Stray hyena shot dead in Lamwo

Lamwo, Uganda  | THE INDEPENDENT |  Security personnel have shot and killed a stray Hyena that was on the loose in Padibe East Sub County, Lamwo district.

The adult male hyena was shot on Friday in Katum East village, a short distance from a kraal where nine calves were killed by suspected lions between Monday and Tuesday.

Uganda Wildlife Authority officials had earlier said that footmarks and fur from the wild animal that killed the calves matched those of the lions.

Both UWA rangers and UPDF soldiers had been deployed in the area to hunt down the wild animal suspected to have strayed from Kidepo Valley National Park.

Richard Muhabwe, the acting chief warden at Kidepo Valley National Park told Uganda Radio Network on Friday afternoon that the lone hyena was responsible for attacking the calves in katum east village.

He says the hyena was found in a metallic trap set by a hunter to catch wild animals.

According to Muhabwe, the hyena was shot dead by a team of UPDF soldiers and local defense unit personnel before their team arrived to save it for treatment and relocation to kidepo conservation area.

It’s reported the hyena had turned aggressive before being shot dead.

“Our team on the ground earlier gave a wrong information on the wild animal that was killing the calves as a lion. We have since confirmed that it wasn’t a lion but a hyena which was responsible because we found  it close to the vicinity,” Muhabwe says.

Julius Peter Olung, the Padibe sub county chairperson says that angry locals carried the hyena’s carcass up to the kraal where it reportedly killed nine calves and had intended to eat its meat but were stopped by security personnel.

Muhabwe however discouraged residents from attempting to consume the hyena’s carcass citing that their team was still trying to find other alternative ways of disposing it of from the community.

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