Philip J. Briggs/Lion Guard
The lion Loonkiito was killed by a rancher when he was 19 years old.
(CNN) — Loonkiito, possibly one of the world’s oldest lions, was killed in Kenya at the age of 19, according to conservation organization Lion Guardians.
The lion was killed on Wednesday by the owner of a cattle pen that Loonkiito entered in the middle of the night in search of prey because it was “starving,” the organization said.
He is “the oldest male lion in our ecosystem and possibly in Africa,” said Lion Guardians, who announced his death “with a heavy heart.”
“He was a symbol of resilience and coexistence. We at Lion Guardians feel privileged to have witnessed his life and legacy.”
The organization attributes the recent longevity of older wild lions in a landscape where “a decade ago there were no lions older than 10 years” to the efforts of local communities who share land with the big cats.
According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) website, the dramatic increase in demand for energy and materials over the past 50 years has resulted in humans and lions competing for space and resources.
Lions travel widely, sometimes leaving protected areas to search for prey when their food source dwindles, and can pose a threat to human communities when hunting their livestock. Farmers often kill them in retaliation or to prevent conflict.
Unfortunately, Loonkiito was “seized by this dynamic,” Lion Guardians said.
Kenya is experiencing its worst drought in four decades. The organization said the end of a drought is usually marked by an increase in human-lion conflict, as wild prey is harder to hunt and pastoralists are “extra vigilant” after the loss of so many animals.
This incident “was a difficult situation for both sides, the people and the lion,” it said.