wildlife

On the edge of Namibia’s Skeleton Coast, a rust-colored sunrise spills across the desert, painting the dunes in gold. Just beyond the park’s boundary, I meet Lena, a goat herder whose family has grazed this land for generations. From her yard, the horizon looks the same as it always has — except now, there’s a wire fence where there used to be open scrub.

That fence marks the start of a new conservation zone, created to protect endangered desert-adapted lions. It also cuts off one of Lena’s main grazing routes.