A Zimbabwean farmer has told how he narrowly escaped being eaten by a lioness for whom he went hunting after she killed six of his cows.
Joel Ngwenya, 54, recounted how he and the
big cat stared at each other for a few moments before she pounced and
knocked him to the ground.
Pinned
down by her massive paws, he said he fainted with fright but later awoke
to find he had escaped with just bites to his arms.
He
and four villagers had gone looking for the animal, in Matabeleland
North near Zimbabwe's celebrated Hwange National Park, on Tuesday after
she killed five of his cows in just one night and one the following day.
They
had not gone far when they came face to face with the lioness and one
of her cubs. The other hunters ran away into the bush but Mr Ngwenya
said he was frozen to the spot.
"It
looked straight into my eyes and started roaring while approaching me
steadily. At that moment, intense fear engulfed me and I started
sweating," he told the Bulawayo Chronicle.
"It then came on top of me. I looked at it
straight into its eyes too. It just stood there looking at me." To his
surprise, the animal then walked away to check on its cub. But moments
later, it approached him for a second time.
"At that time, it started biting me on both my arms," he said.
He fainted and awoke to find the animal gone. "I don't know what happened.
It just left me lying down and went away," he said.
Now recovering in hospital in Bulawayo, Mr Ngwenya called for better controls on Zimbabwe's wild lion population.
"I would like to urge relevant authorities to do something about these lions because our lives are in great danger," he said.
"At that time, it started biting me on both my arms," he said.
He fainted and awoke to find the animal gone. "I don't know what happened.
It just left me lying down and went away," he said.
Now recovering in hospital in Bulawayo, Mr Ngwenya called for better controls on Zimbabwe's wild lion population.
"I would like to urge relevant authorities to do something about these lions because our lives are in great danger," he said.
Hello there, You have done a great job. I'll certainly digg it and personally recommend to my friends. I'm sure they'll be benefited from this web site.
ReplyDeleteMy web site - my article network review