Walter Palmer: American dentist revealed as killer of Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe

When Cecil, Zimbabwe’s most famous and well-loved lion, was found killed by a sports hunter near the Hwange National Park, it created an uproar. Zimbabwean authorities immediately launched an investigation into the illegal hunt.

Finally, the tourist who paid thousands of pounds to kill one of the country’s most cherished lions has been identified as an American dentist. Authorities in Zimbabwe say Walter Palmer, from Minneapolis, the U.S., paid a $55,000 bribe (or about S$75,000) to wildlife guides to allow him to shoot Cecil with a crossbow.

Mr. Palmer and his accomplices are believed to have lured Cecil out of the protection of the national park using bait and shot him with the bow – a silent weapon increasingly used by hunters trying to evade arrest.

But the arrow did not kill the lion immediately. Tracking data from his GPS collar linked to researchers at Oxford University showed that the poor lion, once a major tourist attraction, was followed for almost two days before being shot dead with a rifle.

A local guide and the owner of the land where Cecil died have been arrested over the killing on 6 July. If convicted, they could face up to 10 years in prison.

Palmer himself has not been arrested as he is not a Zimbabwean, and the authorities there have no legal hold over him. However, the dentist’s Facebook page was inundated with angry comments and threats before being removed from the site. Likewise, the dentist’s company website was also taken down, and his practice has been closed.

Palmer has insisted that he thought he had been on a legal hunt with all the proper permits secured by the guides and had no idea that the lion was a local favourite. Unfortunately, hunting lions is legal in several African countries, including Zimbabwe, although groups must first obtain a valid permit from the authorities.

A sad side-effect of Cecil’s death is that the six cubs of Cecil – he was the leader of a pride of lions – will now be killed by the new male lion in the pride, in order to encourage the lionesses to mate with him. Sorrowful news indeed, considering that there are less than 30,000 lions roaming across Africa today, down from more than 200,000 of these majestic animals a century ago.

Click here and here to read about other animals that have been hunted to near extinction.

(All images - credit: Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licence)