Residents of Lang’ata estate were on Friday night left in shock after a huge hyena was spotted walking freely on the streets.
According to a Twitter user who shared the 24-seconds clip, the animal was spotted near Deliverance church in Lang’ata. It is reported to have strayed from the adjacent Nairobi National Park.
Hyena spotted in Langata, near Deliverance church! Be alert! via @Christ #WhatsApp #KenyanTraffic pic.twitter.com/yvRHEcEHNR
— KenyanTraffic (@KenyanTraffic) November 30, 2019
In March 2016, six lions were spotted wandering through residential streets in Nairobi. According to the Park’s senior warden Nelly Palmeris, the lions were spotted by witnesses, something that caused panic along the Southern by-pass and in Langata estate.
In a March 2016 video shared on social media, commuters honked their horns continuously at another large, dark-maned male lion as it trotted along Mombasa Road.
An elderly man was reportedly attacked by the wild cat which was scared owing to the frantic hooting and screams from motorists and pedestrians.
Here is the video of the 2016 incident.
The park is not entirely fenced to enable traditional migration by animals in search of grazing.
The animals are under growing pressure as the city expands on to ancient migration routes and hunting grounds.
Conservationists say lions pre-date people in the area and are not “escaping” the park nor “straying” into human settlements, rather people have moved into the lions’ home ranges.