Science Makes a Breakthrough in Aging African Lions

By HCom

Washington, DC -(AmmoLand.com)- Marking a breakthrough in lion conservation, scientists can now accurately age African lions with a significant degree of certainty. Researchers with the Zambia Lion Project recently released two scientific publications outlining an innovative method for estimating lion age within six months using teeth.

“Accurate age estimation of African lions is urgently needed to address conservation issues,” says Joseph Hosmer, President of SCI Foundation. “This ground-breaking research will improve the management of lions and promote sustainable hunting.”

“While several monitoring programs consult tooth X-rays when estimating lion age, how those X-ray images correlate to actual age had not previously been quantified,” stated Dr. Paula A. White, Principal Investigator with the Zambia Lion Project.

In collaboration with Dr. Roberto Cameriere, inventor of the dental X-ray aging technique, this pioneering study is the first to apply quantified tooth measures to age African lions.

This knowledge will assist national and international wildlife authorities in evaluating hunter compliance with regulatory measures involving age.

“Hunting of African lions is important to the species’ conservation in many countries,” continued Dr. White, and “estimating lion age is essential to many aspects of management programs including harvest and problem animal control.”

The project has already provided recommendations …Read the Rest

Source:: AmmoLand