Animals in the South African savanna are often more afraid of humans than lions. The savanna is a wild and dangerous place, with creatures like lions, buffalo, and even poachers. But in South Africa's Kruger National Park, where lions roam freely and poachers are a constant threat, there's something that terrifies the local animals even more than the mighty lions.

A team of scientists led by Liana Zanette from Western University in Ontario conducted a fascinating study. They wanted to find out if animals in the park were more frightened by humans or lions. The results of their research, published in Current Biology, revealed some interesting insights.

To conduct their experiment, the researchers set up camera traps and loudspeakers near water holes in the national park. They played different sounds to influence and observe the behavior of various animals. These sounds included human conversations in South African languages, barking dogs, gunshots, and lion sounds like growls and snarls, but not deafening roars.

The study found that animals were twice as likely to flee and leave an area faster when they heard human voices compared to lion sounds or gunshots. This held true for 95 percent of the animal species they observed, such as giraffes, leopards, hyenas, zebras, kudu, warthogs, impalas, and rhinos. Only elephants were more likely to run away from lions than from humans.

When it came to visiting water holes, animals tended to stay longer when they heard lion sounds, but they were more skittish when human voices were around. Wild dogs, leopards, and buffalo were the exceptions, as they didn't show a significant preference for either sound. This suggests that animals are deeply afraid of humans, even when they aren't being hunted.

This research has important implications for wildlife conservation. The team is now exploring whether custom sound systems can be used to protect endangered species, like the southern white rhino, from poaching in South Africa. Initial tests have shown promise in keeping these animals away from known poaching areas using recorded human voices. This could be a helpful tool in safeguarding these magnificent creatures from harm.

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