Lion on the loose in S. Africa kills 15 sheep

A lion that escaped from a wildlife park in South Africa two weeks ago has killed 15 sheep, authorities said Thursday, admitting that it had evaded all efforts at capture.

The three-year-old animal is believed to have slipped through a hole in the fence at Karoo National Park in the Western Cape, prompting a massive search that included using a helicopter.

“It is still missing, we haven’t found it. It is two weeks and we are trying everything to get it back to the park,” park spokeswoman Fayroush Ludick told AFP.

“We have got rangers and trackers trying to follow its tracks for 15 hours a day.

“So far it has killed 15 sheep on various occasions, often not eating them.”

The animal has not been caught despite the use of a hand-held device that emits sounds of lion prey, and a red hartebeest carcass being left out as bait.

The lion is believed to have been forced out of the park by older males.

Three weeks ago, a 29-year-old female US tourist was mauled to death by a lion in a Johannesburg game park after she wound down the windows of car she was travelling in.