Lion DNA has been used to successfully prosecute poachers for the first time in the world, it has emerged. Wildlife crime experts have only just revealed how they were able to identify the individual animal from body parts found in a suspect’s village, as they matched a profile on Zimbabwe’s lion database. A blood sample had previously been taken from the male lion, which was being tracked by authorities in Hwange National Park – using a radio collar.
Two poachers were convicted for the 2024 incident and sent to prison in what is thought to be the first prosecution of its kind. The details of the convictions and the role the DNA database played have been previously unknown. Non-governmental organisation (NGO) Traffic, which works to combat the illegal trade in wildlife, has shared the detail with us.
In May 2024, authorities in Hwange National Park became suspicious after a radio collar worn by a male lion stopped working. Investigators and police traced its last known position and found a snare with lion fur attached to it. After collecting forensic evidence they questioned two men in a nearby village and discovered three sacks of meat, 16 lion claws and four teeth.
[paywall]
These body parts would later be tested against the database, with the DNA from all matching the profile of that missing lion. But possessing lion parts is not necessarily a crime in Zimbabwe.
[/paywall]
All Zim News – Bringing you the latest news and updates.
