Lion tales

[Potato]

At  the beggining I wanna warn that story bellow is in big part mistery so those are only informations I could get, not whole picture of the events.

http://www.sabisabi.com/blog/1015/lions-at-war/
https://blog.pillbox.co.za/2012/04/10/lion-warfare-autumn-2012/
https://www.sunsafaris.com/blog/2012/05/southern-male-mapogo-update-by-brett-thomson/
https://www.sabisabi.com/blog/1108/mapogo-male-lions/

Year 2012

Mapogos (Makhulu and Pretty Boy) vs Kruger males (Fredy and Limper) warfare Part 1

April by Sabi Sabi:

It was still dark when we left the camp as we tried to get a head start on the sunrise and capture a few photos of dawning of a new day. As we reached the open area with a beautiful view to the east we settled in amongst a herd of zebra, switched off the vehicle and sat in complete silence waiting for the sun to peak its head over the horizon and warm our magical piece of Africa. The sounds of the dawn chorus came in from all directions immediately putting a smile on my face. Suddenly the chorus was interrupted by the unmistakable sound of lions roaring.

*This image is copyright of its original author

As the first two finished roaring another group started to roar in return and so the tennis match of territoriality began. After the sun had peaked we made our way towards where the roaring had originated and it wasn’t long before we found tracks for the Southern pride. We tracked for a while and they were eventually found moving south away from the roaring. As we sat and watched 6 of the females and all 8 cubs we could hear the roaring getting louder. The guests were focused on the lions and I was listening to the radio as some of the other vehicles were trying to find the source of the commotion. Next thing Brett called in that he had just seen one of the Mapogos running at full pace north and roaring at the top of his lungs. The Kruger males were found shortly after that and they too were roaring but their body language was completely different to the mapogo seen bolting away from the Kruger males.

*This image is copyright of its original author

When I eventually joined up with the males they were looking confident and in superb condition. They walked along the road, rubbing their heads through the trees and scent marking as they went along. Suddenly they stopped to listen and we could hear the resounding sound of more males calling in the distance. They returned fire and the sound of that awesome roar echoed through the chilly autumn air leaving my guests and I speechless. It was amazing how often they let the explode from their lungs making sure that all the competition around knew who was the boss of this land.

*This image is copyright of its original author

What happened through the night and early hours of the morning is not completely clear. From what we have pieced together the Mapogos ran into the Majengies and were chased into our reserve, here they were greeted by the belligerent Kruger males who too wanted them out as fast as possible and drove them out. The Southern Pride wanted nothing to do with this craziness and beat a hasty retreat of their own to get the cubs to safety. The next couple of days should be interesting to see how this all pans out!

From the coments section:

ranger rich says

Thank you Juanjo! No new info yet beside the fact that the Mapogos have now been chased into the central Sabi Sands by Solo and the Sparta males. 

April by Londolozi:

few weeks ago the four members of the Southern Coalition launched a successful attack on the remaining members of the Mapogo Coalition. This attack left the infamous Mr T (aka Satan) dead and last two remaining Mapogo members fleeing for their lives.  The demise of this king has left many a question mark as to the movements of the various lion prides and males in the Sabi Sand Game Reserve and how these dynamics will play out in the weeks and months to come.  It is now obvious that a domino effect is rippling through the Sabi Sands and surrounding reserves. Individual lions are on edge and the tension and anticipation of the next event is building, both amongst the lion and human population. We are in the midst of yet another changing of the guard.

As it stands the remaining two Mapogo Males appear to have thrown in the towel on their old domain and have run south facing pressure from the Majingilane Coalition, the Southern Coalition and the KNP Males. Sightings of these aging males are occurring throughout the south and occasionally central areas of Londolozi, whilst the aspiring Southern Coalition appear to have claimed the entire western section of the Sabi Sands.  As the winter draws closer, we can only conjure up guesses as to how this new territorial dominance will shape up and what sequence of events will unfold next, particularly after the Mapogos run in with the Majingilane and KNP Males over this past weekend.

That leaves the two remaining Mapogo Males, referred to by many as Bent-Spine and Makulu. I fear that they are in trouble. In my opinion they wont risk another run in with Southern Males. If the Majingilane stick together as four than they are simply too strong. Years are not going to be kind on these surviving two. So this leaves them with south.  The southern areas are currently patrolled by two exceptionally strong males called the Kruger Males. If it came to a two on two battle I would place my money on the Kruger Males. And this is where I feel the final battle ground and resting place of the legendary Mapogo may lie. My guess is that the death of both Mapogos will take place in the winter time, and sooner rather than later… This mornings numerous lion sightings confirm that things are heading on a collision course. All four Majingilane Males were accounted for, as were the Sparta Pride females. One Mapogo male was seen feeding on a waterbuck with an unknown lioness and then two unknown males (possibly the KNP males) were seen together with four lionesses. Every drive is unpredictable and offers the opportunity for the story of lion warfare to unfold!

May by Savanna Lodge:


They continue to trail the large herds of buffalo and frequently try to hunt these large herbivores. The two ousted surviving Mapogo brothers have been seen to the east, where they have temporarily taken up residence between the two existing coalitions, Southern and Majingilane, which both consist of four males. However, it is only a matter of time before they will be forced from this area.

May by Sabi Sabi:

It has all been happening on Sabi Sabi over the last few days. After the hippo died the predator activity went through the roof with the Southern Pride and the Kruger males feeding off the carcass as well as a huge clan of hyenas.

With all this commotion the Mapogos also found their way down to the southern section of the reserve and although there has not been any interaction seen between the Kruger Males and the Mapogos, we are left to hypothesise what has been happening on the reserve. On the same day the Kruger males and the Mapogos were found relatively close together and the Kruger males seemed to be the lions on the retreat. Could the Mapogos be causing an upset in the chain of command down here in the south?

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

What will happen over the next few days, weeks or even months is unknown. The only certainty is that we are going to witness some of the most amazing lion interaction ever. I look so forward to it and to keeping you all updated!

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

From the comment section:

ranger rich says

 

Jaun, the comment i made about the KNP males being on the retreat is a theory…i have nothing more than tracks and signs to go by in order to make this assumption. The KNP males were found yesterday with the Southern pride in the North and the Mapogos were still down in the South. The Mapogos and KNP males were roaring through the night so i am not sure now if the KNP males are trying to get away or the Mapogos but they all voicing their opinions loud and clear for everyone to hear!

ranger rich says

 

They are still in good condition (Mapogos) and clearly have found some food as they are by no means skinny! The pics are not my best but glad to be able to show you how the old boys are looking!

ranger rich says

 

Always a pleasure Luke! Glad that it helped make your week a little better. The boys are looking good (Mapogos) and have been roaring quite frequently and that says to me that there is still a bit of life in the 2 of them. Reply