Coalitions of Kruger National Park

[Potato]

We found the Biyamithi Lion Pride on a buffalo kill. There was one male with a few females, cubs and one sub-adult male who was lying a little way off. At first it all seemed normal, however when the young male tried to get closer, the whole pride would stand up an confront him. The young male was about 2 years of age, which is about the age when dominant males would push them out of the pride to go out on their own. This is what I would say was starting to happen here. If it was a young male who wasn't part of the pride, the dominant male would have reacted far more aggressively towards him. The fact that there were small cubs in the pride could also explain why the females backed him up in attacking the young male. For young males to be evicted from their natal pride is a common occurrence, as they mature, they start to pose a threat to the dominant males and subsequently get evicted to find a territory of their own. This young male was lucky that his coalition partners were absent and that he didn't launch a full on attack on the youngster. This was a very clear message that his time is finished with the pride and that he needs to go and look for greener pastures.

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