MAN INJURED BY LION IN KENYA

The animal, called Cheru, swiped at the 63-year-old after becoming agitated by drivers honking horns and taking selfies nearby.

A man has been injured after a lion attacked him on the streets of the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

The 63-year-old is in hospital in a stable condition after being swiped at by the lion, who had become agitated by the behaviour of people around him, according to Kenya Wildlife Service spokesman Paul Udoto.

Mr Udoto said: "People were there, hooting their horns, taking selfies and all that and the lion got agitated."

The man was "clawed in two areas - on the front of the chest and on the back of the shoulder", said Victor Ng'ani, the director of Mater Hospital.

Mr Ng'ani added: "He sustained lacerations, quite deep cuts in the left shoulder region and has sustained a small fracture in one of the bones in the area."

The large, dark-maned male lion, reportedly named Cheru, had strayed into rush hour traffic on Mombasa Road, a four-laned highway and one of the city's main arteries.

Later in the morning, he returned to the park, followed by rangers who encouraged him to move deeper into the reserve.

Mr Udoto said there were still teams of rangers on the ground "in case there are any others around that have not been spotted".

It is the third time in a month that lions have caused panic after moving outside the boundary of the city's national park, which is not completely fenced, so as to allow animals to migrate in search of grazing.

In February, two lions roamed through the city slum of Kibera before returning to the park, which also has endangered black rhinos, lions, leopards, cheetahs, giraffes and diverse birdlife.

The sight is becoming increasingly common as the expansion of one of Africa's fastest-growing cities reaches into hunting and migration paths that the animals have used for many years.

It is rare for anyone to be hurt during their outings, however.