A lion who lost a leg to a poacher’s snare has defied expectations by developing an ingenious hunting strategy, showcasing remarkable adaptability in the face of adversity. This extraordinary case highlights the resilience of wildlife and offers potential insights for conservation efforts.
A Lion’s Unlikely Comeback
Jacob, an 11-year-old lion residing in Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park, gained attention last year after a video captured him and his brother swimming an astonishing 1.5 kilometers across a crocodile-infested river—the longest swim ever recorded for lions. Jacob’s story, however, is particularly inspiring. He’s missing both a leg and an eye, having sustained injuries from a water buffalo goring and a poacher’s snare, respectively.
The Struggle for Survival – and How He Overcame It
Normally, wounded carnivores resort to scavenging, stealing livestock, or relying on a pride for sustenance. Jacob, however, only has his brother, Tibu, to support him. Researchers initially believed he would starve after losing his left hind leg in 2020. “Instead, he refuses to quit,” states Alexander Braczkowski, of the Kyambura Lion Monitoring Project.
Even Braczkowski, who has observed Jacob since 1997, was astonished by the lion’s persistence. However, recent thermal drone footage has revealed the secret to his survival: Jacob has essentially learned to hunt like a leopard.
An Innovative Hunting Technique
Unable to overpower prey using the typical lion approach, Jacob now employs close-range ambushes in dense thickets and scrub forests. He patiently lies in wait and pounces, or even digs his prey out. Crucially, he’s also targeting animals lions typically ignore.
Filming at night, wildlife cameraman Daniel Snyders, along with the Kyambura Lion Project, documented Jacob hunting 200-kilogram forest hogs. He makes kills both independently and with his brother’s assistance. “Jacob can’t sprint, so he doesn’t have a chance to chase prey,” explains Braczkowski. “Because he’s targeting a very specific pig, it tells us he made a dietary shift. That’s also why he’s acting more like a leopard and taking big risks. But he has to – and it’s working.”
A Common Challenge, A Rare Adaptation
Losing limbs to snares is a “common” problem for felines, according to Andrew Loveridge of Panthera, a global wildcat conservation organization. Adapting to such a severe injury is also not uncommon, adds Craig Packer of the University of Minnesota, who has studied lion behavior for decades. “I’d expect to see similar behaviour in other groups of lions, all of which had four good legs, in the same area.”
However, this remarkable adaptation isn’t happening elsewhere. Queen Elizabeth’s lions typically hunt larger, faster-moving prey such as antelopes and water buffalo. As George Schaller, a renowned expert on predator-prey relationships and pioneer of Serengeti lion studies, notes, “Lions do behave like leopards at times and go up in trees,” but even these arboreal lions maintain their distinct hunting styles, and lions missing limbs — often called “tripod lions” — are usually supported by a pride.
A Life on the Move – and Why That Matters
Braczkowski has tracked Jacob making the long swim across the Kazinga Channel between 10 and 20 times over the past two years. His daily movement averages 1.73 kilometers—less than a healthy lion but substantial for an injured animal—and may be driven by a need to find suitable prey or potential mates.
Jacob’s novel hunting style could be a teachable behavior that helps reverse declining lion numbers in a region facing habitat loss, climate change, and increasing human communities. Braczkowski emphasizes that Jacob is significant, “symbolically and genetically.”
This extraordinary lion stands as a testament to resilience: “They’re a species of fighters,” concludes George Schaller. His remarkable ability to survive and thrive offers valuable lessons for conservation and rewilding efforts, demonstrating the power of adaptation and the importance of protecting wildlife in challenging environments.
