Coins minted for lion conservation
10 July 2003
The South African Mint on Wednesday launched the Natura Lion Mintmark gold coin to highlight the plight of the African lion as well as the rare white lions in the country.
The one-ounce gold coin, depicting a lion and a lioness, will be displayed at the Lion Park in Johannesburg, where there is an ongoing breeding and research programme to save the lions.
Only 500 of these coins will be minted worldwide.
The Wildlife Biological Resource Centre of the Endangered Wildlife Trust, together with the Lion Park, embarked on a project of assisted reproductive technology, DNA analysis and disease screening of the lions.
The project aims to develop assisted reproduction technology as a conservation tool for the African lion, to counteract in-breeding among lion prides, to analyse the DNA from all the lions in the park, and to screen them for possible diseases, including TB and the Feline Immuno Deficiency Virus (FIV).
The Feline Aids
virus affects only the big cats, and is transmitted through bite wounds during fights. It is one of the deadliest viruses in cats, and can decimate an entire pack.
The launch of the coins coincided with the darting of two lions at the Lion Park to collect the necessary biomaterials to be used in research purposes for diseases such as TB and FIV.
Natanya van Niekerk, an artist at SA Mint, said that although the African lion was not yet on the endangered list, research was necessary to save the population from increasing outbreaks of Bovine TB and FIV at Kruger National Park.
Source: BuaNews
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