In 1898, as part of a new railway link between Uganda and the Kilindini Harbour, the British government commissioned the building of a railway bridge over the Tsavo River in, what would become, modern day Kenya. Lieutenant-Colonel John Henry Patterson was given the authority of overseeing the bridge construction by the Uganda Railway committee, arriving at the site in March. Over the next nine months Patterson and his construction crew were haunted by a pair of maneless Tsavo Lions. They stalked the campsite at night dragging workers from their tents to be devoured in the wilderness. Campfires, Bomas (Stockade) and thorn fences were constructed in an effort to keep the 'man-eaters' out. This worked for a short time, but the lions didn't give up so easily and were relentless in their efforts to gain access to the camp.
Once they figured out how to bypass the camps defences' the lions began a new wave of attacks more intense than the first. This lead to hundreds of workers fleeing the site, halting construction of the bridge. Many of the workers became superstitious and believed that Patterson was to blame for the misfortune as the attacks began upon his arrival; in order to maintain his authority and see the project through to completion he set about hunting the Man-eaters. Patterson had experience in hunting big cats, having hunted tigers during his military service in India, and in December he was successful in killing both lions. Each lion was exceptionally big at over nine feet long from nose to tail and requiring almost 10 men to carry each back to the camp. The project wasn't unhindered from this point but the killing of the man-eaters brought a lot of the workers back and solidified Patterson's respect amongst the workforce, which helped lead to the eventual completion of the bridge.
The man-eating behaviour is considered highly unusual for lions and there are still multiple theories but no definitive answer as to why the lions chose to focus on human prey. It is a important to recognise that events like this fuel the negative human attitudes towards lions in Africa, However the threat of lions to human welfare is grossly overestimated
by many. It was believed that the Tsavo Man-eaters were responsible for as many as 140 deaths, but railway records officially attribute only 28 worker deaths to the pair of lions. While it there is no doubt about lions being dangerous predators, there is a disproportionate amount of lion persecution verses the threat they actually pose to human life. Lions are reported to be responsible for a few hundred deaths every year but this pales in comparison to figures for other species. Lions are one of the most pre-emptively hunted and killed animals in Africa (even excluding trophy hunting).
The economic impact of stock raiding is most likely the primary reason for the persecution of lions in Africa, it is estimated ranchers living alongside Tsavo East National Park lose US$290 per year to predators. It can be in the best interest of livestock farmers to maintain the lion's undeserved reputation as relentless man-eaters, as in most African countries it is legal for farmers to kill predators if they are deemed a threat to human safety. This is the justification for the majority of lion killings that are reported, although it is likely there are many more that go unreported. The concerns of local human populations are often a secondary factor that can be overlooked when designing lion conservation projects. It impossible to develop a long term conservation strategy without addressing then needs of local communities, as they are the root cause of most of the lions main population threats. By addressing the concerns of both species we can create a solution that sustains both sides, giving lions the best chance of future survival.
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