The Ngorongoro Crater has long been considered one of the best places on earth to see lions. Lion numbers here have waxed and waned, from a high of around 125 in 1975, when Ngorongoro had one of the densest populations of lions in Africa, to around 55 in 2014. Four lion prides now rule over this natural amphitheatre, feasting on the bounty of Ngorongoro’s self-contained world, this manageable microcosm of the African wild.

But these numbers conceal a darker story.

Click here to read the article on AFKTravel.com.