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Sully · 11-05-2015, 07:19 AM

(11-05-2015, 07:15 AM)Pantherinae Wrote:
(11-05-2015, 07:11 AM)SVTIGRIS Wrote: Unfortunate some preys fate is sealed by tarmac, not saying this one is but it's often the case. Maybe the predators have learned that ungulates and roads are a no go and so purposefully hunt near or on roads...

very possible @SVTIGRIS big cat's can adapt and learn new methods to kill prey if that's the case here the lions tactic worked very well.

yup, very intelligent cats are, not given the props they deserve in that aspect although it's hard to ignore the teeth and claws.

Pckts · 11-05-2015, 09:57 PM

@Pantherinae the lions look to be normal sized to me, I certainly am not willing to put that Kudu in the top 1% of kudu size and you really don't even get to see him upright either, he has two lions on him the entire time the video is running outside of the missed attack initially.
TFS though

Pantherinae · 11-05-2015, 10:55 PM

Yeah @Pckts i hope it didn't sound like I was saying this Kudu is as big as they get, that was never the point, The point was that Kudu's are large antilopes and The lions looks large on it body wise.

i agree the lions are nowhere near giant lions, but still big boys like you said about average boy's!

Pantherinae · 11-06-2015, 04:03 AM

https://www.facebook.com/144283926935088...=2&theater

Pretty boy from the Mapogo coalition killing a large hyena!

Dr Panthera · 11-06-2015, 04:44 AM

(11-05-2015, 06:59 AM)SVTIGRIS Wrote: Asiatic Lion diet

A la carte: King’s banquet has different menus

AHMEDABAD:

"The king of the jungle has changed his menu! Eating habits of Asiatic lions in Gir and its periphery has seen a remarkable change. Over the last five decades, lions have increasingly started to feast on wild animals instead of livestock.

A study by foreign researcher Paul Joslin in the late 1960s had revealed that about 75% lions were dependent on livestock, including cattle, while only 25% hunted wild animals down.

The ratio has reversed today, according to an ongoing study by Gujarat's forest department. "Today, about 80% lions have wild animals in their main diet and only 20% feast on cattle," said deputy conservator of forests Sandeep Kumar.

Even outside the protected sanctuary area, less than 50% of intake is livestock. In coastal areas like Bhavnagar, 63% of lions' diet is blue bull or neelgais - a major reason why local farmers accept lions as their neighbour because blue bulls damage their crops.

A fast-growing prey base and human population, mainly maldharis, moving out of jungles are the main reasons for the reversal in the trend. The phenomenon is reflected in the number of cattle heads killed by lions inside the sanctuary - from 700-800 in 1970s to just about 200 today.

"The study corroborates the findings of Meena Venktraman, who did her PhD in 2008 on Asiatic lions. The study revealed that 81% of lions in the sanctuary area depend on wild animal for their food while the rest depend on livestock," said Kumar.

Experts like Dr H S Singh, additional chief principal conservator of forests, too agree.

Usually, such studies are done by scat analysis after studying faeces of animals to identify the kind of animal and its diet.

In Gir west, chitals account for 46% of lions' diet followed by cattle (18%), sambhar (17%) and blue bull (13%). Contrary to this, in the eastern areas, towards Amreli and Bhavnagar, blue bull is the king's favourite diet - nearly 30% - followed closely by cattle which accounts for 28%.

Buffet time for the Big Cats

In Devaliya, foresters have seen a human side to the lions. Much like us, the big cats also seem to prefer varied diets.

A lioness and her three cubs in the area have a special liking for male neelgai. This mini-pride has an impeccable record in hunting stout, male neelgai. Nothing else will satisfy them!

An ongoing study by the forest officials and deputy conservator of forest Sandeep Kumar reveals that while some prides prefer to feast on a variety of prey, there are many others that prefer hunting for specific animals. Like this group of Devaliya, there was another group of 13-14 lions in Vekharia in Bhavnagar who preferred only neelgai as their food.

He said the kill pattern of the lions depended on various factors including the size of the pride, the climate, the availability of the prey and the size of their groups found in the area among others.

Kumar said that if the group was big, it would love to have a huge buffalo or a neelgai as its food. But if the group was a small it would kill a chital or sambhar.

He noted that the diet even changed with the season. In winters, the killing of chital for food was 54 per cent, while this reduced to 38 per cent in summer. In monsoon, about 26 per cent of the cattle were killed for food, but during winter it was reduced to 13.5 per cent.

Kumar said that during the monsoon, the sambhar would shift to areas with higher altitudes and hence they would be killed more by leopards — which stay in these higher altitude areas. Lions are not found on very high altitude areas. However, chital killing by lions increased in these seasons, as the chital always stays in flat lands and are an easy target for the big cats. He observed that during monsoon, the killing of cattle also increases. Many farmers leave their cattle alone who stray into the forest area and become prey to lions.

Officials said that the even the movement of the group and their size also play a major role into accounting for the lion diet. In Gir area, one can find large group of chital during winter and hence they fall easy prey to lion. But during summer and monsoon when the group size of chital reduces, the killing of these animals also decreases."

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/...010573.cms

This confirms the following:
1- Fit big cats will prefer wild prey to livestock if given the choice.
2- Lions target and the large sambar but will take the most available reasonable prey like chital in Gir, and Nilgai in coastal areas
3-Predators control of destructive wild animals like nilgai and wild boar outweighs their predation on livestock

Dr Panthera · 11-06-2015, 04:49 AM

(11-06-2015, 04:03 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: https://www.facebook.com/144283926935088...=2&theater

Pretty boy from the Mapogo coalition killing a large hyena!

It is incredible to see the effort that lions put in killing hyenas, male lions do seek matriarch hyenas and kill them eventhough they do not eat them, in this case food was not a motive either.
Lions also kill leopards, cheetahs, and crocodiles to lessen competition but their hatred to hyenas is evident.
This reminds of the Jouberts excellent film Eternal Enemies ( lions and hyenas)

Pantherinae · 11-06-2015, 04:58 AM

(11-06-2015, 04:49 AM)Dr Panthera Wrote:
(11-06-2015, 04:03 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: https://www.facebook.com/144283926935088...=2&theater

Pretty boy from the Mapogo coalition killing a large hyena!

It is incredible to see the effort that lions put in killing hyenas, male lions do seek matriarch hyenas and kill them eventhough they do not eat them, in this case food was not a motive either.
Lions also kill leopards, cheetahs, and crocodiles to lessen competition but their hatred to hyenas is evident.
This reminds of the Jouberts excellent film Eternal Enemies ( lions and hyenas)

yeah male lions hate towards hyenas are in the extreme
.

here is one rare event uploaded 1 month back where the mighty Majingilane male lions are actually eating a hyena. male lions does seem to have a tendency to eat competitor if they feel they have beaten a great rival (majingilanes ate Kinky Tail from the mapogos and other cases of young males eating larger males when he is defeated have been written about) maybe this was a large dominant female hyena they finally caught.

Pantherinae · 11-11-2015, 04:29 AM

Lion vs buffalo

*This image is copyright of its original author

TheLioness · 12-13-2015, 12:46 AM

*This image is copyright of its original author

"During an early morning game drive in the Thorny Bush Reserve we came across a Lioness, who (bizarrely) seemed to be eying up a White Rhino. Of-course the Rhino was taking no notice of the Lioness, why would she?Well you have to admire the lioness zeal, if nothing else, because she opted to charge the Rhino from behind. I'm not sure what her plan was but it soon changed when the Rhino turned and faced her.Now with 60 cms now being directed at her, rather than the rear end, our ambitious cat tacked away to safety in mid charge.What is they say discretion is the better part of valor."

TheLioness · 12-15-2015, 08:39 AM

Single lions and their kill.

*This image is copyright of its original author

Dr Panthera · 12-15-2015, 10:28 PM

(11-11-2015, 04:29 AM)Pantherinae Wrote: Lion vs buffalo

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

Note the experience of this lion in hunting buffalo, a good approach, a throat bite attack avoiding the deadly horns, and once the buffalo is down the "kiss of death" suffocation technique which disables the buffalo defence. Impressive

Pckts · 12-15-2015, 10:53 PM

Just shows two different techniques used to kill two similarly sized prey.
Both Raja the tiger and this male both take down an older, skinnier female but still good size bovine, regardless, one holds the throat grip and stands fast, the other prefers the muzzle suffocation technique even though the throat hold was there.
Interesting to see both techniques.

TheLioness · 12-31-2015, 09:49 AM

*This image is copyright of its original author

LionKiss · 01-11-2016, 01:30 AM

this video has a very funny moment at 1:32 a lioness jumps on the buffalo but she overshoots and lands on the other side then at 1:35 she does the same from the opposite direction,

GrizzlyClaws · 01-11-2016, 01:42 AM

A super jump from a lioness.

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