The Mighty Mapogos

[Georgel]

Rangers Report July 2011
July 27, 2011
Leopard Hills

Mapogo Coalition
There has been some fervent interaction between the three males as they contest for mating opportunities with the Ximungwe lioness who is still possibly in oestrus. We hypothesise that this female is battling to conceive as she has been seen mating with them for a while without falling pregnant. The younger two Mapogo managed to kill a female buffalo near the Sand River one night with the assistance of one of the lionesses. The arrival of the oldest Mapogo a day later when he picked up the scent of the kill resulted in quite a scuffle, the younger two were reluctant to share their hard earned meal but the older male held his own!

During the month the seasoned old males also had a scuffle with their sons, the two young Ottawa males, attempting to force the three year old out of their territory! One of the Ottawa males has quite deep scarring on his back around the spine and his rear legs from the scuffle! They are resisting moving out of the Mapogo’s territory even after being injured and are still up in the north across the Sand River. It will be fascinating to see if they move off and begin a nomadic life looking for a territory or if they fancy their chances of challenging their fathers when they are a little more confident and stronger. Reply