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Cecil the lion: Slain lion's cub is killed by rival male sparking fresh fears for the pride's remaining seven cubs' survival

The rival male is thought to have been attempting to take over Cecil’s pride and mate with the three lionesses

Loulla-Mae Eleftheriou-Smith

Sunday 09 August 2015 12:56 BST

Cecil the Lion, before he was killed by American hunter Walter Palmer (EPA) (Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority / HANDOUT /EPA)

One of Cecil the lion’s cubs has reportedly been killed by a rival lion looking to take over the pride and mate with the group’s three lionesses.

The Sunday Mirror reported the cub had been killed, and that the remaining seven cubs only have a five per cent chance of survival, according to wildlife guides at Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park.

Cecil the lion was killed with an arrow after he was lured off of the national park’s land by professional hunters and an American dentist Walter Palmer, who had paid £35,000 for the opportunity. The arrow did not kill Cecil immediately and the lion took 40 hours to die.

The most controversial animal killings

Show all 6

1/6The most controversial animal killings

The most controversial animal killings

Cincinnati Zoo worker shots and kills Harambe, the 17-year-old gorilla

Harambe, a 17-year-old gorilla was shot and killed by a Cincinnati Zoo worker after a three-year-old boy climbed into a gorilla enclosure and was grabbed and dragged by Harambe. The incident was recorded on video and received broad international coverage and commentary, including controversy over the choice to kill Harambe. A number of primatologists and conservationists wrote later that the zoo had no other choice under the circumstances, and that it highlighted the danger of zoo animals in close proximity to humans and the need for better standards of care

Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden

The most controversial animal killings

Walt Palmer (left), from Minnesota, who killed Cecil, the Zimbabwean lion (pictured here with another lion shot in Africa)

Walter James Palmer has been named by Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force as the shooter of Cecil, a 13-year-old prized lion. He is now wanted by Zimbabwe officials on poaching charges. The lion was protected and the subject of a decade long study by the Wildlife Unit of Oxford University in the UK. He was outfitted with a GPS collar and was killed in Hwange National Park. The Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Authority and the Safari Operators Association said that two men were charged with poaching in connection to Mr Palmer

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Kendall Jones hunting images

Kendall Jones, a 19-year-old Texas Tech university student, has provoked worldwide fury after posting pictures of herself smiling next to animals she hunted, including a lion, rhinoceros, antelope, leopard, elephant, zebra and hippopotamus

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Rebecca Francis hunting images

Rebecca Francis, a huntress who has killed dozens of wild animals has been sent death wishes by furious social media users after a picture showing her lying down next to a dead giraffe was circulated. Rebecca Francis has a website and Facebook page dedicated to the animals she has killed in hunts across Africa and America. Francis, a prolific hunter who has also co-hosted the television show Eye of the Hunter, regularly posts pictures of herself posing next to dead bears, giraffes, buffaloes and zebras, among other animals. She uses a bow and arrow to kill her prey

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The slaughter of Marius, an 18-month-old healthy giraffe in Copenhagen Zoo

Copenhagen Zoo made the controversial decision to euthanise a healthy giraffe named Marius, which was later dissected and fed to lions as visitors watched. The slaughter sparked a furious backlash from social media users and zoo staff have received death threats by phone and email. Soon after the incident, Copenhagen Zoo faced an international outcry once again after four healthy lions were put down

The most controversial animal killings

Swiss Dählhölzli zoo kills healthy brown bear cub

A Switzerland zoo faced heavy criticism from animal rights groups, after keepers put down a healthy brown bear cub to spare it from being bullied by its dominant male father. The 360 kg male bear Misha had already killed one of his 11-week old cubs in public and was bullying the second, staff at the zoo said, because he was jealous of the attention the cubs were receiving from their mother, Masha. Both adult brown bears had been donated to Bern’s Dählhölzli zoo in 2009. Campaigners condemned staff there for not separating the cubs, who are being referred to as Baby Bear Two and Baby Bear Three, and their mother from Misha after their birth in January

Facebook

Palmer, reportedly a regular trophy hunter, maintains that he believed the hunt was legal when he carried it out. But the death of the lion sparked public outrage and the dentist reportedly went into hiding after he was named as the killer of the protected animal.

Cecil’s pride now comprises of three lionesses and seven cubs, which have been attempting to hide after leaving their den following Cecil’s death.

Walt Palmer (left), from Minnesota, who killed Cecil, the Zimbabwean lion

A source told the newspaper that the pride needs to keep moving to survive, but the cubs are too young to trek long distances.

“The females must become nomadic and keep running. The cubs only have a five per cent chance of survival. It is a disaster,” they told the Sunday Mirror.

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