Coalitions of Kruger National Park

[Fredymrt]

Credits to Big on Wild
Posted on Nov 1017


Shishangaan Coalition – Lions of Kruger


November 10, 2017 Big On Wild
In April of 2015 we visited Kruger and this particular trip was very special as we got to see a white lion cub in the WILD.
The white lion is part of the Shishangaan pride, this pride in 2015 was known as a mega pride as it consisted of 4 males, five lionesses and 18-20 cubs. This particular pride was special as they actually had two white lion cubs born in the pride, one which was 9 month old in January 2015, and the second was born in February 2015.

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We only got to ever see the younger white lion. The older white lion hasn’t been seen in a while but when a few people saw him at the end of 2015 he was emaciated.
White lions are rare in the wild but Timbavati Game Reserve is known for having white lions carrying the white lion gene, white cubs are not albinos, a recessive gene gives white lions their unusual color.

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The surviving white lion on the other hand is doing great his 3 years old now, him and his siblings are still part of the pride, the Shishangaan males have still not ousted them from the pride. Last time we saw him was in August 2016 at Gudzani East Waterhole on the S41.

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Here is some information about the Shishangaan coalition, the coalition consists of 4 males they are 7/8 years old now.
Two of the males are easy to identify because one is blind in one eye, and the other male called ‘the Angry one’ has a bad limp. the Angry one is rarely seen with the other 3 males as a result of his bad limp but he is the most dominant when it comes to mating rights. In the photo below the lion in the middle is the male which is blind in one eye and he is the oldest while the other 2 are the youngest in the coalition.

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Photo by Collen Sibuyi

Here is a photo of ‘the Angry one’

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Photo by Cara Pring 

 
These males are the pride males of the Mountain pride along with the Shishangaan pride.
You can watch this video of the Shishangaan males stealing a kill from a tree here.

You can find the Shishangaan males and the pride on the S100, S41 and sometimes on the H6 by Sonop Pan Waterhole although they do spend most of their time in the Singita concession. We have only ever spotted them on the S41.

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Keep an eye out for them next time you are in the area.
Resources & Information found on:

• www.krugerpark.com
  

*Some Images & videos belong to Big on Wild 




Credits to Big on Wild
Posted on June 7, 2018

Shishangeni Males – Lions of Kruger


June 7, 2018Big On Wild
Today’s post is dedicated to the Shishangeni male lions,

In the December of 2015 we had the most numbers of lion sightings compared to our previous visits and that was because Kruger experienced a severe drought, therefore most of the waterholes and rivers’s were dry and the ones which had small amount of water was flooded with animals such as buffalos and hippos, and this made it easier for predators to hunt.

We saw the Shishangeni males for the first time in 2015 on the S28, there was 3 of them and they were marking their territory, actually every time we have seen them we have only seen 3 of them.

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©Big on Wild
December 2015

They are found in the southern section of the park and unlike other coalitions which are rarely seen, the Shishangeni males are frequently seen around the Crocodile Bridge area, they are usually seen on the H4-2 tar road.

The coalition consists of 4 male lions, and they get their name because they were born in the Shishangeni concession.

*This image is copyright of its original author

Photo By Megaaania
Found on wildfact

They were fathered by the old Gomondwane males and they are 6/7 years old. The old Gomondwane male which was blind in one eye was always seen with them when they were cubs.

They have  a territory on the S28 and the H4-2 in the Crocodile Bridge area and they are the pride males of the Vurhami pride.

One of the males from the coalition is easy to identify as he has a cut under both of his eyes.

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©Big on Wild

There is also a lot of confusion with the name because people get these Shishangeni males confused with the Shishangaan males, the Shishangaan males can be found on the S100 and they are usually referred to as the Shish males.

Down south there is also the South Shishangeni males which consists of 2 males who dominate the area around the S25.

It is believed that the Shishangeni males were the ones that chased the 3 male lions out of Kruger last year.

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©Big on Wild
December 2017

On our last game drive at Crocodile Bridge in March a ranger told us that there is a coalition of 10 sub adults male in this area which consists of Vurhami and Gomondwane ousted male lions, it will be interesting to see what will happen in the future.


The Shishangaan/Shish Male lions.
The Shishangaan males can be found on the S100 and they are usually referred to as the Shish males.

*This image is copyright of its original author

The Shishangeni Male lions. The Shishangeni males are frequently seen around the Crocodile Bridge area, they are usually seen on the H4-2 tar road.

*This image is copyright of its original author

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