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(07-22-2021, 06:43 PM)Gijima Wrote: Where the Majingilanes really just 3.5 - 4 years old when all this happened? Or did people underestimate their age..
(07-22-2021, 06:43 PM)Gijima Wrote: Where the Majingilanes really just 3.5 - 4 years old when all this happened? Or did people underestimate their age..
Their birth date as well as infromations on which pride they came from are unknown and their age is purely speculated on the size of the mane which in it self has large margin of error. One can say he believe them to be 3 and half years old, but the time they confronted Mapogos, other can say they were 5 years old and yet another person say yet another think, but in the end all those are just speculations and the fact is that their age is unknown.
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We know they died of old age in 2018. If we go by an max old age of around 16. They would be sired around 2002. Which would place them at 8 around that fight.
Though reading that number makes me sceptical of it myself. So take it as the absolute upper number.
(07-23-2021, 01:24 AM)Potato Wrote: Their birth date as well as infromations on which pride they came from are unknown and their age is purely speculated on the size of the mane which in it self has large margin of error. One can say he believe them to be 3 and half years old, but the time they confronted Mapogos, other can say they were 5 years old and yet another person say yet another think, but in the end all those are just speculations and the fact is that their age is unknown.
Photos of them from Kruger in 2009, before they came here, shows us they where really young by the time they become dominant :
DM (who looks to be the oldest)
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Golden Mane
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5th Majingilane
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Scar Nose
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I mean this is Scar Nose in 2011, look how young he is, he looks like Othawa male when he was 4 :
(07-23-2021, 01:24 AM)Potato Wrote: Their birth date as well as infromations on which pride they came from are unknown and their age is purely speculated on the size of the mane which in it self has large margin of error. One can say he believe them to be 3 and half years old, but the time they confronted Mapogos, other can say they were 5 years old and yet another person say yet another think, but in the end all those are just speculations and the fact is that their age is unknown.
Photos of them from Kruger in 2009, before they came here, shows us they where really young by the time they become dominant :
DM (who looks to be the oldest)
*This image is copyright of its original author
Golden Mane
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5th Majingilane
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Scar Nose
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I mean this is Scar Nose in 2011, look how young he is, he looks like Othawa male when he was 4 :
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I would as well bet that they were 4-4,5 years old by the time they confronted Mapogos tho as I said judging by the size of the mane can be very missleading. For example mentioned by you Othawa male by the age of 3 and half looked like he was around 5 years old. Nharu male from Tintswalo coalition looks to be same age as his coalition partners even through he is in fact whole year older than Mbiri males. Nkuchuma male with his poor mane looks like around 4 years old while in fact he is 5 and so on.
A blast from the past. The Burmingham males fighting with the Big male (Blackdam Male's father) on the Thornybush fence many years ago. Athough the Thornybush male was big he was outnumbered 3 to 1. The fence saved the day. The Blackdam male dies recently and his scull was collected. It measured the third largest lion scull measured in the world.
2 last Birminghams males vs 4 N'waswishaka/Ndzenga males part 1
This morning started as most morning drives have started, besides from the bit of misty rain coming down, wetting the tips of the grasses and providing a cool breeze out in the bush. I left the lodge not really knowing which direction to drive to start the morning. I moved into the Eastern sector of the reserve hoping to come across any tracks or signs of any predator that may have been moving about in the early hours of the morning. I had spotted two different herds of elephants and two different hyenas in the first hour. The bush was waking up! Little did I know what had been happening through the night…
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I was driving through a relatively open area when suddenly, in the distance, two animals crossed the road. Quite quickly I might add. As I sped up to see what they were, I realized that they were the four male lions we had recently been seeing on the reserve.
“But why are they moving so quickly through the bush? Are they looking for the female that was seen with them recently?” I thought. I followed them as they cut through the bush following one another in a line. The males picked up on some scent in the road and were rolling around and lying in the road for some time.
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Before we carry on with the story, I just want to put it out there that I have been waiting to photograph lions walking in a line together for years!!!
On with the story. As they moved swiftly through the bush, sometimes even running, I thought that they would be getting closer to something that they had heard or smelt. I then realised as we came out and into the open of a second clearing that they were actually being chased! Chased by two, much older, possibly stronger but definitely more dominant male lions!
2 last Birminghams males vs 4 N'waswishaka/Ndzenga males part 2
The gap seemed to get closer and closer every couple of yards. The older males were catching the younger males. The older males, now much closer to the four boys, started roaring as if to say, “leave my territory!” All the while chasing them. This continued for quite a distance until the group of four males briefly split up, meaning that the two older males did too. One older male went after three younger males and the other older male went after the remaining younger male.
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Now as the groups split up, there was a lot of roaring from both parties – back and forth, back and forth – with neither getting close enough to get into a fight where paws, claws and fur starts flying… The older males drove the group of younger males back to where they came from, asserting their dominance of the area and telling the younger group of lions that they may be older, but they can still put up a fight. With the older males now satisfied that they had shown the younger group that they mean business they called to each other to regroup. I followed one older male on his path to join his brother as he walked and roared, using his roars as a marker to the other brother. It was not long when, just over the horizon, I saw the other brother waiting for his partner to come back. As they met up, they rubbed heads (a sign of greeting and to reinforce bonds) and began to walk back in the direction of their territory. As they walked side by side, they picked up on the younger group of four males’ scent that they left as they passed the area. As the two older males smelt this, they immediately lay down on it, rolled and rubbed themselves onto of it and urinated on all of it just to make sure the younger group gets their message – this is all a sign of dominance.
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It was not long before the sun shone through the clouds, heating up the ground and in turn, the air. This had an effect on the two older males, who were now tired and getting thirsty. As they walked down a game path, they came toward another road that had puddles of water on it. One male stopped and lay down as the other proceeded to the small puddle of water to drink. As the one finished drinking he moved off and lay down about 20 yards away. The other male, now at the back, got up and walked toward his brother. As he reached his brother, they once again rubbed heads and started to vocalize. One lay down roaring and the other stood up and roared – a final roar before they moved off into the bushes to rest in the shade.
This was all truly breath-taking and an unbelievably fast-paced experience I will never forget. Both groups live another day, maybe one group more fortunate than the other…”
09-29-2021, 08:56 PM( This post was last modified: 10-02-2021, 02:54 AM by Tr1x24 )
Early history of Fourways pride (worth reading) :
"Fourways Pride, by ranger Nic Moxham
This pride was first seen on MalaMala towards the end of 2010 as two lionesses that came in from the Kruger National Park. Initial encounters were hostile as it was clear that these lions were uneasy in the presence of vehicles having come from an area where they had little contact with humans. Early sightings were distant until they slowly adjusted to the sound, sight and smell of the Land Rovers. After about 6 months, they had become more habituated and we were able to view them a lot closer to the vehicles. They spent most of their time in the north-eastern parts of the property, and were seen several times around Buffalo-Bush Dam.
These lions were the first pride to produce cubs by the now dominant Manyelethi Male coalition, and good time was spent by the coalition with this pride and their four cubs in the early parts of 2011. The cubs were born in July 2010 to one of the females, and included 3 females and one male. Unfortunately two of the female cubs had died by the end of 2012 in unknown circumstances to the east of our boundary. The Manyelethi Males slowly distanced themselves from the pride as they looked to spend more time with the Eyrefield and Styx prides throughout 2012, and in January 2013 we saw the Fourways pride with another sub adult male that they seemed to have adopted from another pride. This is unusual for a nomadic male to join another pride, and reasoning suggests that the females needed the influence of a growing male to bulk up their pride, with the apparent abandonment of the Manyelethi Males. They weren’t done yet as another young male was found to be infiltrating the pride in early 2013 and has stayed with them since. They are now possibly the strongest pride on MalaMala with two adult females, 3 sub adult males and a sub adult female patrolling the eastern and central parts of the property.
The pride is generally nomadic without an established territory yet, and has been seen in the most northern and southern parts of our property. We will wait and observe if they are able to establish a home within our boundaries, and will follow the outcome of the three young males in the years to come.
The story continues…
Nic Moxham "
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So Fourways pride adopted 2 young males, Dark Mane Fourways is only male offspring of Majingilanes.
Around mid 2013 they first adopted 1/2 males from Torchwood pride :
(Mid 2012 with Torchwood pride)
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(Mid 2013 with Fourways)
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Soon after, they adopted another young male,who will be later known as Blondie Fourways :
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Now, i dont have photos of Torchwood 2nd young male, but i think its very possible that Blondie is that male, both males are quite similar in face structure and its logic that he followed his brother.
Unfortunately, 1st Torchwood male was later on killed by Matimbas in 2014.
They don't know how Scar got that injury exactly. He fought Romeo, Clawed, and the 3rd partner with his brothers, he was speared, and also shot. But nobody actually witnessed how it happened from what I've read.
