The Lions of Tsavo Exploring the Legacy of Africa's Notorious Man-Eaters

by Patterson, Bruce

• ISBN13: 9780071363334
• ISBN10: 0071363335
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2004-02-12
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education

Summary

"Deftly written . . . Patterson's book must now be considered the definitive Tsavo lion study... one of the world's leading experts on lions as well as an important conservationist."--Publishers WeeklyThrough field research and forensic evidence, a scientist reveals his theory on why two Kenyan lions killed humans and then ate their preyIn March 1898, the British began building a bridge over the Tsavo River in East Africa. In nine months, two male lions killed and ate nearly 135 workers, halting construction.After a long hunt Colonel J. H. Patterson killed the lions, which are now on display at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.As codirector of the Tsavo Research Project, Bruce Patterson has conducted extensive fieldwork throughout the region on these lions. InThe Lions of Tsavo, Patterson retells the harrowing story of those bloody nights in Kenya. He presents new forensic evidence on these maneless lions and argues that the man-eating behavior exhibited in 1898 came from the encroachment of human populations on wild habitats.Patterson continues this theory by exploring man's interaction with the changing Kenyan environment, creating a complete, up-to-date, and scientific look behind this intriguing murder mystery.

Author Biography

Bruce D. Patterson, PhD, is the MacArthur Curator of Mammals at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, home to the lions killed by Colonel Patterson in 1898. He also teaches at the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois, is President of the American Society of Mammalogists, and a PI of Earthwatch Institute's "Lions of Tsavo" project.

Table of Contents

The Lions of Tsavo

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: The Reign of Terror: Lions and the Railway

Chapter 2: The Terror Continues: Man-Eating Lions Today

Chapter 3: Killing Behavior and Man-Eating Habits

Chapter 4: Why Do Lions Kill People?

Chapter 5: Lion Biology: Evolution and Geographic Distribution

Chapter 6: Hunting and Social Behavior

Chapter 7: The Lion's Mane: Geographic and Individual Variation

Chapter 8: Why the Lions of Tsavo Are Maneless

Chapter 9: Animal Conservation and the Creation of Tsavo National Park