Bhopal, India, September 19, 2008-- Badal, a 19-year-old lion who died of natural causes, is prepared for cremation at the Van Vihar National Park. The park, which is managed as a zoo, rescued Badal from the circus in 2006.

Wild Asiatic lions, a subspecies of the African lion, are today found only in India's Gir Forest. The population is approximately 250 and considered critically endangered, according to the IUCN. Efforts are underway to establish a second population.