Lions Kill 27-Year-Old Tracker, Devour His Body In Wildlife Reserve

In a horrific incident, a 27-year-old tracker in South Africa was mauled to death by two lionesses.

The tracker was performing his normal duties such as checking for wildlife to assist guides with planning their game drives when the incident took place.

The police spokesperson Brig Mojapelo told media outlet The South African the tracker had stopped his vehicle at one point and began walking on foot.

“As he was walking, he was attacked and killed by two lionesses,” Mojapelo explained.

The officers said they went to the scene and found the lions devouring the victim’s body. Both the lionesses were immediately shot and killed by the rangers.

The South African National Parks authority (SANParks) confirmed to the South African the two lionesses were killed, and added a necropsy will be performed on their bodies.

The tracker, who was identified as Malibongwe Mfila, was employed at Marataba Safari Lodge, which is situated in the Marakele National Park in Limpopo’s Waterberg district in Thabazimbi.

Local media reports said another person, who was driving in the park at the time, saw the attack. The eyewitness saw lionesses with the body and alerted the park manager.

“When the lion acts like that, obviously it will repeat the same deed," Mojapelo said.

SANParks Acting Head of Communications Reynold Thakhuli mentioned “at this stage, the South African Police Services has taken over the scene and the investigation is currently ensuing,” while SANParks Chief Executive Officer Fundisile Mketeni said the death of the tracker left the staff “distraught.”

Last year in Madrid, Spain, an animal keeper at a zoo suffered serious injuries after being mauled by a gorilla. The 29-year-old gorilla attacked the zookeeper when he entered a protected area for routine feeding and cleaning. "The events took place this morning, around 10 a.m. when a keeper with 19 years of experience at the zoo accessed the indoor facilities for the usual breakfast routine, cleaning and preparing the facilities," a statement by the zoo read. "Upon entering a bounded area with a triple door, the caretaker met Malabo, a 29-year-old male gorilla, who had accessed it."