Lions avoid livestock

While cows may be afraid of lions, research tracking the predators’ avoidance of areas with cattle reveals some truth in the fictional land of Oz. Cowardly lions will avoid herding areas when livestock aren’t even currently present. “Even though cattle are supervised by herders and brought into enclosures at night when lions become active, the wildlife is still indirectly affected,” said Neils Mogensen, a doctoral student at Aarhus University in Denmark, in a press release. In a new study published in Biological Conservation, Mogensen and his colleagues recorded wildlife and livestock behavior in the Maasai Mara Conservancies, a conservation area in southwestern Kenya home to pastoralist Maasai people. The area is also popular among tourists who come to see lions (Panthera leo) and the annual blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) migration. The researchers found that lions avoid grazing grounds even when cattle are not currently there. “Lions have a natural fear of cattle and their herders, and as cattle numbers increase, it is the lions that retreat,” Mogensen said. They also found that cattle density had the largest effect on lion density, but that other livestock like goats and sheep also impacted lions’ presence. In their publication, the researchers said their findings support creating specific grazing-free zones. This measure may help limit human-wildlife conflict and conserve lion populations.