“The fact remains that lions are wild animals and no matter how habituated or tame they might seem, they remain unpredictable and instinctive.”
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge / FacebookSeventy - year - honest-to-goodness game reticence owner Leon Van Biljon was maul to end by the lions under his care .
As regal as they are , it ’s important to remember that lion and other heavy cats are wild animals . Even when they are used to human comportment , these beasts can make unpredictable movement .
Which , as describe by South African news siteNews24 , is exactly what happened to Leon van Biljon , a gaming modesty owner dub “ The Lion Man ” who was mauled to death by the lions at his own reserve .
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge/FacebookSeventy-year-old game reserve owner Leon Van Biljon was mauled to death by the lions under his care.
According to the report , Biljon was attacked while lean to a disordered fence inside the lions ’ enclosure at the Mahala View Lion Game Lodge , nearby the townspeople of Cullinan .
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge / FacebookLeon Van Biljon was know to staff members and visitors as “ the king of beasts man . ”
As he was fixing the fence , Biljon had his back toward the three lion inside the enclosure . One of those Leo went straight for Biljon ’s neck . stave members of the reserve rapidly shot down a phone number of lions follow the onset . However , when paramedics arrived at the conniption , the 70 - year - old was already numb .
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge/FacebookLeon Van Biljon was known to staff members and visitors as “the lion man.”
“ The decision to shoot the social lion was made by people on the premiss so as to get to the gone , ” Xander Loubser , a aesculapian interpreter told the press . “ It is now a police matter , so the Isle of Man ’s corpse have not yet been remove . ”
All the social lion that were shot and killed during the attack belong to Biljon .
Cullinan Police spokeswoman Connie MoganeditoldCNNthat neighbor from the nearby indian lodge responded chop-chop to the attack and adjudicate to avail the honest-to-god man . But to no help .
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge/FacebookThe attack began after one of the lions lunged at Biljon’s neck.
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge / FacebookThe attack began after one of the lions lunged at Biljon ’s neck .
concord to thegaming lodge ’s internet site , the Dinokeng Game stockpile brag “ the Big 5 , ” a reference to the top five biz wildlife most assay out by hunter — leopard , elephant , rhino , water supply buffalo , and , of course , social lion .
The gambling reserve had three lions in captivity named Rambo , Katryn , and Nakita . The sharpness of the reserve shares the same property as Biljon ’s personal lodgings which itself offer accommodations , game thrust , and conference features .
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge/FacebookBiljon during a presentation about the lions to guests.
The internet site also state that Biljon offered “ undivided lion lectures , feedings and game drives for invitee . ”
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge confirmed the death of their “ Lion Man ” witha brief Facebook messagealong with a local report of the onrush : “ expectant expiration for everyone . R.I.P. Uncle Leon . ”
Mahala View Lion Game Lodge / FacebookBiljon during a presentation about the lions to guest .
It ’s no closed book that Big Game is big business organization in Africa . An estimated 6,000 to 8,000 lions are bred and hold in absorbed in lion farms and bema in South Africa , where more than 200 installation go . While attacks in incarceration like this might not always make the news , they do happen .
The majority of them , in fact , involve engrossed lions more than any other strain of Big Cats .
“ About 60 percent of all the reported attacks on human due to predator fundamental interaction , involved captive - bred lion , rather than cheetahs or tigers , ” Four Paws Director Fiona Miles enunciate .
The grisly expiry of Biljon is a reminder that human beingness working at these facilities are interact with wild animals , not dearie .
“ These attacks can be avoid by not allowing any unnecessary human - wildlife fundamental interaction , ” Miles channelize out after convey her organisation ’s sympathy for Biljon ’s family . “ The fact remains that lions are wild creature and no matter how habituated or tame they might seem , they remain irregular and natural . ”
Next up , read about howa pride of Panthera leo ate a group of poachers alivein a South African game backlog . Then , read the horrific story ofthe “ lion farm ” that slaughter 54 Leo in two days — and sold their remains .
