Lions of Timbavati

[Potato]

Tanda Tula update

As for the Giraffe Pride, they too were quite cooperative this week. After starting the week on the plains the pride crossed into the Klaserie – a rare voyage for them, but they didn’t get more than 100m in and we could see them from the boundary. It was that evening that they returned and killed the wild dog. The next day we found three of the young pride males in the same area, and a day later we picked up on them still looking for the pride. By the end of the week, all 25 members were back together and spent another two days on the plains. Although we didn’t see them on any kills, for three days in a row we could see that they had eaten. The males put on a great roaring display for us one evening, and it was encouraging to see that even in his poor condition, the Sumatra male is not scared to proclaim his dominance.

The week ended with one of the young males having once more gotten separated from the pride. The Sark Breakaway Pride also made a welcome return to the west this week and three members were seen feeding on a waterbuck one evening. The next day all four lionesses, the five subadults and two of the Vuyela males were together in our western sections. We saw these two Vuyela males one morning marching down our access road causing quite a traffic jam; we opted not to spend time there and got to see two other Vuyela males in the east on our journey there in search of cheetahs. These same two males had been spending a great deal of time with the three River Pride members. It seems as though these girls are bringing these males back into the area that they used to use as their territory when they were with the Nharhu males. This push from the River Pride and the roars of the Vuyela males are keeping the Mayambula Pride in the southern reaches of their territory, and generally just beyond our concession. It will be interesting to see how these dynamics unfold over the coming months.

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

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