Video footage shows the moment that an elderly man was attacked by a lion at a wildlife park in South Africa.
The attack, believed to have occurred Saturday at the Marakele Predator Park in South Africa, a wildlife park that is the home of at least a dozen big cats, was prompted after Mike Hodge, 67, entered the enclosure.
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Video footage of the incident shows Hodge, the owner of the park, walking back towards the gate to exit the enclosure when he is spotted by the lion, who begins to give chase. The large cat jumps on him as onlookers scream in horror before it drags the man, who goes limp in the lion’s jaws, behind a bush. The animal does not move away from the man until a shot rings out, prompting the large cat to flee.
Hodge suffered injuries to the neck and jaw and is currently in the hospital recovering, the Daily Mail reports.
This is not the first lion-related attack to happen in South Africa in recent months. In January, trophy hunter Pero Jelinic, 75, died after being struck by a stray bullet while hunting lions on a remote farm that practices “canned” lion hunting.
Jelinic, who was a hotelier from Croatia, had traveled from the island of Pag to Leeubosch Lodge, a four-hour drive from Johannesburg and just 40 miles from the border with Botswana, to complete the hunt in an attempt to complete his trophy collection. He had already killed one lion and was preparing to shoot a second when he was struck by the bullet.
Leeubosch Lodge, where the hunt took place, is known for practicing “canned” lion hunting, in which the animals are kept in confined, fenced-in areas without the possibility of escape in order to allow hunters the best possible chance at a kill. The practice is highly controversial among both animal lovers and hunter
A month later, in February, human remains believed to be of a suspected poacher were discovered at a private game park near Hoedspruit in the northern province of Limpopo, close to the Kruger National Park.
It was reported that little remained of the victim, though a hunting rifle was found near the body, leading officials to believe that the victim had been poaching.
Poaching in the area has been on the rise in recent years. Last year, several lions were discovered poisoned near a farm in the province of Limpopo. Their heads and paws had been sawed off. Poachers have also targeted rhinoceroses in the area due to the heavy demand for their horns in China, Vietnam and other Asian countries, where it is believed to have medicinal qualities.
