U.S. Already Quietly Loosened Limits On Lion Trophies Last Month

The Brutal Glory Of Life On The African Plains A British photographer has captured life in all its brutal glory on the plains of Africa. During his trip to Namibia Dave Stevenson snapped some of the creatures that c... The Brutal Glory Of Life On The African Plains A British photographer has captured life in all its brutal glory on the plains of Africa. During his trip to Namibia Dave Stevenson snapped some of the creatures that call the country home - from the mighty lion down to the shy banded mongoose. In one sequence a lion shows off its fearsome hunting skills as it feasts contentedly on a zebra it has brought down. As it eats its fill the predator is watched from a distance by a pack of hungry black-backed jackals. However, showing that they clearly weren't invited to dinner the lion chases off any that dare to venture too close. With its hunger satisfied the big cat even appears to have a quick snooze with its head resting on the carcass. Eventually, however, it moves off and the pack of jackals descends for a feeding frenzy. Elsewhere, elephants make the most of a watering hole to cool off with a mud bath. A trio of giraffe seemed practically joined at the hip as they stand on a lonely dirt track, while the glorious setting sun bathes another in shades of orange and yellow. Meanwhile, two zebra battle it out by exchanging vicious blows with their hind legs, while a ground squirrel stands on its to scout for trouble. MUST CREDIT PHOTOS BY: Dave Stevenson / Rex Features For more information visit http://www.rexfeatures.com/stacklink/CNUQFHTLE (Rex Features via AP Images) MORE LESS
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WASHINGTON (AP) — One month before the Trump administration sparked outrage by reversing a ban on trophies from threatened African elephants, federal officials quietly loosened restrictions on the importation of heads and hides of lions shot for sport.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began issuing permits Oct. 20 for lions killed in Zimbabwe and Zambia between 2016 and 2018. The agency is also currently studying whether to add three additional countries to the list — Mozambique, Namibia and Tanzania.

Previously, only wild lions killed in South Africa were eligible to be imported.

In two recent tweets, President Donald Trump said he will delay the new policy on allowing elephant trophies, but he made no mention of lions. Trump, whose adult sons are avid big-game hunters, also expressed skepticism about his own administration’s claim that killing threatened animals could help save them by helping raise money for conservation programs.

“Big-game trophy decision will be announced next week but will be very hard pressed to change my mind that this horror show in any way helps conservation of Elephants or any other animal,” the president tweeted on Sunday.

Trump weighed in after a strong public backlash against reversing an Obama-era ban on elephant trophies, which became public through a written notification posted in the Federal Register. Officials said there was no such legal requirement for notifying the public about the policy change on lions.

In late 2015, the Obama administration added two subspecies of African lion to the list of animals protected under the Endangered Species Act. Due to poaching and habitat loss, the number of lions living in the wild is in sharp decline — from an estimated 200,000 a century ago to less than 20,000 today.

The additional protections were added a few months after Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer sparked international outcry by killing Cecil, a beloved 13-year-old lion who lived in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park. Palmer paid $54,000 to bow-hunt Cecil on private land just outside the park.

A photo of Donald Trump Jr. holding a knife and the bloody severed tail of an elephant he reportedly killed in Zimbabwe in 2011 has also drawn ire from animal rights activists.

Wayne Pacelle, the president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, said he is encouraged that the president is taking a second look at the issue.

“Keeping elephants and lions alive is a key to economic progress in so many African nations,” Pacelle said. “Trophy hunting robs these nations of their greatest resources, diminishing the wildlife-watching experiences of so many tourists. Any U.S. sanctioning of trophy hunting sends a particularly contradictory message at a time when the world has been rallying to save elephants and lions.”

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