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 The service is probing the killing under the Lacey Act, which bars
trading in wildlife that has been illegally killed, transported or
sold, the source said on Thursday.
Palmer, whose practice is in suburban Minneapolis, has admitted to
killing the 13-year-old lion and tourist attraction, in July.
Questions have been raised by the Zimbabwe government and animal
conservationists about Cecil's death outside the Hwange National
Park, where he was the head of two lion prides.
The best known lion in Zimbabwe is said to have been lured from the
park with bait, shot with an arrow, tracked for 40 hours, shot dead
with a rifle and then beheaded and skinned.
Cecil was wearing a GPS collar as part of a research project run by
Oxford University.
DRIVE TO END ILLEGAL TRADE
The Obama administration has made a major push to combat wildlife
trafficking, issuing a national plan earlier this year to address it
and cracking down on domestic trade in African elephant ivory.
With some of the strongest laws in the world to protect endangered
species, the U.S. government has attempted to prevent the slaughter
of such animals internationally by targeting the multibillion-dollar
market for illegal wildlife items.
 In 2014, the service proposed listing the African lion as threatened
under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. The proposal, which is being
finalized, would create a permit process for importing lion trophies
from countries that properly manage the species.
Estimates vary on how many lions are left in Africa, with a low end
of fewer than 20,000. There has been a significant decline in the
African lion population over the past 20 years.
The Lacey Act can be used to prosecute anyone who violates wildlife
protections under the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species (CITES).
The African lion is protected under CITES, which requires exporters
of the animal to get a permit from its home country. The lion or its
parts cannot be imported into the United States unless it meets
CITES requirements.
GOVERNMENT SEEKS HUNTER
Separately, the Fish & Wildlife Service said it has been unable to
contact Palmer.
Edward Grace, deputy chief of law enforcement for the service,
issued a statement urging Palmer to immediately contact the agency.
A Florida newspaper reported on Wednesday that reporters had
gathered around a $1.1 million home in southwest Florida thought to
belong to Palmer. It was unclear whether he was there or even in the
United States.
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Cecil's death has sparked global outrage, with intense social media
reaction against Palmer, protests outside his practice, and calls
for him to be extradited to Zimbabwe to face poaching charges.
The White House said on Thursday it would review a public petition
to extradite Palmer, noting it had exceeded a required 100,000
signatures. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it would be up
to the U.S. Justice Department to respond to an extradition order.
In a Twitter post on Thursday, Fish and Wildlife Service director
Dan Ashe called the killing tragic and said his agency would "go
where facts lead" in its investigation.
A local hunter has been charged in Zimbabwe with failing to prevent
the unlawful killing of the lion. It has been reported that Palmer
was with the other hunter and a local farmer during the hunt and
that it took place without proper permits and at night.
Palmer has not been charged in Zimbabwe or the United States.
The Obama administration has pushed for tougher penalties for
wildlife trafficking crimes and aggressively pursued groups involved
in the trade.
In a high profile case last year, the U.S. government indicted a
South African company for selling illegal rhinoceros hunts to
Americans and secretly trafficking in the endangered animals' horns.
Over the past three years, the U.S. government has made more than 30
arrests involving the rhino horn trade. The government has seized
more than $2 million in cash and $1 million in gold as a part of
this effort.
(Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh, Bill Trott, Toni Reinhold)
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