Oxford-Studied Lion ‘Blondie’ Killed in Alleged Trophy Hunt

A lion, quite popularly known as Blondie, a subject of long-term research by Oxford University scientists, has allegedly been killed by trophy hunters near Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park.

Blondie’s Death Reignites Global Debate

The five-year-old male, easily identifiable by a prominent GPS collar, is believed to have been shot during the week beginning June 29. His death, likened to the infamous 2015 killing of Cecil the Lion, has reignited global debate over the ethics and legality of trophy hunting in Africa.

Safari group Africa Geographic, which sponsored Blondie’s collar, expressed outrage. CEO Simon Espley said the lion’s conspicuous tracking device “did not prevent him from being offered to a hunting client,” calling the incident a “deeply unethical hunt.”

The organisation alleged Blondie was deliberately “lured out” of the protected park, where hunting is prohibited, to an adjacent area where the hunt was carried out.

Despite the backlash, Zimbabwe’s Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) defended the killing. Spokesperson Tinashe Farawo said, “Collars are for research purposes, but they don’t make the animal immune to hunting.” He dismissed ethical concerns about baiting, adding, “This is how people hunt.”

Mike Blignaut, co-owner of Victoria Falls Safari Services, which allegedly helped organise the hunt, declined to comment under instruction from the Zimbabwe Professional Guides Association but maintained that “the hunt was legal and conducted ethically.”

Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit was monitoring Blondie and has not yet issued a statement. (With BBC Inputs)