LION PARK ATTACKS: TOURISTS BEWARE

A US tourist was killed and a tour guide injured in a lion attack at Johannesburg’s Lion Park.

JOHANNESBURG – Today’s shocking news of the death of an American tourist at the Lion Park near Lanseria has sparked backlash on social media with various comments referring back to previous incidents, also at the Lion Park. The two people were travelling in the car with their windows apparently open.It’s understood a lioness jumped through the open window, biting the woman who was in the passenger’s seat.The driver, a tour guide, was badly injured while attempting to free the woman from the animal's grasp and was taken to hospital with severe injuries.The most recent incident was in April when Australian Brendan Smith was bitten by a lion after rolling down his window. In a Facebook post he said, ‘No later than 36 hours after touching down in Africa I find myself in hospital after a lion jumped through the car window and decided to go to town on my legs. Pretty full-on but am alive, with insurance coming to the party and an influx of curious Africans wanting to see ‘the lion man’. Could have and should have been a lot worse but chicks dig scars so I’ll be sweet!’ 

WATCH: A lion has her way with an Aussie tourist.

Animal accidents are not uncommon in South Africa, particularly where tourists are involved, usually due to the fact that park rules had not been followed. 

This is a list of incidents going back to 2011: 

MAN SHOVES HAND INTO LIONESS’S MOUTH 

A man shoved his arm into a lioness’s mouth at the Lion Park to keep her out of his car after he also left a window open. 

Ranesh Rajkaran, 28, luckily only suffered scratch marks. 

He and his wife, Somashnie, who was pregnant, had been celebrating their second wedding anniversary at the park. 

Rajkaran said he opened the windows a little due to the sweltering heat, not expecting a lioness to shove her paw through the gap. 

“I think she must have smelled the food in the car or maybe she just wanted to play,” he said.

RUGBY PLAYER AND FAMILY ATTACKED 

In December 2013, Former Griquas rugby player Brett Tucker and his family were attacked by a lion at the Lion Park. Tucker had his daughter on his lap at the time when a lion put its paw through the window which was slightly down. Her grandfather then threw her in the backseat. Tucker’s father suffered minor injuries to the shoulder after he tried to roll his window up, but accidentally rolled it further down.

MAN JUMPS INTO ANIMAL ENCLOSURE 

In April 2014, a man was mauled to death by lions after he allegedly jumped into the animals’ enclosure at the East London zoo. 

“According to the CCTV footage‚ the man entered the zoo this morning at around 9am. He paid the entrance fee and proceeded into the zoo premises. He was alone and did not display any signs of being emotional or distressed‚” said Buffalo City Metro spokesman Thandy Matebese. 

LIONS ATTACK TOURIST GROUP 

In August 2014, a video emerged of a lion attacking a car full of people. A film crew was visiting a wildlife sanctuary owned by “The Lion Whisperer” Kevin Richardson when one of the big cats began to claw the vehicle, eventually snapping the wing mirror clean off. The lions chased after the car which sped away. 

CROC DRAGS MAN UNDER AT GOLF COURSE 

In December 2014, Jacques van der Sandt (29) was killed by a crocodile at the Skukuza Golf Course in the Kruger National Park. Van der Sandt allegedly went for a late night swim at a dam called Lake Panic. He was dragged under water by the crocodile and later found in the jaws of the reptile, which was killed in order to recover the body.

US woman dragged from car and killed by lion in South Africa park

Lion reportedly pulled female tourist from car in Lion Park, where guests are advised to drive with the windows up

A woman has been killed and another injured in an attack by a lion at the Lion Park, Johannesburg, South Africa

An American tourist was mauled to death by a lioness after the animal bit the woman through a car window in a South African wildlife park on Monday.The 22-year-old woman and a male friend were on an afternoon drive in Lion Park, a tourist destination just outside Johannesburg that advertises “super close-up animal views guaranteed,” when the lion bit her through the passenger window.

“The lion approached from the left of the vehicle from the passenger side and it walked quite close,” said Scott Simpson, Lion Park’s spokesman.“The witnesses said they saw the guests taking pictures of the lion from a metre away, then the lion lunged at the car and bit the lady through the window.”

The vehicle believed to have been carrying the victim seen in a cordoned-off area inside a lion enclosure

Mr Simpson said that the park staff rushed to get the lioness off the terrified young woman, but were too late to save her life.

“When the paramedics were treating the lady she unfortunately passed away,” said Mr Simpson, a 28-year-old who has been working at the Lion Park for less than a year.

Mr Simpson said the American tourist was on a “routine” drive through an enclosure, which is approximately eight hectares large, with 12 lions inside.

“There was nothing special about this one,” said Mr Simpson about the fatal drive. "We have 200,000 visitors every year and an incident like this very rarely happens.”

A police van arrives at the Lion Park, where an investigation is under way

The South African male driver of the car was injured in the attack as he tried to save the tourist, according to reports. He was taken to a nearby hospital and his injuries are not life threatening, said Mr Simpson.South African police have opened an inquest. “The investigation is how the woman died, because she died unnaturally,” said Lieutenant Colonel Lungelo Dlamini, Gauteng province police spokesman.The US embassy said it was aware of reports of an incident involving a US citizen.

The lion attack is just one of a series of violent episodes seen at the popular park this year.

In March, an Australian tourist – who also had his window rolled down to take pictures – was bit in the leg by a lion and in April a 13-year-old boy was attacked by a cheetah on his bicycle, reportedly after deciding to cut the fence and take a short cut home through the park.

Lions scrap at the Lion Park in Johannesburg

“No later then 36 hours after touching down in Africa I find myself in hospital after a lion jumped through the car window and decided to go to town on my legs,” said the Australian tourist Brendan Smith in a Facebook post on March 26.

"Could have and should have been a lot worse but chicks dig scars so I’ll be sweet!"

Guests are advised to drive with the windows up when they go through the Lion Park, which has seen big name celebrities, such as Rihanna and Shakira, visit the grounds.Even when the car doors and windows are firmly shut, guests in wildlife parks are at risk. Last year, a man filmed a curious lion in South Africa opening a car door.Despite the loss of human life, Mr Simpson was unable to comment on what will happen to the lioness who bit the tourist. “Obviously we’re incredibly sad that this happened, our condolences go out to the family,” he said.Still, said Mr Simpson, “we won’t euthanise it, that’s not an option.”

Terrifying moment a lion attempts to attack a car driver through an open window in South Africa

After Game of Thrones editor Katherine Chappell was tragically mauled to death by a lion that attacked her in her car, a further reminder of just how careful we need to be around big cats - even if we're in a vehicle - has emerged.Shocking footage posted online shows an African lion becoming fed up at being ogled at and deciding to turn a group of onlookers into its prey.The incident was captured on camera at a safari park in Johannesburg, South Africa, and shows the moment the lion goes from resting by the side of a car, to jumping up at the window to attack.

Shocking moment lioness attempts to get into car

The car driver can be heard attempting to frighten the animal away by blowing the horn as the predator attacks the side of the vehicle.The video maker records the animal as it fishes through the open window with its large paw.Later the filmmaker records the floor for a moment while ensuring that his own window is closed.After blowing the horn to no avail, the attacked driver begins manoeuvring the car out of the way.

According to the video maker, no one was injured by the lion and the driver was able to continue driving away after the camera stopped rolling.Katherine Chappell died in a similar incident in a safari park in the north of Johannesburg on June 1, 2015.

Engineer Ben Govender, 38, who was in the car behind Miss Chappell when the attack took place, said 'no one could have imagined' what would happen in the minutes after he took an extraordinary photograph showing the lion mounting the side of the vehicle.

South Africa lion attack kills tourist

A tourist believed to be from the US has been killed in a lion attack at a game park in South Africa, a park official has told the BBC.

The lioness jumped through the open window of the couple's car and started mauling the woman, assistant park manager Scott Simpson said.Paramedics were called to the scene but she died from her injuries, while the man is still receiving treatment.The popular Lion Park is 30km (19 miles) north of Johannesburg.The park's rules forbid visitors from driving through the lion enclosure with their windows down, reports the BBC's Milton Nkosi from Johannesburg.

Park rangers chased the lioness away after the attack, and it is not clear whether the animal will now have to be put down, our correspondent adds.Local media are reporting that the woman's death marks the third incident in the past four months at the park

Milton Nkosi, BBC News, Johannesburg

This afternoon's attack in the Lion Park came as a shock not only to the tourists and staff there but to me too.I am a frequent visitor to the park. It's a great place to take the family and I've taken my own kids there for as long as I can remember.We also take international visitors who want to have a feel of the African wildlife experience without having to drive for hundreds of kilometres into the bush.The park's location near to Johannesburg makes it an easy destination for many tourists who are in town for a short time attending a conference or business meetings.The lions are kept in large fenced-off enclosures which visitors can drive through themselves.

The official South African tourism website describes the park as a "hybrid between a zoo and a game reserve", while the Lion Park's website says "super close-up animal views" are guaranteed. Cheetahs, spotted hyenas and giraffe are also in the park.The Lion Park is one of the region's most popular destinations, attracting tourists from around the world.Previous high-profile visitors have reportedly included Colombian singer Shakira, Hollywood actress Natalie Portman, as well as the entire German football team before the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Germany's football team visited the Lion Park ahead of the 2010 South Africa World Cup

The wrath of an entire group of lions is unleashed on lone male who wanders too close to female's cubs

These protective lionesses lashed out without hesitation when a lone male approached their precious cubs - prompting all hell to break loose among the pride as they joined the attack.The lion was set upon by lionesses in Kenya's Masai Mara game reserve, where the unwanted stranger was soon forced to flee.Their rumble in the jungle took place within the Mara Triangle, which forms the western part of the reserve, bordering Tanzania.

The two leap at a lion who had approached their cubs in Kenya, Africa

Male cubs are ousted from the pride between two to three-years-old, but female cubs may stay indefinitely.The cubs are weaned between 7-8 months old.The reserve stretches for 580 square miles and the terrain is primarily grassland and forest with clumps of the distinctive acacia trees.

Two lions and two lionesses gang up on the lone lion. The lion on the right is the oldest of the group, as distinguished by its darker mane

Zoo which already boasts a half-tiger, half-lion liger welcomes three liliger cubs

They may look familiar but these big cats are extremely unique and rare.This big cat mother recently gave birth to three adorable liliger cubs at a zoo in Novosibirsk, Russia.Although the mother and her cubs look like tigers, she is in fact a lion-tiger hybrid known as a liger - the biggest known cat in the world.

Bizarre: A Russian zoo is home to a unique animal - the liger. It is half-lioness, half-tiger. Mother Zita is pictured licking her one month old liliger cub

Cute: The first liliger was born in the zoo last year and now there's a second litter of three, all of them females

Curious: The cubs were born in May and now have grown up enough to start exploring their surroundings... much to the concern of their mother Zita

Russian zoo welcomes half-tiger, half-lion "liliger cubs"

The first was born in the zoo last year and now there's a second litter of three, all of them females.They were born in May and now have grown up enough to start exploring their surroundings, showing an endearing clumsy energy.Their mother, Zita, was born in the zoo in 2004. Their father, Sam, is an African lion. The offspring of a lion and liger is called a liliger.The liger is the largest known cat in the world and holds similar characteristics to both lions and tigers.

Fluffy: A liliger is a big cat breed where the father is a lion and the mother is a lion-tiger hybrid, known as a liger

Just like tigers, they enjoy swimming and are very sociable like lions.They exist only in captivity because the habitats of tigers and lions do not cross in the wild.Ligers are known for growing bigger than either parental species.

Protective: Zita carries one of her cubs as another walks by her side

Half lion, half tiger - it's the baby liger... and his 64 stone brother

Their heads are shaped like a ­lioness’s, yet faint stripes and shorter legs suggest a different ­heritage. Are these lions or tigers? Neither – they are ligers, a cross between a male lion and a tigress.Four-week-old Aries hardly cuts a commanding figure as he sits on his big brother’s head. Yet the cub will grow to match colossal Hercules, who weighs more than 64 stone. Ligers grow at such an explosive rate, piling on about 1 lb per day, that by the time Aries reaches his first birthday, he is expected to weigh more than 26 stone.

Easy, liger: Hercules, at 64 stone, dwarfs trainer Moksha Bybee as she holds the cub at the 
reserve in South Carolina

When he is three, he could be more than 50 stone, and a few more years on he may challenge his brother for the title of the world’s biggest hybrid cat. Standing almost 6ft tall to the tips of his ears, Hercules has a page devoted to him in the Guinness World Records book. The siblings, both more playful than pure lions, were born at Myrtle Beach Safari wildlife reserve in South Carolina.

Picture perfect: Playful Aries rests precariously on his brothers head - by the time of Aries' birthday, he is expected to weigh more than 26 stone

The project is run by The Institute of Greatly Endangered and Rare Species (T.I.G.E.R.S.).

Its director, Dr Bhagavan Antle, said: ‘Aries could be just as big as Hercules and it is entirely possible he could be bigger. 

‘Generally lions and tigers don’t reproduce and the male lion breeding with a tiger has only happened three times.

‘The great thing about ligers is they have this extreme social ability they get from their lion fathers.They enjoy the social life and enjoy touching and interactive play.’

Trainer Moksha Bybee, 30, added: ‘The liger’s aggression is tempered by the mother tiger which gives them a greater social capacity. They love rolling against you and wanting to touch and play.’ 

The alternative combination of the two fiercest big cats – a cross between a male tiger and a lioness – is known as a tigon. They are as rare as ligers but smaller, and are being bred in China. Normally, it is virtually impossible for the two species to mate in the wild as lions are mostly found in Africa and most tigers on the Asian continent. The two tribes are also extremely territorial.Hercules is the heaviest from his litter of ligers, all of them born in 2002. 
He already has three brothers called Sinbad, Vulcan and Zeus. Ligers have lighter stripes than tigers and a lion-shaped head, but with little mane. Hercules’s face is 2ft 3in across and his 2in claws are the same size as those of a velociraptor dinosaur (famed for its role as a deadly predator in the film Jurassic Park).Like tigers, he also likes to swim – a feat almost unheard of among lions, which fear water.

Half lion, half tiger - it's a liger

Lion Vs Tiger: Who Do You Think Wins If They Get In A Fight?

When it comes to animals of the wild, lions and tigers are sure to be mentioned. Lion, in addition to being a powerful mythical character, is an animal whom most of the animals respect, thus earning him the title of the ‘the king of the jungle.’ Tiger on the other hand, is known for the strength in its paws and a lethal killer in the wild.But what happens when these two deadly beasts are pitted against each other?

Since ancient times

This battle of the two most dangerous animals of the wild is something which has piqued the interest of hunters, naturalists, poets and scientists since many centuries. Even today, their might is celebrated in popular culture and there have been numerous movies and shows where lions are portrayed as the ‘mightiest’ of all the animals in the jungle. After seeing all this collective agreement that if a lion and tiger were to fight, the lion is more likely to emerge on top. But the reality says something else.In Ancient Rome, lions and tigers were pitted against each other in arenas for the purpose of entertainment and betting. And it was found that most of the people placed their bets on tigers rather than lions!There was a tiger owned by the King of Oude who is said to have killed 30 lions in duel.

Why are tigers favoured?

For understanding the reason behind it, let’s look at their physical assets. 

1. Bite force: Tigers have higher average bite forces than lions. Their teeth are exceptionally strong, and they are the longest amongst all (measuring from 7.5 to 10 cm in length). 

2. Body Size: When it comes to body size, lions beat tigers. But as they say, physical strength is not the only factor which counts in a confrontation of two equally powerful species. 

3. Brain Size: Tigers have been found to have bigger brains than lions relative to their body size.

4. Nature: In any fight, this is the most crucial factor which makes a huge difference between win and loss. Lions are social species while a tiger is mostly a solitary being. Lions usually grow up in a ‘pride’ of almost 30 lions, where they play with other cubs and lionesses for passing their time. When a lion grows up, it is usually seen that it is the closely-knit community of the female lions in the pride which does the hunting. So a lion doesn’t get much chance to see what’s out there. Of the times when a lion goes out to hunt, it is usually accompanied by other lions. So it does not do any good to lions when it comes to handling sudden situations.

On the other hand, a tiger usually remains alone most of the time and interacts with the opposite sex for copulation. And since it remains alone for most of the time, it is better equipped to handle dangers and deal with them efficiently.

TIGER vs LION Real Fight video

Buffalo tries to fight off lions as they hunt her calf… only to watch her young devoured before her eyes

She blocked, she kicked, she fought.... but it was all for nothing.This is the heart-breaking moment a buffalo mother risked her life in a courageous attempt to rescue her calf from the jaws of lions.Sadly, she was outnumbered and overpowered, and no amount of self-sacrifice was enough to keep the lions away from her vulnerable baby.

The incredible series of pictures were taken by photographer Salome Hoogendijk, 30, who captured the brave mum trying to fight off the pride on the Duba Plains in Botswana. In the snaps, a lioness can first be seen pouncing on a lone calf.But maternal instinct kicks in and the buffalo mum immediately rushes to her young's side, putting her life on the line as she places her body between the lions and her baby.She acts as if she is going to charge towards the lions and for a moment it seems as if her rescue attempt could win the day.

But then the herd of lions split up and one attacks the mother while the other sets its sights on the now-vulnerable baby buffalo.The mother fights with all her might, still attempting to kick off the predators and save her young even after one lion jumps on her back.But her desperate last attempt wasn't enough in the end. The lions overpower the buffalo and reach the calf.All the mother can do is watch as the kings of the jungle devour her baby, fighting for their share of the kill.

The photographer from Pretoria, South Africa, who took the pictures in summer 2014, said: 'It lasted for around 20 minutes and it started off with the lion chasing the baby buffalo away from the herd. 'The mother dramatically came in and put her life on the line for her baby.

'At one point I thought the buffalo and calf was going to get away but then all of a sudden the lions split up and one jumped on the back of the mum and that scared her and she couldn't protect herself and her baby at the same time.

'She tried her hardest with kicking the lions off but they were just too strong for her.'It was incredibly heart-wrenching to watch the struggle between the two buffalo but it was so touching to see the mother buffalo put her life on the line for her baby like that.

'It shows that even animals love just as much as humans do.'

Croc vs lion: Big cat makes miracle escape from clutches of reptile

IF YOU'VE ever wondered whether a crocodile could make supper of a lion, here is your answer.

A video taken in South Africa's Kruger National Parks shows a croc stalking a young male lion which has jumped into a river.Onlookers can be heard exclaiming as the reptile closes in on the big cat, before it clamps its jaws around the lion's neck and drags it underwater.However, the lion emerges unscathed, and makes for the river bank as the hungry crocodile slinks away.Nadav Ossendryver, 18, from Johannesburg, owns the website where the clip was posted before being uploaded to YouTube, where it has now been viewed over 171,000 times.

Crocodile Attacks a Male Lion - Latest Wildlife Sightings

He said: "It was really incredible. Thousands of people share so many videos on our app, but this was one was special.

"I just thought it was amazing the way the crocodiles reacted when the lion appears. When he goes into that water, you just know something is going to happen."

Lions and crocodiles often clash over territory or food in Africa.

In August, a pride of lions saw off an attempt by a crocodile to muscle in on the carcass of a dead elephant in Kenya.

Dramatic Footage Shows Buffalo Escaping Lion Attack After Herd Swoops In To Save Her

Incredible footage has emerged that captures a buffalo’s dramatic escape from a pride of hungry lions — an escape made possible thanks to the actions of her herd.The video, captured recently on the sprawling grounds of Kruger National Park in South Africa, shows a female buffalo surrounded by four lionesses. After a brief struggle to remain upright, the buffalo is eventually brought to the ground and subdued.

But just when it seems all hope of survival has been lost, something quite remarkable happens; four other buffalo — well out of harm’s way — return to confront the lions, driving them off the female with a single charge.

Lions Attack Buffaloes - Another Battle at Kruger

Similar scenes between buffalo and lions have been captured on film only a handful of times, but this sort of behavior is not entirely uncommon, says Wayne M. Getz, Ph.D., a wildlife behaviorist at the University of California, Berkeley. In fact, Getz, who conducts research on the animals at Kruger National Park, told The Dodo he’s seen buffalo come to the rescue in this manner on several occasions.

“The buffalo being attacked in the video is a female, and those driving the lions away are young males. They will often intervene when there’s a calf or younger female involved,” says Getz. “While some people may call this behavior ‘altruism,’ that term should be used in quotes here. By protecting this female from predation, they are, in effect, helping to secure the reproductive future of the herd.”

African buffalo, with their broad, sharpened horns, are uniquely equipped to come to the aid of their fallen herd members. And fortunately for the female under attack, they stepped in without a moment to spare.

“Lionesses, like the four seen in the video, are no match for a group of male buffalo, which is why they seem so wary. You can see them scatter after the initial blow,” says Getz. “The males arrived just in time, as you can see, since the female runs off prior to being mortally wounded.”

Kruger National Park is the setting for perhaps the most famous footage of a buffalo herd defending their kind from attack. This video, titled “Battle at Kruger,” is among the most-viewed nature videos on YouTube —it's been watched more than 75 million times since it was uploaded to the site in 2007.

Battle at Kruger

Lion fight at Cheetah Plains in Sabi Sand

This series of photos was taken in the Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve in South Africa a few days ago, when Justin Glanvill, field guide at Cheetah Plains, managed to capture an episode of Africa’s most vicious battles. A lion fight broke out between two males; one, older and donning a more prestigious looking mane, and a second, looking slightly younger and less experienced than his opponent.

The younger male, bloodied, but still prepared to fight, bears his teeth ferociously at his opponent, who responds with his size and stature. Witnesses reported that the eruptive brawl had carried on for a couple of hours, typically tiring both males out, until one gives in and submits to the stronger lion.

Two lionesses had been hanging back throughout the brawl between the males and at this point started to inch closer, bearing their teeth threateningly and preparing what looked like to jump to the defense of the younger male. The larger male had approached the pride of 2 adult females, 2 sub-adult females and another young male; commencing mating with the 2 adult lionesses. In defense of their pride leader, these lionesses stepped in and one reportedly swiped the opposition male with a strong paw.

Ultimately, the scuffle seemed to die down, the opponents separated and the older male went to replenish himself at the nearby waterhole. Photographer and field guide, Justin Glanvill, suggests that this “spectacular” interaction is the result of the older male wanting to instigate a coalition with the younger male, rather than wanting to kill. He added, “Forming a coalition with the younger males would make sense, as otherwise he doesn’t stand a chance.” It’s survival of the fittest in the lion world and this is a magnificent display of just that.

Battle for pride: Two fearsome lions fight it out for pack supremacy as they claw at each other's eyes

Two fearsome male lions fight it out for supremacy and mating rights within their pride as they wrestle in the wilderness.They reared up on their hind legs, bit and clawed at each other's face and eyes and tussled in the dirt.Photographer Kenneth Watkins, 64, watched in awe from just 30 yards away as the noisy battled played out.

Brawl of the wild: Two male lions rear up on their hind legs as they fight it out for supremacy and mating rights

Brutal: One of the lions claws at the eyes of the other as they fight at the Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe

He was on safari at the Ngweshla Picnic site at the Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe, with his wife and their guide.Insurance consultant Kenneth said: 'They are two adult males who recently formed a loose coalition with three adult females.

'We believe the fight was to establish dominance between the two males. It was very noisy, and lasted about 20 seconds.'The older and darker maned lion had been mating with one of the three females earlier in the week.

'Once the older lion thought he had established dominance the two males went their separate ways.

'The youngster kept a reasonable distance for the rest of the day. He probably minor scratches but there was not very much blood.'Kenneth, originally from Sidcup, Kent, but now living in Greyton, South Africa, added: 'It was remarkable to watch, because in 15 years of safari, we had never seen lions fighting.

'Lions very rarely pay any attention to people in an open safari vehicle, so we were not at all scared.

'Lions are marvelous animals, unfortunately for photography they are mostly asleep, so to get some action was highly pleasing.'