A black-maned lion in Kenya. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler.
Frustrated Kenyan herders are lacing corpses of cattle with poison to kill lions in revenge for the great cats attacking their livestock. Using a highly-toxic pesticide—banned in both the US and EU—called carbofuran, the Kenyans often end up killing other animals as well, including scavenger birds and hyenas. Conservationists are warning that the revenge-killings are depleting an already low lion population and will eventually hit Kenya’s important tourism market.
To read more about the lion-poisonings: Updated: East Africa’s lions falling to poison.