Admiring Luggage in Washington Square Park

This wild male Lion (Panthera leo) was photographed in the Ngorongoro Conservation area of Tanzania in East Africa. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List shows the status of the lion as Vulnerable and predicts the species will decline 30% over the next two decades. It is believed that the lions now heavily rely on protected national parks and regions for their survival. The use of wire snares to hunt other prey often catches these animals, leading to painful prolonged deaths, and the human hunting of these animals for entertainment continues to threaten this species.

This image received two Honorable Mentions (Fine Art-Collage Category and the Deeper Perspective Category) in the International Photography Awards in Los Angeles, California, United States in 2013.