Despite wearing a conspicuous research collar and being younger than the recommended minimum hunting age of six years, this young lion was lured out of a photographic concession and killed in what many are calling a deeply unethical hunt. Yet, sources say the hunt took place legally, with all required permitting in place. The Professional Hunter is allegedly a member of the Zimbabwe Professional Guides Association (ZPGA).
Blondie was collared by the University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), using a collar sponsored by Africa Geographic, in April this year. These GPS satellite collars are fitted to track free-roaming lions, prevent human-wildlife conflict, and support long-term conservation. Africa Geographic approached WildCRU and the University of Oxford for comment, but we are yet to receive an official response.
Africa Geographic CEO Simon Espley had this to say: “As the sponsor of Blondie’s research collar, we are dismayed and angered by this development. That Blondie’s prominent collar did not prevent him from being offered to a hunting client, confirms the stark reality that no lion is safe from trophy hunting guns. He was a breeding male in his prime, making a mockery of the ethics that ZPGA regularly espouses and the repeated claims that trophy hunters only target old, non-breeding males.”
At the time of his death, according to one source, Blondie was 5 years and 3 months old and the dominant male of a pride that included three adult females and ten cubs – seven cubs around one year old and three approximately one month old. Zimbabwe hunting regulations mandate a minimum age of 6 years for lions trophy hunted, focusing on mature, non-pride males.
At just over five years old, Blondie was in the prime of his life. He was not a transient male on the periphery; he was a territory-holder, and a father. His sudden loss is expected to cause turmoil for the pride, with a high likelihood that incoming rival males will kill his youngest cubs. Such infanticide is common in lion dynamics, especially when coalitions shift. In the chaos that follows, the lionesses may flee the safety of the concession into communal lands, where snares and human conflict await.
Blondie had often been seen on the private photographic concession since 2022 (where hunting is prohibited). Blondie took over the Zingweni pride and sired the current cubs. The pride’s movements frequently followed buffalo herds around Dete Vlei and into the Ganda Forest, outside Hwange National Park’s boundary.
According to reports from operators in the area, Blondie was last seen in his core range in June 2025. Observations suggest that he was baited out of the photographic concession over a period of several weeks and lured into the hunting area, where he was subsequently shot. The entire pride reportedly followed him during this period.
There are concerns that the Professional Hunter (PH) involved in the hunt was aware that Blondie was collared and that he had dependent cubs. It has been reported that, two weeks prior to the hunt, the hunter confirmed seeing Blondie with cubs and lionesses. When approached by AG for his side of the story, the PH declined to comment, other than to say that the hunt was “conducted legally, and ethically.”
Blondie was the last known descendant of the Somadada pride, which had previously moved from Hwange into community areas. He had since established a stable pride in an area where resident lions have historically been scarce, due in part to conflict with local communities and previous hunting pressure.
Stakeholders have raised questions about the ethics of the hunt, specifically concerning the lion’s age, his status as an active pride male with dependent cubs, and the presence of a research collar.
AG reached out to the Zimbabwe Professional Guides Association for comment – we are yet to receive a response.
The photographic operators in the region report that there are few, if any, established lion prides within the hunting concessions themselves. As a result, male lions are often drawn from adjacent photographic areas or park lands. Conservationists and local stakeholders continue to call for a review of lion hunting quotas along the boundaries of Hwange National Park, and for clearer ethical guidelines in such cases.
Hwange National Park’s lion population has long been under pressure from trophy hunting operating from adjacent hunting concessions. These concessions frequently lure pride males out of protected photographic tourism zones – often using bait – to make them available to hunters. Known lions like Cecil, Xanda, Mopane, Sidhule, and others have been trophy hunted just outside park boundaries, despite having research collars or being active pride males, leading to major demographic disruption within local prides. Studies indicate that from 1999 to 2012, human activity caused approximately 88% of male lion deaths in Hwange, mostly through trophy hunts, resulting in skewed age-sex structures and affecting cub survival and pride stability. Although local lion numbers rebounded when hunting quotas were reduced, renewed hunting pressure has coincided with renewed population declines and ongoing conservation concern.
