Meet our Lions at Ensessa Kotteh
Amalia (c) Bereket Girma
AMALIA
DATE OF BIRTH: 27th April 2014
ARRIVED AT ENSESSA KOTTEH: 26th April 2019
Amalia was rehomed from DECAN Refuge, a wildlife sanctuary in Djibouti, where she had been receiving dedicated care. Sadly, local authorities had been pressuring the sanctuary to stop housing rescued big cats. This escalated when another lioness at the refuge, Amalia’s mother, escaped into a nearby community and was tragically shot. Sanctuary staff believed and evidence suggested that the enclosure fencing had been deliberately cut. Despite increased security measures, authorities insisted that DECAN could no longer keep its big cats and warned that Amalia would be euthanised if a new home was not found.
With the support of the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA), Born Free offered Amalia a safe, lifelong home at Ensessa Kotteh. When she arrived, she was suffering from a skin irritation and hair loss, likely caused by an allergy to biting insects in Djibouti, but thankfully, these insects are not found at our higher altitude, and the issue resolved quickly. Although she bears some scarring, Amalia is now thriving in her new environment.
Girma © Zacharias Abubeker
GIRMA
ESTIMATED DATE OF BIRTH: 1st December 2015
ARRIVED AT ENSESSA KOTTEH: 8th June 2016
Male lion Girma was rescued as a young cub alongside his brother Rea, having been kept in a small, dark concrete room in Jijiga, the capital city of the Somali Region in Ethiopia. The cubs had been captured by poachers, their mother most likely killed, and we believe they were destined for the pet trade. The police confiscated them but, unfortunately, they had nowhere suitable to keep two lion cubs. The only place was a small concrete pen at a nearby military compound, and this is where they stayed for many weeks, before Born Free heard about their plight and were able to rescue them. Adult lion Ngobi, two cheetah and three antelope were rescued alongside them. Today, the brothers are happy and thriving at Ensessa Kotteh.
Iman, shortly after her rescue
IMAN
ESTIMATED DATE OF BIRTH: 1st February 2019
ARRIVED AT ENSESSA KOTTEH: 14th September 2019
Iman was between four and six weeks old when she was confiscated along with a male cub in March 2019 on the Ethiopian border in Eastern Somaliland. Victims of the illegal wildlife trade, it is suspected that the cubs were taken from their mother in the wild in Ethiopia, and had been destined for the pet trade in the Middle East. One suspect was arrested for trafficking the cubs in Somaliland and another in Ethiopia. Iman was cared for by Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) while the permissions were sought and the logistics put in place for Iman to be brought to Ensessa Kotteh. Sadly, the male cub died in April 2019, before he reached Ensessa Kotteh.
Since arriving at out sanctuary, Iman has flourished thanks to the loving care of our team.
Janu © Zacharias Abubeker
JANU
ESTIMATED DATE OF BIRTH: June 2006
ARRIVED AT ENSESSA KOTTEH: 1st November 2011
Fondly known as the ‘Italian Lions’, Janu (originally Giano) and his late brother Andrea were thought to be around five years old when they first arrived at Ensessa Kotteh, in 2011. They had been found in 2006 as cubs, by an Italian organisation based in Ethiopia, and taken to the Italian Embassy in Addis Ababa where they were cared for by the Italian Ambassador and his wife. When the Ambassador could no longer care for the lions, Born Free was asked to help.
The lions were moved to the Presidential Palace where they lived temporarily, their care funded by Born Free, while we built an enclosure for them at Ensessa Kotteh. The lions were then transferred to their new lifetime home at Ensessa Kotteh and the pair lived together until Andrea’s passing in Sept 2023.
Kebri (c) Tiffanie Meekins
KEBRI
ESTIMATED DATE OF BIRTH: September 2011
ARRIVED AT ENSESSA KOTTEH: 31st May 2012
Kebri (also known as Qeri) was taken in by soldiers after his mother was poisoned for killing a camel. He initially lived at an army barracks, but quickly became big and dangerous – needing expert care and a more appropriate home.
Born Free was happy to provide him with a lifetime home, and he arrived at Ensessa Kotteh in May 2012 when he was around 18 months old. He’s lived happily at our sanctuary ever since, thriving with expert care.
Ngobi (c) Zacharias Abubeker
NGOBI
ESTIMATED DATE OF BIRTH: June 2011
ARRIVED AT ENSESSA KOTTEH: 8th June 2016
Rescued as an adult, Ngobi (also known as Dawud) was being temporarily kept at a police station in Jijiga, the capital city of the Somali Region in Ethiopia, having been seized by the authorities. Ngobi was rescued by Born Free, alongside young male lions Rea and Girma, two cheetah and three antelope, and brought to the safety of Ensessa Kotteh.
Today Ngobi lives in a spacious enclosure filled with naturally occurring flora and flora, provided with environmental enrichment and expert care.
Rea (c) Born Free Ethiopia
REA
ESTIMATED DATE OF BIRTH: 1st December 2015
ARRIVED AT ENSESSA KOTTEH: 8th June 2016
Male lion Rea was rescued as a young cub alongside his brother Girma, having been kept in a small, dark concrete room in Jijiga, the capital city of the Somali Region in Ethiopia. Rea and Girma had been captured by poachers, their mother most likely killed, and we believe they were destined for the pet trade. The police confiscated them but, unfortunately, they had nowhere suitable to keep two lion cubs. The only place was a small concrete pen at a nearby military compound, and this is where they stayed for many weeks, before Born Free heard about their plight and were able to rescue them. Adult lion Ngobi, two cheetah and three antelope were rescued alongside them.
Today, the brothers are happy and thriving at Ensessa Kotteh.
