Efforts to restore Ishasha’s declining population of tree-climbing lions is part of a new 10-year conservation programme that will also strengthen wildlife protection and tourism development in the Ugandan reserve.
The programme could include lion translocations to supplement the remaining population where scientifically justified and following consultation with neighbouring communities.
Ishasha, part of Queen Elizabeth National Park, is known for its tree-climbing lions but their numbers have fallen from an estimated 80 in the 1970s to only a small population today.
The Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) and Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) have signed a 10-year conservation management partnership for the Ishasha Sector of Queen Elizabeth Protected Area.
Alongside lion recovery, the partnership will focus on strengthening wildlife protection, restoring habitats, developing tourism and reducing human-wildlife conflict in the area.
Ishasha is part of the Greater Virunga Landscape transboundary ecosystem connecting Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo with Queen Elizabeth National Park and the Maramagambo and Kalinzu forests in Uganda.
The agreement also introduces a co-management model intended to provide additional operational and financial support while maintaining the Ugandan government’s ownership of Ishasha and UWA’s mandate over the protected area.
