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Lion tales
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I dont know but Toulon males killed Old skukuza male and also took the territory from Old Sand River males...
https://blog.londolozi.com/2013/08/12/tsalala-grandmother-is-dead/?fbclid=IwAR2j3yJ1bbRSi7PweBOgHMpGhWiUqVInSRtUDD8KAl18bImjDnHrOWCM_4A
August 2013 Death of Legendary Tailless Tsalala female half-eaten lioness lies dead at Marthly Pools. Dean and Elmon discovered her at sunset on Thursday and broke the news to those game drives that hadn’t closed down for a gin and tonic and a piece of cheese. After drive Jerry and I headed to the village for a cold beer to toast the life of the old Tslalala Tail-less Female. We don’t have a coroner here and Dean and Elmon didn’t manage to positively identify who it was – but instinctively most of us know who it is who lies at the Tsalala Pride’s favourite haunt. Over the past few days all the other females have been accounted for and so without having to lift her gums and check for the missing canine we’ve let her lie in state in the shade of the magnificent Albizia that she so frequently climbed to while away the hottest hours of the day. Happier times for the Tsalala pride a few months ago – The cubs lie in wait for the tailless female to return to them:  *This image is copyright of its original author It is sad news out of the Bushveld, and for those of you who encountered her on game drive it may even seem tragic. After some reflection however I’ve decided that to describe the death of a 15 year old lioness as being premature is like grieving for a 1000 year old Leadwood that no longer bears leaves. She was an old lioness whose 15 years may seem to be such a short time measured by us but by lion years at Londolozi she was well advanced in her years. She made her first appearance at Londolozi as a cub in 1998. Two females from the Castleton Pride, hesitant to take small cubs back into a main group of 22, brought their litter to Londolozi and set up a territory west of the Camps. They were often viewed near Tsalala Pan which became an obvious choice for the name of this new pride.  *This image is copyright of its original author By 2002, both the adult females were dead, one having being kicked fatally by a zebra and the other being killed by hyena in front of Tree Camp. The only other cub to have survived with her was a brother who would unbelievably be poached, leaving her alone and then in oestrus. She sought out the two dominant Marthly Males and in December 2002 produced her first litter that would include the two adult lionesses of the Tsalala Pride. She always has been a phenomenal huntress, that never changed! Her track record as a mother was sullied by the various male lion wars that she witnessed. Her attempts at raising young were to be frequently interrupted by the change-over of landlords: after the Marthly Males came the Kruger Male, the Shaws Males, the Mapogo Coalition and then finally the Majingilane Males, with each new territory holder wiping out the young genes of the previous males and then planting their own. I would love to have seen just how many cubs she would have reared to adulthood with a stable male dynamic, and it’s a pity that the relative stability that the Majingilane Males have offered since 2010 came so late in her life. Perhaps her daughters will benefit from the relative ‘peacetime’ that she never knew.  *This image is copyright of its original author It wasn’t necessarily all search, seek and destroy. In the midst of all of this male warfare she played a clever game of ‘hide and seek’ long enough for five cubs to escape infanticide. The first survivor was the Tsalala Young Male who was fathered by the Marthly Males. He was the sole survivor of a litter of four that she protected first against the Kruger Male and then successfully hid from the Shaws Males. It was during this trying period that she lost her tale in a fight with a hyena and became known as the Tail-less Female. She and her two daughters also had eight cubs fathered by the Mapogo coalition. Four of those were killed by the Majingilane Males through 2010 and 2011 but the canny lioness took sole responsibility for the four remaining young females moving with them away from Sparta and Marthly and kept them out of harm’s way until they were adults. Those four females are now the Munghen Pride and she left them to their own devices when they were capable enough, in order to re-join her two adult daughters. Here, one can see the patience that she has had with all her cubs. It is an amazing legacy that she contrived under adverse circumstances. Ironically she was killed by the Munghen females that she battled so hard to protect. A kudu was killed in a daytime hunt by the four lionesses early last week. Hungry and with cubs to feed they did not welcome the old female who arrived at the carcass and gave her a mauling that she couldn’t recover from. It’s a bizarre twist in an unusual tale, but then again lion dynamics tend towards the disfunctional. I’ve often wondered about the celebrity of this particular lioness. Was she just more recognisable to us because of her missing tail, or is her story really so compelling? Aren’t all wild lionesses subject to grim battles of survival? I don’t have the answer for that and with part of her story told here you can make your own mind up. What I’m sure about is that she will be sorely missed in a very venerable and untragic way…  *This image is copyright of its original author
 (05-02-2020, 10:21 PM)Potato Wrote: August 2013 Theres something about those Tsalala lions and their unbelievable battle against all odds and survival. From her being alone and raising her two daughters (tailess and tailed) and raising 4 Mhangeni lionesses who eventualy killed her, to Tsalala male Solo and his story of surviving as a lone male, then her daughter tailess and her raising 3 Tsalala males and Tsalala female, and at the end we have today, Three Tooth and alone Pretty Girl Tsalala trying to do the same thing, just unbelievable story thru span of over 20 years..
https://wildlife.singita.com/safari-story/2017/05/the-last-battle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOUG4ZHkS1Y May 2017 Battle at Singita Kruger National Park: Shishangaan males vs Rouge males [color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)]What an unbelievable morning! The temperature was cool and the mist was thick. We had found the fresh footprints of two male lions in the road, heading in a northerly direction. We drove past a herd of elephants (it is always great to see elephants in the mist. Massive dark shadows in the grey). We carried on following the male lion tracks. From the way the back footprint lay far in front of the front paw print (the back paw was overstepping the front) we could tell that the two lions were running fast. After a while of following the tracks we eventually got a glimpse of the two maned brothers up ahead. They were two large adult lions. We know these lions as the Rogue Males and they are quite shy of the vehicles. These two male lions have recently been pushing into the concession, chasing the younger males in the area. The two Rogue Males were still headed north and they had already gone quite deep into the Shish Males territory (the dominant male coalition in our concession). They were roaring loudly. As soon as the lions saw us they moved away from the road into the thick bush to the west. We lost sight of them and so we carried on driving a little further up the road, hoping that they would come back a bit closer so that we could get better views of them. It was a little bit disappointing that after tracking them for such a long distance that we only managed to get a brief view as they disappeared into the vegetation. We were on one of the public roads and were therefore not able to follow them into the bush. We soon saw another vehicle approaching from up ahead. It was some other tourists and I waved them to stop. As they slowed down I told the driver to keep a careful lookout in the area and told him that we had just seen two lions moving away from the road. This tourist then told us that a little further up the road he had seen four other lions that had been lying in the middle of the road, but they had also disappeared into the thick vegetation and the gentleman had lost visual of them. We decided to carry on driving to where he had seen the lions and when we got there we could see the imprints in the sand where the cats had been lying. The tracks of these lions had headed in a south-westerly direction. They were obviously going straight towards where the other lions had disappeared. We turned the car around and started to head south again, hoping that we would be able to get another view of the lions. We stopped again and that is when we heard the lions calling. The lions were roaring loudly from within the bushes quite close to where we were. Chantelle had also just arrived in the area and she carried on driving a little further down the road. She then spoke on the radio and announced that she could see the original two male lions running in the road ahead of her. They were racing fast, back towards the south (back the way that they had originally come from). Chantelle then called in on the radio saying that there were now six male lions running down the road in front of her.[/color] [color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)]The four Shish males had come out of the bush behind the Rogue males and were now chasing after them. The Grumpy Shish Male was struggling to keep up with the other three as they chased the two intruders. He was limping, due to his gammy back leg, but still continued to follow on behind them, roaring as he tried to catch up. All six lions were now roaring loudly. It was an incredible sound! I quickly caught up to Chantelle as she was following the lions that were running fast down the road towards the south. It was amazing to see the six large males running down the road into the thick mist. It was marvellous and the sound of their roaring was incredible! The Rogue Males were running for their lives and the Shish Males were right behind them. The lions then turned off the road and headed into the Singita Concession. The Shish Males seemed as though they were catching up to the Rogue Males as all the lions ran across the open grasslands towards the south. The Shish Males continued to chase the Rogues across the open grasslands. The Rogues were now crossing the Gumba drainage and the Shish Males were close on their tail. As soon as the two Rogue Males had crossed the drainage the Shish Males seemed to decide that they had pushed the intruders out of their territory and they turned around and started walking north again. The two Rogue Males saw the Shish Males retreating and this boosted their confidence. It was now that they made their biggest mistake! They started chasing after the Shish Males, straight back into Shish territory. The four Shish Males were headed north again across the open grassland and the two Rogue Males started giving chase. We followed the lions as they ran past a large breeding herd of elephants. The elephants trumpeted and gave a few mock charges towards the lions. We decided that it would not be too wise to get close to the elephants, as they could decide to take out their wrath on the vehicles instead. We took quite a wide detour around the herd of elephants and when we caught up to the lions again we could see that the Shish Males were reconsidering their options again. They turned around and started to chase the two males once more. How dare the intruders chase them around in their own territory! All six lions were running south across the grasslands again. They headed past the elephant herd again and the elephants once again trumpeted and stared at the lions as they passed. We caught up to the lions near the Gumba Drainage again and the Shish Males were catching up to the intruders. The two Rogues made their way through the dip and over the ridge south of Dumbana Pool, with the Shish Males right behind them. Sean was driving right behind the lions as they headed off the road into the bush again. I was close behind when Sean called on the radio, saying that the Shish Males had just caught up to one of the Rogues.[/color][/color] [color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)]The One-eyed Shish Male was already fighting with the Rogue and the other three Shish males were just arriving at the scene. Chaos ensued! It was a blur of movement as the four Shish Males climbed into the Rogue Male, hitting and biting at him. The sound of the growling and fighting was intense! The Rogue Male was trapped and surrounded, and was taking quite a beating. Four against one. The odds were not good for the intruder. The four Shish males attacked relentlessly, biting the intruder and hitting him hard with their paws and claws. We could see the blood on the mouth of the Shish males as they bit the Rogue. He tried to defend himself, but he stood no chance. One of the Shish Males got a good grip on the inner thigh of the Rogue. The intruder tried to fight back, but was taking serious injuries from the four males who were surrounding him and launching attacks at him. He was in big trouble now. One of the Shish Males hit him hard on the spine and it appeared that his back legs collapsed under him. It was possible that they had now broken his spine. Another of the Shish Males bit into his inner thighs again and went for his groin. It was obvious that they were going to kill him! As they climbed into him again we noticed a male elephant approaching. He was obviously not happy with all the commotion going on and charged towards the lions. Two of the Shish males made a quick retreat away from the elephant but the other two continued attacking the unfortunate Rogue. The elephant trumpeted at the lions and mock-charged again, stopping short of the lions and staring down at them. Eventually after a bit more skirmishing the four Shish Males moved off, following after where the other Rogue Male had headed. I decided to leave the area then. The injured male was in a really bad way. Just before I left the area I watched as the Rogue male tried to lift himself up and collapsed again. His back legs were just not supporting him. My last view of him was as he was trying to drag himself towards the shade of a large leadwood tree. There were lots of thoughts going through my mind and obviously through the minds of the guests that had witnessed the fight. The Shish Males were unable to find the other Rogue and then returned to finish off the first. I heard later from the guides that they had attacked him again. It was a very vicious attack. Eventually the four Shish Males went and lay in the shade and the Rogue dragged himself to the base of the leadwood tree.[/color][/color][/color] [color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)]I did not go to the area in the afternoon, but the next morning I passed by the region. The Rogue Male was dead and his body was still lying under the tree. We came across the four Shish males a few kilometres to the north. They were resting on the northern bank of the N’wanetsi River. The One-Eyed Male (the male that had originally caught up to the Rogue and started attacking him) was looking very sore. His front right paw was seriously swollen and he was having difficulty putting any weight on it. One of the other males had some fresh scars and scratches on his face. The morning after that, Sean and Jacques headed back to the area and found a clan of hyenas feeding on the carcass of the lion. There were numerous vultures perched in the trees waiting for their turn. That morning we found tracks of the other Rogue Male heading straight towards the Mozambique border. We wondered what was going to happen to him now that he had lost his coalition partner. We also wondered whether he would grieve the loss of his brother and friend.[/color][/color][/color][/color] [color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)][color=rgba(85, 88, 87, 0.7)]
https://www.umlani.com/blog/post/sightings-update-lions-steal-the-show/
January 2019 Mbiri males fight unknown rivals  *This image is copyright of its original author Over the last couple of months as the two cubs grow the pride (Zebenine pride) has become more mobile no longer needing to keep the little ones hidden as they are big enough to move with the pride, the lions have been moving throughout their vast territory and have been exceptionally successful at hunting and providing regular meals not only for the growing cubs but for the 2 dominant males as well. With the many sightings we have had of this pride a few really stand out and these are the sightings I would like to share with you in this blog. The first one happened early one morning, the Zebenine pride had killed a buffalo not far from camp, we headed straight there to see if the lions were still there only to find a couple of vultures and a Black backed jackal sniffing around where the buffalo carcass was, and there was no sign of the lions. We decided to head to a nearby dam, usually after a big meal that would be where lions would go, so off we set. we hadn't gotten far from the kill scene when we caught a glimpse of the lions on the move so we headed in to get a closer look and enjoyed multiple walkbys from the pride as the B-lined towards the waterhole. Golden sunlight and bigcats filled our camera screens as we could pick and choose angles to get the best photos. Once everyone was happy we thought it would be a good idea to go wait at the water for the lions to come and have a drink. We positioned the vehicle opposite to where we thought the lions would drink and as if we had told them before hand one by one they arrived at the waters edge exactly at the spot we had predicted. Again the camera shutters worked overtime as the magical scene unfolded for us, from both males drinking side by side to the cubs and their mom it truly was an unforgettable sighting. It was only once the lions had finished slaking their thirst that we decided to leave them to digest their meal in the shade of one of the trees lining the waters edge.  *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  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author The other sighting that really stands out was last week when we heard the roars of the 2 Mbiri males very close to camp, we went out to see if we could find them, judging by the sound of the roars we suspected them to be at one of the waterholes roughly 2kms from camp. On arrival at the waterhole our prediction was 100% correct and the lions were drinking before setting off again on their territorial patrol. But something was wrong, the larger of the 2 Mbiri males was walking with a slight limp and his back and hind quarters were littered with fresh wounds, superficial ones but that wasn't the problem, as we positioned the vehicle to see the smaller male drinking we noticed the wounds he had sustained, far worse than his brother. The whole right side of his face was raw with clear puncture marks from what can only be another lion, his right eye swollen shut and clearly in pain every movement he made elicited a head shake. Now as harsh as this is and sounds, this comes with the territory of being dominant male lions, who these guys fought with is a mystery but the wounds they have and the fact that they are roaring and patrolling show of a victorious battle and another victory is that they successfully protected their females and cubs. It is reserve policy not to interfere with nature and this will be how the situation is treated, a few months ago the same male had another serious injury from a fight where it actually looked like he had lost his eye, however with in a a couple of weeks the wound had healed and he still had his eye so this just goes to show how tough these animals really are and that there is no need for human interference. However despite the injuries, this sighting was incredible as we had both males lying close to the vehicle and roaring into the night, an experience that almost can't be put into words and can only be fully appreciated when you are there experiencing it, it is a sound that can be heard up to 8kms and we were listening to it a mere 1m from our vehicle, simply goosebumps stuff.  *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  *This image is copyright of its original author
The Mpondo male lions - One coalition, three bloodlines
It says that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. She can be hidden or obvious. She can be inconspicuous or overwhelming, crystal clear or impalpable. She can be shy and only emerge after a certain amount of time or leap out right at you. She’s a perception that assumes all kinds of shapes and remains unique to each and everyone. For wildlife lovers the Kruger famous Mpondo male lions surely unite many of her characteristics. She’s overwhelming and crystal clear with their huge dark manes and healthy strong bodies, yet there’s another beauty, impalpable and secretly hidden behind a pretty much unknown background. So in order to reveal her there is one question to be asked that this report will focus on: Who are the five Mpondo male lions that developed into one of the Kruger’s most successful lion coalitions? While usually male lion coalitions are made up of related males such as brothers and cousins who form close bonds to start their journey into independence together, the Mpondo male lions didn’t really stick to that general rule. Instead their coalition basically breaks the habit and has its origins at the Jock Concession, the Lukimbi Lodge and the Crocodile Bridge: 5 males from 3 different prides from 3 different areas. While the sick blonde maned male and his black maned amber eyed brother came from the Lukimbi pride and with the other set of brothers - consisting of the short-tailed Mpondo „boss“ and his brother - originating from the Jock pride, it was the single 5th male who finally brought them all together at Mjejane Game Reserve in 2013/14. Having left his natal pride, the Vurhami pride behind, and being the oldest of the 5 males he lived up to his responsibilities and became their initial leader. It was under his watch that the males settled their issues (not without a few fights) and finally brought a difficult bonding time to a satisfying end. Guide Dave Pusey who was lucky enough to spend a lot of time with them in their younger days on Mjejane about the exciting observations: „The Vurhami male reminded me of my time in Sabi Sands when Makhulu Mapogo initially led the Mapogos and kept the bond of the younger Mapogos strong.“ The coalition of 5 Mjejane males was born. This name soon changed again when they left Mjejane behind and departed towards the Mpondo Dam on the S102 in 2015/16 where they finally established their first territory and took over the Mpondo pride. The fame grew day by day and as a result it didn’t take long till the whole Kruger National Park would finally get to know them as the 5 Mpondo male lions. One year later in 2017 they began to expand their territory further north along the S21, Renosterkoppies till up to the S114 which resulted in the successful takeover of the big Renosterkoppies pride. This union led to a further thriving of the pride, along with more litters of cubs there are currently four young males (one older and three slightly younger brothers) in the process of completely breaking up with the pride. Just like it already had been witnessed with the Mantimahle male lions, one male - in this case the oldest Mpondo male #5 - permanently stayed with the Renosterkoppies pride while the other four regularly moved between their two prides and the boundaries of their territory. After roughly two years of stable circumstances 2019 brought along another change as the five males decided to push further north-west. At the cost of loosing the eastern part of their territory around the Mpondo Dam to the four S26 males, they ousted the Thompson males from the Jock concession and took over the whole region till down to Afsaal. With such a huge territory to cover its very likely that there are more prides under their leadership that are yet to identify. What had started as a partnership of convenience between a bunch of unrelated males at a time of pure need, eventually developed into a strong brotherhood that conquered the Kruger almost at will. With the 5th male approaching the autumn of his life with now approximately over 10 years of age, and the blonde male #4 still struggling with some obvious disease, it’s not only thanks to the other three males - visibly in their prime years - that the group hasn’t lost a single member till today, but instead the close affection and size in total of the coalition that provided and still provides decent protection for each of the five members. Five foreign males that originated from completely different areas of the Kruger National Park who came together and ended up forming a close bond; It’s tales like this that turn the hidden beauty of nature into something obvious: the pure unpredictability of wildlife and it‘s ability to find ways to survive. We would like to thank Big On Wild - Wildlife Blog & Photography for a wonderful collaboration in exploring the background of the Mpondo male lions in detail and we highly recommend to check out their blog where they examine the histories of certain male lion coalitions of the Kruger National Park. Kruger National Park Photo credits (in order of appearance): Picture #1: Dave Pusey, picture #2 - #4: Sean de la Harpe-Parker  *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 Credits : "Lions of Africa" Facebook page.
"Credits : "Lions of Africa" Facebook page."
Big on wild is the source, not that facebook page http://bigonwild.co.za/mpondo-male-lions/?fbclid=IwAR2czvw2GPQOTGitIUReD59_V3LSoT1cSPAJdjVc7QQ8HVwoZ1MaKBS3Wug (05-13-2020, 01:35 AM)Potato Wrote: "Credits : "Lions of Africa" Facebook page." Thanks for correction. Truly amazing insight and information about Mpondo coalition. As it says they rly are similar to Mapogos in their setup as 5th Mpondo has very similar role to Makhulu, 5th Mpondo is most likely sired by old Gomondwane males as he comes from Vurhami pride about 10,11 yrs ago.
https://wildearth.tv/2009/06/styx-pride-of-lions/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEY_y50m...e=emb_logo August 2008 Mapogo males atack Styx pride It seems the Mapogos found the Styx pride with their 11 cubs on Aug 10th. It was said the 5 male lions didn’t pay much attention to the lionesses until they noticed the cubs. They went for the cubs and the Styx girls went into action fighting the males but of course they were no match for 5 big males and had to depart. The Mapogos went in search of the cubs but it was believed they couldn’t find any. A couple of days later the latest Styx mother and her two new cubs were still safe in their den area. On the 15th of Aug. the rangers were relieved to see the rest of the pride along with the other 9 cubs so all survived the Mapogo attack. The Styx pride have always been questioned about their Motherly qualities and are usually shown in a bad light when it comes to taking care of their little ones. In their defense… one must reconsider how good of Mothers they truly are. Taking on 5 big males to defend their cubs and grant the little ones time to escape to safety was indeed heroic. [b]On another Aug 2008 encounter between the Styx Pride and the Mapogos the Styx didn’t fare as well. The encounter was with 3 Mapogo males and the adult lionesses had an aggressive fight with them. One cub was caught and slung in the air but managed to survive and take refuge in the nearby rocks. The adult lionesses escaped unhurt except for one lioness that received fairly bad bite marks on her back but she recovered quickly.[/b] 
¡MAJESTIC & BADASS KING!
JESSE - The Living Legend. Living a Nomad Life. He was born in CHELI PRIDE in 2011 and is now 9 years old,yes not that old but in these years he has seen a lot,a tough life of a Lion. Once He with his brother FRANK were the dominant male of OFFBEAT PRIDE which they took over around April 2014 and were known as OFFBEAT PRIDE MALES that time. They were strong, aggressive and were like a walking Force without any fear. They sired two litters of offsprings together, one litter in 2015 and other litter in 2016 which was all total 17 youngsters. Their first litter of offsprings were born in first 3 months of 2015 which consists of 14 cubs, 6 males and 5 females (probably 3 can't make it) which were pushed away by the aggressive behaviours of their fathers JESSE and FRANK which lead to a split in OFFBEAT PRIDE into smaller groups for sometime. In 2019 FRANK vanished without any trace,JESSE moved to OMC and later to the reserve.As the OFFBEAT PRIDE was without any dominant male it gave the oppurtunity for 4 nomad males to come in. These 4 nomads male were from the ISEKETA PRIDE which was controlled by MONIKO Males LOLPARPIT and OLBARNOTI. These 4 males were sons of LOLPARPIT and OLBARNOTI. After the disapperance of FRANK, JESSE was alone and started living a nomad life and this nomad life maked him more strong, experienced, fighter, scavenger which totally changed him to reall beast and badass. In October 2019 he came back to claim his old pride, OFFBEAT PRIDE but couldnot suceed. He again came into limelight with DOA after so many years of roaming and living a nomad life.He needed a partner because in Lions dynamic, they need partners, brothers to strengthen up to get a pride but luck never favoured in his way, he tried his best being patient, inviting DOA for food but DOA was with TOPI PRIDE which includes his cubs too so he doesnot needed a partner and he avoided him taking his stands. JESSE even killed a Lioness from the TOPI PRIDE and at last they have a confrontation in which DOA got lots of scar on his face which was a handsome face before. Later DOA with TOPI PRIDE moved away but JESSEE stayed back there. Few weeks ago he was sitting in the area of LOLPARPIT, both watching each other but without any tention and chaos. JESSE needs a partner badly because alone in the land of many coalitions of Lions will be hard for him to survive but he has got lots of experience and he has come out of all the odds, definitely a struggling man but he is strong hearted-Lion Hearted in true sense. ¡Hope he gets a partner and pride for himself! Photo credits: Pareet Shah-Cheka. Cheka Wild - Lions-The Living Legends May 17, 2020.  *This image is copyright of its original author
https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2015/08/rangers-report-july-2015/
https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2015/11/rangers-report-october-2015/ https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2015/12/rangers-report-november-2015/ https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2016/01/rangers-report-december-2015/ https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2016/06/rangers-report-april-2016/ https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2017/02/rangers-report-december-2016/ https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2017/04/rangers-report-january-2017/ https://www.elephantplains.co.za/big-5-blog/2017/06/rangers-report-march-2017/ Majingilanes vs Birmingham males clashes July 2015 The five Birmingham males came back for a quick visit. They are looking great, in good shape and their manes are well developed, but not yet full. They had a good feed as they had a buffalo bull and also stole two young buffalo kills, but this was all short-lived. Just when the young males though life was at its best, the Majingi male lions moved into the area and caught up with them. The Birmingham males made a quick run for it and the Majingi males chased them all the way back to where they came from. The Majingi males are still in good shape and by the looks of things they are not ready to step down as kings of the area. October 2015 The Birmingham males are also expanding their territory and getting more confident as they go along. They are moving more west, into the Majingi territory and this might be the build-up to the fight of the century. The Birmingham males came into the area the one night, roaring and making sure all the other males were aware that they mean business. Once again the Majingi males responded to the roars of the younger males. We heard the loud roars of the Majingi males, echoing through the night, announcing their presence. The following morning we followed the tracks of the young males, moving straight east towards their territory. These 5 young males are just scouting and they have a lot of time on their hands, while waiting for the Majingi males to age. Although the four Majingi male lions are 10 years old now, they are still a formidable force to be reckoned with.  *This image is copyright of its original author November 2015 The Birmingham males were also out and about this month, as they were patrolling their boundaries and roaring all over. The young males are getting so much more confident and bolder by the day. These youngsters are still moving into Majingi territory every now and again. At this stage they are testing the waters, but every time they move in, the Majingi male’s powerful roar makes them turn around. The four Majingi males also came through the area the one night and killed a buffalo in our area. This made them stay in the area for two days, while they fed. They are still looking good, but you can see in their scarred faces that their age is starting to show. Although they are getting older, they can still put up a good fight and win. December 2015 The Birmingham male lions have been all over the area, as they were scent marking their new territory. These five males are really in good shape and their manes are getting bigger day by day. My only concern with these males is that they are splitting up a lot more than what they should. Several times now we have seen only one or two together, with no sign of the others. This might be a problem when they meet other males, as they do not have the strength of a coalition. These males are spending a lot of their time in the eastern parts of our traversing area, hardly moving into the western side. It will not be too long before they get more confident and start venturing more westwards into Majingi territory.  *This image is copyright of its original author April 2016 The Birmingham males have started again to move more west. These males did spend a lot of their time in the eastern part of their territory as this is where all their females are. December 2016 The Birmingham males was also out and about this month. We were fortunate to have them on our property once or twice. They are looking great and are in good condition. They were roaring a few times announcing their presence in the area. All this was short lived, as the roars of the Birmingham males caught the attention of another formidable force. We were woken by the loud roars of lions the one morning. On drive, we found three of the Majingilane male lions on two buffalo kills in our traversing area. They stayed here for a few days before moving on again. In those few days, the Birmingham males did not call once. They also did not come back to the western part of their territory again. This tells me that they know that the four Majingilane males are still the big shots in this area. This was not the last we saw of these big males, as we found them again a few days later, on yet another buffalo kill close to our lodge. Although the Majingi males are almost twelve years old, they are still a force to be reckoned with. January 2017 The Birmingham males are looking to expand their territory more west. The only problem is that this area still belongs to the Majingi male lions. Although the Majingi males do not patrol this part so frequently, they would not hesitate to fight with anyone who dared to try and take it from them. The Birmingham males are looking great and in good shape. They are, however, not ready for the Majingi males. One good thing is that they are walking together more than what they used to. The Majingi males made yet another turn in our area as the Birmingham males started calling in Majingi territory. Only two of the Majingi males came into the area to take on three of the four Birmingham males. Two was enough, as it was the two big boys, Black Mane and Smudge. The Birmingham males got a very rude awakening as the roars of the two Majingi males echoed through the trees next to them. The Birmingham males wasted no time and made a hasty retreat, leaving their fresh buffalo kill. The Majingi males chased these young males for kilometres before they went back to claim the free meal.  *This image is copyright of its original author March 2017 The Birmingham males are looking great and very healthy. It looks like these males will only join forces if they know other males have entered their territory. One of the males are always with the Styx pride, while the other three also splits up to join other prides. This month two of the four males got a rude awakening when two of the Majingi males chased them out of their own territory. If all four Birmingham males were together, it would have been a different story against the two older Majingi males. Hopefully the Birmingham males have now realised the importance of strength in numbers.
http://bigonwild.co.za/lubyelubye-pride-and-mazithi-males-come-face-to-face-with-a-crocodile/
Lubyelubye Pride and Mazithi Males Come Face to Face with a Crocodile October 2019 In the video the Lubyelubye pride and the Mazithi males, which can be found on the H4-1 (close to the Lubyelubye rocks and bridge) in the Kruger National Park, are seen hunting and killing a waterbuck. The waterbuck runs into the water, we guess to try escape hoping the water will deter the hungry lions, but we have found that this pride of lions especially loves the water, it’s not everyday you see a lion sitting in water. See picture of the lions enjoying the water when we saw them in August.  *This image is copyright of its original author The pride successfully takes down the waterbuck and soon after the rest of the pride including the cubs join them, suddenly a large crocodile is seen swimming around the lions trying to steal the fresh carcass, a lioness spots him first and at that instant all the lions, males included, are growling at the crocodile.  *This image is copyright of its original author Eventually the crocodile gives up and swims away probably because of the amount of lions at the kill. The video was uploaded by Kruger National Park Videos (Video is copyrighted to Kruger National Park Videos) Watch the video here:  (05-08-2020, 08:57 PM)Potato Wrote: https://wildlife.singita.com/safari-story/2017/05/the-last-battle These are the Shishangaan males. (06-09-2020, 08:06 AM)Herekitty Wrote:(05-08-2020, 08:57 PM)Potato Wrote: https://wildlife.singita.com/safari-story/2017/05/the-last-battle Edited PS Welcome back :)
https://www.sundestinations.co.za/blog/unknown-nomadic-male-lion-in-klaserie/
April - June 2016 Mabande male vs Trilogy males warfare Part 1 Unknown Nomadic Male Lion in Klaserie An interesting sighting of an unknown nomadic male lion took place in the Klaserie on the weekend, which is exciting for the lion fanatics following the lion pride dynamics in the area. Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp are in the well known territory of the Trilogy male lions, and the female lions circulating in the area include the Ross Breakaway lionesses, the Hercules Pride, and the Giraffe Pride lionesses. This reserve is open to the Kruger National Park, which means that all wildlife has the freedom to roam without the obstruction of fences, so it is only natural that from time to time an unfamiliar face pops up.  *This image is copyright of its original author This lone male lion was seen after dark, as nThambo guide, Luan, found him lying in the middle of the road on his game drive route. He was very skittish and uneasy and immediately moved out of the open and lay low in the bush alongside the road. Giving him some space and a few minutes to calm down, Luan edged closer and got a look at the young male as he radioed Greg from Africa on Foot and told him the news of this unexpected lion sighting. Greg arrived with his guests and both vehicles got to enjoy the sighting, although the shy male was not up for posing for photos!  *This image is copyright of its original author It is expected that this lone, young male lion would be nervous, as he is deep inside the territory of other lions. This is a normal period of a male lion’s life – to be out on his own searching for his own territory to dominate. After puberty, males are pushed out of the pride and begin a period of life as nomadic lions, moving from place to place. We assume the Trilogy coalition is down to 2 males, instead of the original 3, and with the remaining two males occupied by the Giraffe Pride females (one male mating with a white lioness just last week), it seems this lone lion found a way in. He is keeping very quiet and not drawing any attention to himself, as he is well aware of the Trilogy scent in the area. We are not sure if we will see him again, but we will certainly be on the look out for his tracks in the area. So far, it looks like he had spent a few days where we had found him, and had even ventured after the scent of the Breakaway lionesses which were seen at a dam nearby…  *This image is copyright of its original author
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