Makomoto farmers live in fear of lions

RYER GABATHUSE
Staff Writer | Friday August 12, 2011 00:00

Mirriam Samson, 61, heard about the presence of lions in their area last week through some concerned residents.

'The information has been spreading like veld fire and it has instilled fear as our movement in the area is now limited which means that we are unable to do our chores with ease,' says Samson.

She has just arrived at her home from Kaisara cattlepost, further west of her residence where they water their cattle at the borehole.

'I came here literally running and that's why my clothing is torn because I feared for my life. We are not used to seeing lions here and we just do not know how we can live alongside such fierce animals,' she declares displaying her torn dress.

 She has heard that the lions are about five in number and have been killing cows as evidenced by carcasses spotted by farmers in the area. Spoors of lions and carcasses are indications that the beasts are in the thickets of Makomoto.

'We fetch water from the borehole which is distant from here. Who can take chances going through the thickets infested with lions?' she wondered. She fears that if they tried to be brave, there was a likelihood of crossing paths with hungry lions, which could mean trouble.

'I have never seen a lion and I don't even want to see one because it could attack and kill me,' she says appealing for wildlife officers to come to their rescue.

Uncharacteristic of their area, a cow escaped  a lion attack only to die near a kraal in the neighbourhood. This instilled fear in her mind fearing that with humans, the lion will have an easier catch. Mirriam's elder sister Margaret Samson, 71 continues with the story: ' In the wee hours of Monday morning, a lion roared in the bushes sending shivers down the spines of many.

'I could not sleep immediately after that until it was late morning,' she says adding, 'The lion was kind of marking its presence in the area.'

Now with lions reportedly roaming freely in Makomoto, villagers find themselves caught off guard, as they are afraid to go into the bushes to attend to the call of nature, as there are no toilets.

'I cannot really tell you how we do it now, but we are afraid we can't go very far from our dwelling places for fear of the lions,' declares Margaret giggling.

She says that she would not leave her grandchildren home alone for fear that they could be attacked and as such she has been grounded since moving with them (children) in the thickets might pose a serious risk.

Speaking to the principal wildlife officer from the Francistown regional office, Steve Sekhute confirmed the presence of two loose lions yesterday, which he said could have migrated to the Serule area by now.

He said due to the disturbing movement of cattle, farmers and motor vehicles in the area, the lions have been highly mobile.

Sekhute suspected that the lions could be heading for the CKGR where the game reserve will definitely give them peace of mind.

He confirmed the worries of the farmers that at least five carcasses have been discovered in Makomoto, whilst one was spotted near Gojwane. The wildlife boss has raised a warning, 'people should ensure that they don't provoke lions and instead they should try to be vigilant and be sober so as to act reasonably.'

Sekhute indicated that if people spot the lions they should inform the wildlife officers who have currently set camp around Serule to assist.

'We have pleaded with farmers not to kill the lions because they could in the process fail to kill but simply injure them thus making them even more dangerous,' said Sekhute.