Cecil the Lion killed with bow and arrow.

[Alycidon]

As most of the western world is up in arms about this I am surprised nothing has been posted here. It was headline news yesterday on the BBC for most of the day.

To bring you up to speed:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...n-dentist.html

This 13 year old male lion was very well known, probably the most well known wild lion, he was collared and tagged. He was lured out of his reserve by a PH and local, then wounded with a bow and arrow at night before being found 12 hours later and shot.

The press are saying ( and I appreciate that this may be incorrect) that the hunter was a US dentist who paid 35,000 dollars for the privilege. He then wanted to take an elephant presumably with the same bow but could not find one big enough.

I can understand that the guy was no doubt mislead and advised that he had a legitimate Lion in front of him however personally I find the whole thing distasteful.

I know that Lion are sometimes taken to pay for the conservation projects but quite why someone would feel the need to drop the hammer so to speak on such a magnificent beast unless it was a stock killer and had to be removed is beyond me. Surely the challenge is getting up close, then a camera would be just as good. The marksmanship if close enough to wound it with an arrow is hardly a challenge with a rifle. No way is an arrow a suitable weapon for such a beast, if you are going to kill something at least do it cleanly. If I was shooting a Lion I would want at least a .404, they are huge and bite back.

Must be a bit like shooting a small tame Hereford bullock. I suppose if I were 40 years younger I would have thought differently.

Dont quite know what sort of reaction this will create, I just wonder what other peoples reaction is to this sad train of events.


A


Jim, If this gets nasty then please delete the thread, I have no wish to upset people.