Lions of Timbavati

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11 years into his legacy: Mapoza 
Say the name Mapoza, and you don’t need to say much more. The king of the Thornybush Nature Reserve has one eye, 14 offspring and has been ruling TNR as the dominant male of the Monwana Pride for the last four years… he is, a Thornybush legacy.
Want to know a bit more about this legendary lion? Keep reading:
Everyone asks what’s caused Mapoza’s one blind/blue eye, and where there are may theories this milky eye is the result of a congenital glaucoma and not as gruesome as a badly executed hunt. He was more than likely born with this defect, but it has gotten progressively worse over time.
Mapoza has been the dominant for about 4 years now… over the years he has grown his offspring of the Monwana pride to over 14 (9 male and 4 female) ranging in age from 7 months to 27 months.
Around 2016, when the first recorded sighting of the Mapoza male lion was noted, he was part of a coalition of two. They were first documented in the Klaserie Nature Reserve, and were thought to be around four or five years old at the time.
In 2020, after a couple years fighting for dominance from various males in the TNR he managed to take over the Monwana Pride.
Sadly, in a lion reality he won’t be occupying his throne for much longer as he in his 11th year and under pressure from younger males… however the Mapoza legacy will rein forever…

Text and Picture: Thornbysh Game Reserve

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