Raising the minimum age of trophy hunted lions could make hunting more sustainable, new study finds

Key drivers of this include habitat loss due to agriculture, declining prey populations, conflicts with livestock farmers, illegal poaching, and (in some cases) unsustainable trophy hunting. Trophy hunting is widely practiced in Africa. If well managed, trophy hunting can protect wildlife habitats from conversion to agriculture and generate revenue for conservation and local economies. Most trophy hunting areas across Africa have a minimum age threshold for hunted male lions of six years. For the first time, their model also tested the effects of professional hunters misclassifying lion ages on the sustainability of trophy hunting.