London, January 4: A tragedy stuck at Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire on New Year's Day when a lioness was killed "almost instantly" by a lion in what the authorities described as a "rare but natural incident". The safari park staff immediately rushed to the spot but, despite their efforts, the lioness died "almost instantly", said Longleat Safari Park in a statement.

At the time, guests were unclear about what had happened. Visitors said they were taken away from the enclosure in the early afternoon due to an unknown major incident at the safari park. One of the visitors wrote on social media that they could see an injured lioness laying still on the ground. Later, a spokesperson for Longleat Safari Park confirmed that the lioness was attacked by a lion in her enclosure. UK: Rising Cost of Living Forces British Families To 'Eat Pet Food, Heat Meals on Radiator'; Real Food Become Unaffordable For Many.

"This weekend saw one of the lionesses at Longleat sadly killed by another lion. This kind of incident is very rare but can naturally occur amongst apex predators. It happened incredibly quickly, with the lioness dying almost instantly. Such incidents are very rare but can "naturally occur". There was no risk posed to guests near the enclosure," reported Wiltshire Live quoting a spokesperson as saying. UK: British-Indian Man Attacks Son-in-Law With Meat Cleaver After Quarrel Over Trip to India; Arrested.

Two weeks ago, the safari park made news when two rare red panda cubs died when temperatures dropped below freezing. The cubs, born in the summer, were found in their nesting box. Initial investigation suggested they had died from hypothermia and weaning problems.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 04, 2023 01:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).