|
Lions of Sabi Sands
|
Inyati's early 2022 report
"The Othawa pride has managed to keep all their cubs safe. The 6 cubs, of which 5 are females, are growing at a rapid rate as the mothers keep the kills coming at a consistent rate. The lioness’ have moved away for the river and have spent the majority of January and February south of the sand river, possibly feeling some pressure from the territorial spacing calls that the Plains Camp males have been bellowing out form the east. The Plains Camp males, rather surprisingly, seem reluctant to venture further west. The sight of the large Tumbela male and his impressive mane may well have intimidated them just enough, for now. The Ximhungwe lioness has caught the eye of the large Tumbela male. She has been venturing in to the Othawa prides territory and been vocalizing often. It seems the male has also taken a liking to her and will heed her call if the other females have not provided him with food, or entertainment. On one of his visits to his new lioness the pair came across a large African Rock Python that was constricting a young Impala. The Ximhungwe female true to her fearless nature pounced on the coiled snake and quickly sent the serpent slithering into cover. The Tumbela male then simply muscled the lioness off her hard-earned impala and finished off the scavenged meal. The python and the lioness were forced to watch him feed from the bleachers. Male lions are many things but chivalry is most certainly not one of them. The whole scene played out at night, and we were very careful with the use of the spotlight, this made photography impossible so the only snap we have of the encounter is the bloodied Tumbela savoring fresh impala veal. It seems that the Othawa pride, the Tumbela males and our solo lioness (Othawa and Ximhungwe) have another set of unwelcome neighbors to live with. The Talamati pride arrived in February. This pride is a break away from a large pride to the north of the Sabi Sand Wildtuin. It seems they made their way south into the Sabi Sand Wildtuin from Manyeleti and have slowly migrated west. It’s made up of six beautiful lioness’ and two large sub adult males. These new males are big boys even though their manes might induce a chuckle from the Tumbela male. For now, they are afraid of the Tumbela and have not made too many inroads into the west but in time they may pose a proper problem to both the Othawas and the Tumbela. Again, only time will tell. https://inyatigamelodge.com/2022/04/05/j...the-lodge/ |
| Users browsing this thread: |
| 165 Guest(s) |