August 10th is a day for people to come together from across the world to pay tribute to the mighty lion in as many ways as possible.
History of World Lion Day.
• Launched in 2013, World Lion Day is annually observed on August 10th.
•
World Lion Day is the brainchild of co-founders Dereck and Beverly
Joubert. They began the initiative in 2013, bringing together both
National Geographic and the Big Cat Initiative under a single banner to
protect the remaining big cats living in the wild.
Aim:
The day aims to spread awareness of lions and the urgent need to strive towards their conservation.
Significance
-
Lions are designated as a vulnerable species on the Red List of
Threatened Species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature
(IUCN).
- The purpose of World Lion Day, is to increase public awareness of the significance of lion conservation.
Population of Lion in India
-
In Gir Forest, which is home to the only wild population of lions
outside of Africa, the population has continuously expanded in India.
-
The population of Asiatic lions has steadily increased in Gujarat’s Gir
forest & the larger Saurashtra protected area after experiencing a
long period of decline.
- Between 2015 and 2020, their population increased from 523 to 674.
Population of Lions in the world
- With the exception of Africa, the number of wild lions has drastically decreased worldwide.
- There are currently between 30,000 and 100,000 lions left in the world.
