Chronicle Editor
Wildlife enthusiasts and conservationists around the world have been mourning the death of an iconic lion named Scarface which lived in Kenya’s Masai Mara National Reserve.
Scarface, celebrated and seen as an icon by many who visited the popular reserve, died on Friday at the age of 14.
He was given the name Scarface because of a distinctive scar across his eye, which experts say was acquired when he and his three brothers in 2016 took over a pride of lions.
Local newspaper The Star quotes the Kenya Wildlife Service as saying the lion died peacefully.
The Mara Predator Conservation Programme, run by the Kenya Wildlife Trust, wrote on its Facebook page: “At 1pm local time, Scarface took his last breath. He died in peace without any disturbance from vehicles and hyenas. We were the only vehicle on the scene and by his side, hoping to give him any kind of comfort.”
Scarface and his brothers were known as “the four musketeers” and are said to have dominated the Malaika and Ashnil camp areas along the Mara River.
Tourists often felt accomplished whenever they sighted Scarface, who was once speared by a Maasai herder protecting his livestock. — BBC news
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