“All such hunts will only be conducted if confirmed and authorized in writing by the Director-General of the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, and only if accompanied by parks staff whose costs will be met by the landowner”.
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“We are absolutely heart broken”, the Task Force added.
“We will update you all as soon as we have more details”.
Right now, Jericho’s safety is still uncertain – an especially troubling fact given some researchers beliefs that he had been tending to Cecil’s cubs after Cecil’s death.
“She said both Palmer and professional hunter Theo Bronkhorst violated the Parks and Wildlife Act, which controls the use of bow and arrow hunting”.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe has suspended the hunting of lions, leopards, and elephants in the area where Cecil was killed, according to the Associated Press. The park where Jericho was living had put out a statement at 3:30 p.m. banning the hunt of lions, but learned just 30 minutes later that Jericho had allegedly been killed.
Jericho’s death would seal “the fate of these cubs, for sure”, Salmoni told CNN.
One conservation group in Zimbabwe had reported Jericho’s death earlier Saturday.
“When I heard that report, I had a look on the computer and his movements look regular. Everything looks fine”, he said.
However, an Oxford University researcher later told CNN that the lion was still alive, based on Global Positioning System tracking information from his collar.
As for the relationship between the two lions, Loveridge says, “Cecil and Jericho are not brothers, but male lions frequently form coalitions with unrelated males in order to successfully hold territories”.
“Unfortunately it was too late to apprehend the foreign poacher as he had already absconded to his country of origin”, said Zimbabwe’s environment, water and climate minister Oppah Muchinguri, according to the AP.
But conflicting reports said that Jericho was still alive.
Cecil the lion was killed in early July by Walter Palmer.
There has been a huge online backlash against Mr Palmer. Cecil was wounded first by a crossbow, then tracked for hours before being shot dead with a gun, at which point he was skinned and beheaded.
Cecil was famed for his distinctive dark mane. The hunter had since left Zimbabwe, but police had recovered the lion’s head and carcass. He admits to killing Cecil but insists he depended on the advice of his Zimbabwean guides to make sure the hunt was legal.
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Since Palmer was outed as his killer, the dentist from Minnesota has been a target for condemnation from people around the world.
