 square miles) Gir Forest
National Park in western India which had about 359 lions (as
of April 2006). As in Africa, numerous human habitations are
close by with the resultant problems between lions, livestock,
locals and wildlife officials. The Asiatic Lion Reintroduction
Project plans to establish a second independent population of
Asiatic lions at the Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary in the Indian
state of Madhya Pradesh. It is important to start a second
population to serve as a gene pool for the last surviving
Asiatic lions and to help develop and maintain genetic
diversity enabling the species to survive.
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