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Lions of Timbavati
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From Pondoro Game Lodge
Wonderful game drive on the evening of the 18th of November. We saw 5 males of the Mohlabetsi coalition greeting each other at Ngala dam before treating us to an explosion of sound as they roared right next to our vehicle. This is a photo of the big Mohlabetsi male getting up and yawning before greeting his younger partners as they arrived at the waterhole.  *This image is copyright of its original author
Duma and his two females seen this morning on their 5th Buffalo kill of the week. Not a good time to be a buffalo. All kills on Xanatseni in the Klaserie East Block.
Credits to Brian Tomas  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author
From Pondoro Game Lodge
Mohlabetsi male relaxing after quenching his thirst at Ngala dam.  *This image is copyright of its original author
Mohlabetsi males, credits to Pondoro Game Lodge.
 *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
from motswari-blog,nov.2016.
 *This image is copyright of its original author Thursday started off slowly as we once again experienced the warmth of the summer, and by the late afternoon, temperatures were past 37 degrees in the shade.Despite the warm morning, things eventually picked up – our pack of 11 wild dogs made their way south across half the reserve in search of a meal that never came; after they ran into a small herd of elephants, they gave up!A super sighting of a large herd of elephants making there way along the Nhlaralumi ended off a good morning in the south, that also saw sightings of buffalo, giraffe, zebra, impala and kudu.In the east, the two Eastern male lions had joined the Sumatra lioness with her buffalo kill, but disappeared after they crossed the Sohebele riverbed. The warm afternoon didnt quite have the effect of drawing the larger animals to the waterholes, but impala, waterbuck, kudu, buffalo, hippos, crocodiles and even a rare pair of pied avocets were seen along the Sohebele. Despite loads of water further south on its course, there were no larger animals using it to cool off – fortunately a male lion was found near the buffalo kill, and after a drink and crossing over the river, he reunited with his partner and posed in the open for us, before showing their dominance with a roaring display at sunset. Further west, elephants, rhino, buffalo and the pack of wild dogs were ticked off, but sadly the spots of the leopards remained elusive today.  *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
From Motswari Private Game Reserve
One of the two dominant male lions in the eastern sections of Motswari private game reserve.  *This image is copyright of its original author
From Kambaku Lodge
Timbavati males chased the wild dogs of an impala kill. Mating leopards. Plenty of elephants moving about and the buffalo herds are returning. This morning we herd the 2 Ross break aways kill a buffalo in front of Kambaku River Sands.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author Sumatra males?
From Makanyi Lodge
A beautiful unknown male lion was seen while on safari. We hope to see more of him as the days go by. Regram @rix.ranger #makanyilodge #livingthedream. Giraffe Male  *This image is copyright of its original author
Front Row Seats at a Lion Kill in Klaserie:
After catching up with the Breakaway lionesses and one Mapoza male yesterday morning looking decidedly lazy and content with sleeping all day, we were hoping the cooler evening hours would coax them into action. Well, action was what we got! Afternoon game drive took a dramatic turn at Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp when the distinct call of a buffalo in distress rang through the air, and a cloud of dust rose ominously from the thicket near Twala Dam in the Klaserie. Kevin MacLaughlin was camera-ready at the scene of the sleeping lionesses, when all of a sudden the clumsy hooves of buffalo stepped right into enemy territory, setting the cats into stealthy action.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author In the light of dusk, the pair of lionesses were at an advantage, as the buffalos’ sight was beginning to fade. They moved carefully, taking full advantage of the vegetation that grew between them and their targets. They separated at first – one lioness keeping to the left of the herd, while the other stalked behind it undetected. Kevin quickly pressed record as the oblivious buffalo crossed right over the lions’ path and disappeared into the thicket. The lions followed and Kevin lost visual, but not 3 seconds later the sound of stampeding, bellowing buffalos gave away the news: the chase was on! Kevin immediately put his Land Rover into gear, clung onto his camera, and took the road most likely to lead to the action, stopping every few seconds to listen again, dust settling around him. The continuous call of one unfortunate buffalo was the assurance he needed – the lions had landed their prey. A couple of metres on, the bush opened into a clearing, and there were the two lionesses clinging to a female buffalo, still on her feet and thrashing angrily at the predators. It wasn’t long until she fell to the ground, and both lionesses positioned themselves for the kill. Kevin began to film once again, and just at that moment the radio crackled to life with Africa on Foot’s ranger Greg asking if what he could hear was true.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author Greg arrived, shortly followed by Ryan guiding his guests at nThambo Tree Camp. One lioness was tightly clamped around the throat of the buffalo, which was still kicking intermittently, and gurgling perilously with its last breaths. This iconic example of the predator-prey relationship in action is not for the faint hearted, as two of the Big 5 fight for their lives. It took about 30 minutes for the lionesses to kill the buffalo, and no credit could be given to the Mapoza male who came trotting onto the scene, emerging from the darkness, his eyes reflecting green in spotlight that illuminated the bush. The male couldn’t have been too far away, as he was seen with the lionesses earlier that day, and when his acute hearing picked up the sound of a buffalo in trouble, he headed straight in the direction of his soon-to-be meal.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author The pleased safari guests were excitably fidgeting with their camera settings, clicking away, and repositioning, capturing this incredible African night on camera. Once the deed was done, the lioness whose jaws had unfailingly clamped around the buffalo’s wind pipe released her grip and got up to join her sister a few metres away from their prize. The male lion was feeding first, as is typical at a lion feast, and the hard working lionesses lay obediently awaiting their turn.  *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 morning, when we caught up with the lions, it was clear both females had eaten well. Their bellies were near bursting, and the buffalo carcass had at least halved in sized. The male lion was nowhere in sight, and a swarm of emerald green flies had formed a blanket on the carcass. All the drama of the night before became a part of history – just another buffalo carcass available to the scavengers and decomposers of the bush.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author The video of the hunt:
The Ross males with some of the Avoca pride members.
Credits to Johan Adolf Smalman  *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 Sumatra Males with some of the Avoca pride members.  *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 Ross males and Sumatra males. Both coalitions trying to take over the Avoca pride.  *This image is copyright of its original author The war is coming... 
From Pondoro Game Lodge:
"We saw all 8 male lions of the Mohlabetsi coalition this morning. First time in many months and what an impressive sighting. Must be one of the biggest male lion coalitions in Kruger. Photo of the Mohlabetsi male taken on the 16th of October."  *This image is copyright of its original author
From Sausage Tree Safari Camp
Yesterday morning started as any "normal" day would, a wake up at 5am, coffee and then depart by 5:30. The topic of conversation over coffee was one of what we might find during the drive with the guests wanting to find some hippo and giraffe. As it was only two guests (the others had opted for a hot air balloon excursion) we were going to head down towards the river, but nature had other plans. Not even five minutes out from camp, Themba points to our left and says "Ngala" (Shangaan for lion). We saw two male lions, of which one was considerably older. Next minute from behind the bush comes another, and another, and another. A total of five males had appeared before us and seemed to be stalking some impala, rather unambitious as an impala would barely take the edge off of their appetites. They crossed the main servitude road and we headed further on in order to come out in front of them. Nobody was prepared for what was to come. As we turned the corner one of the males was on the back of a buffalo. The buffalo shrugged him off but with five male lions surrounding him the outcome was inevitable. After standing his ground for around ten minutes d he made a last ditch break for it and the lions pounced and managed to bring him down. We sat for the rest of the drive watching in awe as the lions had started feeding on the buffalo while one of the younger males covered the nose in order to try and suffocate it while the rest had started feeding. The buffalo was still alive for a while but hopefully in sufficient shock not to be feeling anything. It was the large male who put matters to an end by taking its throat in his jaws. We were privileged that the incident had occurred on a neighbouring property where we were the only vehicle out that was able to traverse and our guests had an amazing private sighting. The only other vehicle to join us for a while was one of ours with all our staff who despite living and working in the bush for many years had never witnessed lions on a kill. It was a breakfast of big smiles all round when we got back to camp. Mohlabetsi males  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author Mohlabetsi males during a buffalo hunt. photo taken yesterday by Themba Zwane.  *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
Where does this mohlabetsi coalition come from.why is it one old male and seven sub Adults?
(12-10-2016, 12:24 PM)jacksonsmash Wrote: Where does this mohlabetsi coalition come from. I assume they come from there in the Timbavati and surrounding regions. Quote:why is it one old male and seven sub Adults? The male is not that old, I think. He might be 6-7 years old. He has a brother, but they are not together anymore, his brother has gone solo with a pride he's dominant of. There is one male a bit younger than him, and then there's the 5 subadults that most likely are the older male's sons. (12-10-2016, 05:54 PM)Majingilane Wrote:(12-10-2016, 12:24 PM)jacksonsmash Wrote: Where does this mohlabetsi coalition come from. The Mohlabetsi coalition come from Klaserie, two old males (the old is brother of Duma) and 5/6 subadults. Another pic of the coalition with the two old males (not recent).  *This image is copyright of its original author
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