ORF-E
English
1 x 52 min
Worldwide 

Feared as livestock predators, maligned as man eaters and hunted for their fur – safe habitats for lions, leopards and cheetahs are thin on the ground. Big cats are classed as endangered species. Although they are the species most photographed by tourists on safaris and therefore of economic importance to many countries, this does not necessarily improve matters. Individual animals are often relocated many times in the course of their life, to replenish the gene pool or to make old or new game reserves more attractive for ecotourism – just one of the many contradictions of nature conservation. Despite the big cats’ romantic image, these animals are an important part of a neo liberal economy that includes wild animals as well as all other areas of life.