These images were sent to Earthyear in March by a reader in Cape Town. They were taken by a friend’s husband while he was in Nigeria on business. Apparently the photographs were taken outside a bank in the Victoria Island business area of Lagos.
The reader and her contacts were horrified and confused by what was going on in the photos. Two theories were offered – the wild animals were part of some sort of informal street circus, or they were being used by debt collectors to intimidate debtors.
Earthyear tried unsuccessfully to track down the origin of the photos, and to find out whether there are conservation officials based in that part of the world who know about this kind of practice. Hyenas and baboons belong in the wild, not in a street circus.
If any of our readers can give us an explanation and / or contacts, please send information to: [email protected]; Earthyear, PO Box 91667, Auckland Park 2006; or fax (011) 727-7111