How SAVE and Löwenbräu are securing a new generation of lions. With fewer than 20,000 animals estimated to exist in Africa, lions are classified as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Lions were once native to three continents, but have since disappeared from 94 percent of their historic range.
The long-term partnership of the Löwenbräu brand with SAVE is now to enable a new generation of lion cubs with a newly launched project.
The cooperation is initially set to run for three years. The brand will donate an annual sum of 15,000 euros to the joint project. In addition, the new generation of lions is also celebrated by a donation of 1 euro per crate of Löwenbräu sold. In this way, an additional 60,000 euros will be raised to actively protect the lion population in Botswana.
As an attention-grabbing kick-off to the project, small blue lion cub replicas of real lion statues were distributed around Munich for the design launch in November 2022, and the Spaten Tower featured an installation. The newly designed bottles will be available in stores from November 2022.
„We are very proud of a new collaboration with SAVE in which we can secure and enable the next generation of lion cubs in Botswana.“
– Peter Cermak, Managing Director Spaten-Löwenbräu GmbH –
The area is located southeast in the Okavango Delta. Concessions NG32/35 are separated by the Buffalo fence and host 9 communities (NG32: Ditshiping, Xaxaba, NG35: Quqao, Shorobe, Xharaxhao, Boro, Daunara, Morutsha, Matsaudi) in which about 4210 people live. Residents have always worked in campgrounds, lodges or hotels and offer canoe and boat tours as well as game drives, however the main source of income is livestock.Â
Next Generation
Löwen schützen Botswana, Afrika
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The Okavango Delta in Botswana is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and home to many endangered species. Today, only about 1,200 lions live here. Again and again, the animals are shot or poisoned by the inhabitants of the delta. In most cases, the reason is that the big cats attack the residents’ livestock. Although the farmers try to protect their livestock as much as possible, the predators still manage to snatch livestock again and again. According to statistics from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP), the project area has the highest number of conflicts with lions.
Against this background, SAVE would like to launch the lion conservation project “Next Generation” in cooperation with Löwenbräu. The project team will work with researchers and villagers to analyze the conflict situation and implement effective solutions for herd protection so that the adult lions and their offspring are sustainably protected. A lion alarm system is designed to prevent conflicts between residents and lions, thus helping to effectively protect the next generation. The goal is to equip up to five lion prides with GPS transmitters, depending on the possibilities. To do this, one animal of each pride is anesthetized and given a collar with an integrated GPS transmitter. This is not dangerous for the animals, the GPS collars do not disturb them and fall off on their own after three years. Every two hours, they send a signal to the researchers via satellite that reveals the lions’ whereabouts. Based on the data, the researchers can see to where the animals are moving at any given time. This allows them to determine a critical line along which encounters are likely to occur. The alarm system is based on a dynamic geofence system. A geofence is a virtual fence that draws a virtual radius around an area to be protected.
Just like a real fence, a geofence creates a separation between this location and the surrounding area. Unlike a real fence, it is also able to detect movement within these virtual boundaries and send an automatic warning to residents without telling them the exact location of the animals.
To use the system, participants must register. To do this, they enter their name and a cell phone number, after which they receive an automatic notification as soon as a lion approaches.
In addition, the impact of lion population declines on the ecosystem will be studied. These findings will help to find solutions that serve both the protection of the lions and the safety of the residents and their livestock.
The threatened situation of the big cats requires our urgent attention. Dwindling habitats and clashes with the human population pose a serious threat to the lions. It is time to take decisive action to ensure the survival of these fascinating animals.
