You’ve surely seen some great footage of wild animals but how about footage that, in effect, was shot by the animals themselves? Thanks to small cameras like the ones made by GoPro, that’s now possible. Conservationist and “lion whisperer” Kevin Richardson made the most of this when he reintroduced two female lions to the wild.
In college, Richardson started out as a biology major but switched over to exercise physiology. But wildlife, and especially lions, remained his real passion and when he was 23, he jumped at the opportunity to work at a lion facility. He became a master of raising lion cubs, not taming them by breaking their spirits, but by using love, understanding and trust. He builds a special bond with each lion, paying close attention to their individual personalities. He’s quick to point out that when you see him interacting so easily with a lion, you aren’t seeing the whole picture: “People like to take things out of context. They don’t know the relationship I have with this lion.”
Meg and Amy were just cubs when Richardson rescued them. He’s patiently developed a very strong bond with each of these lionesses. “Meg and Amy are kind of my soulmates, they’re kind of like humans — you can meet many many people in your life, but there’s very few that you connect wholeheartedly with.” He hoped to be able to reintroduce them to the wild and decided to have a practice session out on the savanna.
As you’ll see in the video posted below, he got some amazing footage by strapping GoPro cameras onto the lionesses’ backs. If you ever wondered what it’s like to stalk through tall grass, now you’ll know. Despite having been raised in captivity, Meg and Amy appear to have hunting instincts, even though they were never taught how to hunt when they were cubs.
What did you think of this lion whisperer and his lionesses? Let us know in the comments section below and be sure to like and share, too!