Savi ng Lions from Trophy Hunting F A S T F A C T S Lions onc e oc c upied Asia f r om t he M id d le E ast t o E ast er n Ind ia. T hey ar e now ex t inc t in t heir ent ir e Asian r ange, ex c ept f or a single isolat ed populat ion of a f ew hund r ed in Ind ia’ s Gir F or est . It is est imat ed t hat a c ent ur y ago, t her e c ould hav e been as many as 2 0 0 ,0 0 0 lions liv ing in Af r ic a. T he lat est sur v ey s est imat e t hat t her e ar e f ew er t han 40 ,0 0 0 w ild lions in Af r ic a t od ay . Lions ar e now f ound in only a hand f ul of Af r ic an c oun- t r ies, and mor e t han 8 0 % of t heir hist or ic r ange is gone. T he gr eat est t hr eat s t o lions ar e k illing by people w ho ow n liv est oc k , habit at loss, and loss of pr ey base. In ad d it ion t o ot her t hr eat s ov er t he last d ec ad e, at least 5 ,6 6 3 lions w er e t r ad ed int er nat ionally f or t r ophy hunt ing pur poses. M or e t han half of t hese lions w er e impor t ed t o t he U nit ed St at es. The problem: Lions are in peril as ne ver before due to growing human populations and corresponding habitat loss, loss of prey spe cies, human-lion conflict, and sadly, over-exploitation from trophy-hu nting. Li ons have all but disappeared from their historic habitat outside of Africa and with an estimated 40,000 individuals or fewer remaining in the wild, lions face a real risk of extinction. Our solution: IFAW takes a holistic approach to protecting lions and other wildlife including promoting policy change , building capacity in range states for anti-poaching patrols, providing wildlife trade enforcement trainings, and supporting community- based development projects that help both wildlife and the human communities thrive. How you can help: GET INVOL VED Learn more about lions and other threatened wild carnivores in the IFAW report: “The Fading Call of the Wild: A Status Update on 15 Species of Disappearing Wild Cats and Canids.” http://www .ifaw.org/callofthewild DONATE Donate to IFAW to support habitat protection and anti-poaching efforts in Africa and the campaign to end the unsustainable and unnecessary killing of lions by American citizens. To donate, go to: www .ifaw.org/don ate or call 1-800- 932-4329. One of the most easily addressed threats to lions is trophy huntin g , primarily by wealthy overseas tourists. United States c itizens account for more than 50% of the lions killed for trophies. IFA W has joined a coal ition including Defenders of Wildlife, Born Free, Hu mane Societ y of the United States and Humane Society Inter national, to petition the US government to list lions as Endangered under the Endangered Species Act. This listing will make it illegal for US citizens to import dead lion trophies into the U nited States and will dramatically decrease the number of lions killed for sport. International Fund for Animal Welfare | 290 Summer Street Yarmouth Port, MA 02675 | 800-932-4329 [email protected] | www.ifaw.org © C O R B I S © I F A W / J . H r u s a