(Posted 24th September 2026)
Courtesy of Serengeti Watch
The good news, and this is very important — Tanzania’s protected areas have become a haven for most of the world’s lion population. This last bastions for the species provides hope for the future.
Estimate vary, but a recent census by the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI) says the country supports some 17,200 lions. For perspective, Africa has witnessed a catastrophic reduction in lions, with only about 24,000 remaining, down from an estimated 200,000! It shows how important Tanzania is.
The report states 5,850 lions are in Tanzania’s northern tourism circuit, including Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area. Most are in parks and reserves. But 18 percent still live outside of protected areas and are more vulnerable. Protecting lions will require maintaining wildlife corridors and dispersal areas while supporting practical solutions that allow pastoralists and other local communities to coexist with them.
Tragic News – 10 Lions Found Dead in Ngorongoro
The lions were found in the Ndutu area of the Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), adjacent to the Serengeti National Park. Authorities believe they died from poisoning!
Little more is known about this tragic event right now, but it’s happened before. Poison was the fate of the famous Marsh Lions in Kenya’s Maasai Mara, a pride that had been followed for years and celebrated in Big Cat Diary, a BBC wildlife series. Early this year, six lions were found poisoned near the Kenya-Tanzania border.
Dr. Laurence G. Frank, a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley states, “The widespread use of cheap and lethal agricultural pesticides has devastated lion and hyena populations in much of Africa. Because lions return to a kill to feed again the following night, an aggrieved cattle owner need only sprinkle a dollar’s worth of pesticide on the carcass and a whole pride is dead in the morning.”
Not Good News for Ngorongoro Maasai
As we’ve reported, the Maasai community is fighting for its right to remain in the Ngorongoro Conservation Areas (NCA). The issue has reached a critical point.
Ngorongoro was established as a Multiple Land Use Model (MLUM), a place where wildlife conservation and traditional Maasai pastoralism were intended to coexist. Now, the Tanzanian government has proposed ending Ngorongoro’s multiple-use status, an ominous policy shift for the Maasai. Read our recent newsletters about this, here and here.
This latest incident will only serve to fuel the argument that people and wildlife cannot coexist in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.
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Serengeti Watch is monitoring the Serengeti-Mara ecosystem and helping to spread important information on its survival. We’re working to promote and develop practical, long-term solutions that benefit both people and wildlife. Our strategic program, Shared Futures Maasai Ecoagriculture Program, originated within the Maasai community. It’s now being introduced into local communities near the NCA. We’re also working to rally the travel industry to support Serengeti conservation and responsible tourism
