Inside a Deadly Snare Line (7-minute Video)

In this sobering field patrol, Eugene Troskie of the Phalaborwa Natural Heritage Foundation (PNHF) investigates an area identified by a collared hyena. What begins as a routine follow-up leads to another stark reminder of the damage caused by wire snare lines.

The team discovers the remains of an adult lioness that was caught and suffocated in a cable snare. Drawn to the area by the scent of animals that had previously died in the traps, she became another victim of indiscriminate poaching.

The video reveals the reality of the illegal wildlife trade. Eugene explains how the lioness was butchered after her death, with her skull and paws removed for illegal markets in Asia, where lion bones are used as a substitute in counterfeit "tiger bone wine."

The patrol also uncovers another casualty of the same snare line: a critically endangered white-backed vulture. Its death highlights the indiscriminate nature of wire snares, which kill whatever happens to encounter them, regardless of species.