10 Things You Need To Know About Cecil The Lion And The American Who Killed Him

Sad month for Zimbabwe tourism, the biggest lion in Africa was killed earlier this month by an American hunter who should be called a poacher really. Here’s what you need to know about the famous king of the jungle-Cecil and the most hated man on the internet Walter James Palmer.

1. Cecil was thirteen years old and the biggest and most famous lion in Africa for his distinctive black mane.

2. Cecil the lion was a high profile lion in the country, very popular with the tourists who visited Hwange National Park.

3. Cecil the lion wore a GPS collar as part of the research project at Oxford University which has been running since 1999.

4. Unfortunately Cecil died after being led to leave the park, shot by a bow and arrow, hunted for forty hours before he was killed and beheaded.

5. The man who killed Cecil is an American dentist from Minnesota who is known for traveling the world killing animals for “sport”. His name is Walter James Palmer.

6. Palmer reportedly paid two guides at the National $50,000 to have the permission o shoot and kill Cecil.

7. The two park guides, Theo Bronkhorst and Honest Trymore Ndlovu are facing charges for assisting in Cecil’s killing.

8. This is not the first killing for Palmer who in 2008  plead guilty to making false statements to the US Fish and Wildlife Service after he illegally shot and killed a black bear in Wisconsin.

9. Palmer says he regrets killing Cecil but goes on to blame the local authorities. The backlash on the killing of Cecil has forced the dentist to close his dental practice.

10. Cecil’s cubs have to be given up for dead because a new male won’t allow them to live.

Here is a video of Cecil the lion in his healthy days.