I will let the info from the Yorkshire Wildlife web site explain about the lions. In Romania, the lions were living in filthy concrete pens, fed on a meagre diet of scraps and faced an uncertain future. The new director, Diaina Ghender, realised that the zoo could not care for them and contacted YWP to see if they could rehome the lions. At the time, YWP was a new park and did not have the funds to rehome and care for the lions but with the help of the News of the World launched a massive campaign `Lion Rescue’. The public rallied for the cause and raised £150,000 which helped bring the lions back to Yorkshire. A team of big cat experts from zoos around the UK travelled to Romania to help load the 13 lions. The snow did not help! The lions arrived in February 2010 – Jet2.com donated the use of a plane and with special permission, they were allowed to land at Doncaster Airport. The pilot began his descent from Amsterdam in order to mitigate the effect of the pressure on the lions’ ears! The world’s media was watching and the lions became world famous overnight. The 13 lions included two cubs, Dani and Simba who were then aged just eight months old, and Jonny Senior who was 27 years old. All the lions rediscovered their health and have been a favourite with visitors here at YWP in the purpose built Lion Country Six years on, there are 8 lions in Lion Country: Simba, Maria, Carla, Crystal, Julie, Allis, Adel and Ares. Lion Rescue is and will always be one of the greatest achievements of YWP. At the fifth anniversary of their rescue Director Cheryl Williams stated: “Whatever else we achieve Lion Rescue will always be special as it was the first time we really made a difference for a group of animals on a significant scale and demonstrated that YWP is about animal welfare as well as conservation. Everyone who supports us should be proud.” Cheryl Williams, Director Thanks for all the lovely comments & favs, so, so appreciated. x