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Lions of Timbavati
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We are very sad to report that some days ago a young male lion was found killed, likely in a territorial fight with some older males. Although difficult to confirm, it is thought to be one of the River pride sub-adult males that was cast out by Hosi and Socha - quite possibly the youngster seen alone at our bridge just a couple of weeks ago.
Despite many thinking male lions are lazy, they live a violent and difficult life and few will ever make the status of a successful, territorial male. The months and years following their exile from the pride are extremely fraught with danger and, sadly, the first of our super pride has succumbed to it. As many of Hosi and Socha's first sons have now come of age, we wait with baited breath to see which of these cubs, who we have watched grow and flourish, will survive the ultimate test. Nature can be truly harsh, but there is a reason for everything and there is only so many lions this can can feed and thrive in one space. This is nature's way of keeping everything in balance. A sombre moment for the River pride.  *This image is copyright of its original author
Skorokoro was seen relaxing in Simbavati on 13th September
Credit: Evelyn Osmond  *This image is copyright of its original author
Monwana pride now have brand new cubs. Anyone know which Mother and how many in the newest litter?
(09-15-2022, 01:26 AM)Potato Wrote: We are very sad to report that some days ago a young male lion was found killed, likely in a territorial fight with some older males. Although difficult to confirm, it is thought to be one of the River pride sub-adult males that was cast out by Hosi and Socha - quite possibly the youngster seen alone at our bridge just a couple of weeks ago.which males killed him 
The 7th Birmingham breakaway young male was seen on Makanyi side for a few days now.
Update of Timbavati lions by Johan
 *This image is copyright of its original author
I just remembered something, all 5 monwana females already have 5 litters in total! So how would there be new cubs? Unless the litter that was born in March died and she went into heat again.
https://tandatula.com/blog/posts/the-makings-of-a-super-pride/?fbclid=IwAR3wHbDGUKBCRWoo5LRXW3gQOveT5LUchFWaUNfffyy4rQp5CuA3WpiH2fU
The Makings of a Super Pride To tell the truth, I hate the term “super pride” when it comes to describing a large pride of lions. I also sometimes feel that the term is used a little too lightly to describe any sizeable group of lions and gets bandied about so much that it loses its meaning. It reminds me of that famous “Battle at Kruger” YouTube video – which if memory serves correct, was at one point the most viewed video on YouTube – and the flurry of far-less-exciting animal interaction videos that followed and tried to get extra traction from the Battle at Kruger viral sensation by naming the video “Battle at (Whatever Place Needs a Social Media Engagement Injection)”. Another reason for my dislike of the term may also be simply because during my 15 years of guiding in the Timbavati, I have never been able to use the term…until now.  *This image is copyright of its original author Having a little search on Google doesn’t reveal the exact pride requirements necessary to be given the name “super pride”, but where the term is used, it seems to universally refer to prides larger than twenty individuals. One page comments that a coalition of five or more males is a requirement of a true super pride, but as coalitions of this size are so rare, it seems like a very limiting requirement (which is perhaps not a bad idea, but it would make this blog post redundant, so for now, I will choose to ignore it.). Even without an unusually large coalition of males, it takes some effort for a pride to attain more than twenty pride members. Fortunately, there are presently two prides that move through the Tanda Tula concession that now number over twenty lions, and both are still growing.  *This image is copyright of its original author The Mayambula Pride in the east, close to Tanda Tula Safari Camp, have just introduced their six newest members to us, and their addition to the pride brings their total size to 26 lions. The two Skorro pride males have sired seventeen cubs with six of the seven adult lionesses in the pride, and there is still one lioness that needs to drop her litter of cubs. At 26 lions, I don’t think many would dispute the super pride title, but with another two or three cubs likely to be added before the end of the year, we could soon have a pride of just shy of 30 lions walking around the central Timbavati for the first time in decades. Now I am not under any false pretences that all seventeen-plus cubs will survive to adulthood (or even sub-adulthood), but so far the pride hasn’t lost a single cub from any of the litters. Even if a couple of cubs don’t make it, in a year we could have a pride consisting of around 25 adults and subadults walking around, and that is something that makes me very excited! The plains game and prey species in the area will no doubt be a little less excited, as a pride that size will be a living eating machine. Already we are beginning to see the pressure of feeding so many mouths affecting the pride in the manner in which they are not only moving around their territory but also having to push beyond their traditional ranges in search of food. The older cubs are at an age now where they can still be left alone when the adults go hunting, but as they grow up, they will start to follow the pride on their nightly forays. Their eagerness and inexperience will no doubt make for a disastrous combination when it comes to ensuring a successful hunt, and the pride will have an even tougher time providing for all of the members’ energy requirements – especially for those that are requiring an ever-increasing amount of food, but having a negative impact on the pride’s ability to provide it.  *This image is copyright of its original author If the pride can make it through these upcoming trying times, then they will reap the rewards as the young adults begin to positively add towards the pride’s hunting skillset and its concurrent increase in hunting prowess that two dozen skilled hunters bring; when this happens, the prey won’t stand much chance. I do know that this period of predatory power is still some time away, and much can happen in the interim. The six Birmingham Breakaway males have moved out of the area for the time being, but when they do return, they will be bigger and more confident, and neither is ideal for the defending Skorro males. Incoming lions aside, there is also the strong possibility of the Mayambula Pride splitting up into smaller fragments, with the mothers and the older cubs going off as one portion, and the younger lionesses and their small cubs going off as another. This wouldn’t be a permanent separation, and the pride would likely mix and match at different times, but it would make meeting the energy requirements of the pride somewhat easier when acting in smaller fragments. The good news is that the Mayambula Pride are not the only lions going through this transition to a “super pride”. Closer to Tanda Tula Plains Camp, the Giraffe Pride is approaching a similar size. The pride presently consists of two males, six adult females, and sixteen cubs of various ages (the six smallest cubs haven’t been introduced to us yet, but we do get to see the ten bigger ones when they come into our area) for a total of 24 lions. With these two large prides around, it is perhaps no surprise that the smaller prides such as the River Pride have moved out of the area.  *This image is copyright of its original author I gave up on trying to predict lion dynamics a long time ago, but the growth of these two prides over the past year has made for some interesting times, and if all goes well, we are in for an exciting year ahead, one that will hopefully be filled with lots and lots of lions. And who knows, with so many lions around we might even be able to produce our own Battle at Tanda Tula video for you all to enjoy.  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author
A stunning picture of the Guernsey young male at Thornybush Game Reserve
Credit: Andi Dill  *This image is copyright of its original author
WARNING: SOME MAY FIND THE LINKED VIDEO CONTENT DISTRESSING (see para 6)
So who be these legendary, ruthless, revered, feared, and stunning, Masungulo Brothers... About 3 years ago, the Machaton Males abandoned the Takazile Pride and headed north, leaving us with a super/mega pride of some 33 lions! With no outside males coming in, the young Takazile males started mating with their related females in the pride, meanwhile, over in the east side of the reserve… The two Sark/Masungulo Brothers started moving in. Some say they came from Pridelands some 20km away, whilst some say they came in from Timbavati. Around August 2021, the first cubs sired by the Masungulo Brothers were born to a female in the Takazile pride, which are known in the east as the Kudyela pride. The following month these papas laid down the law as they joined the feast of a giraffe the Kudyela females had taken down; when one young female objected to their pulling a chair up at the table, they killed her. In January 2022, the second set of cubs sired by these Bros were born into the Kudyela pride. Then, they started making their way further into Balule and pushed into the West… Over a period of a few months the Bros came in sporadically and chased the young Takazile males around… this is how things should be: nomadic males come in, adult and sub adult males are chased out of their pride and they in turn find a pride to take over, this is how the gene pool is mixed. The problem is that our boys did not heed those warnings … on 10 July 2022, the Masungulo Brothers killed a young male in the Takazile pride – but they didn’t stop at that: they ate him (CAUTION the videos linked below contain graphic footage of this!). Now cannibalism in lions is not unheard of, but it is very rare. Did the remaining Takazile boys take note? No. In August 2022, the Masungulo Brothers killed another young Takazile male… and ate him too. =AZVi0yJ5zQ2Ed9HEn-KBCYP-ZCedW2CFI8GRHPm3xritQKkf_H8__-K9c0OxMguyUXnmfmkO_xS9-S32TfYVpeG4k5UkGqsPB550LCCeccbpIjZ99gHWEvcNp9bwARuB9L1jXMv-T4MKiJAd9F71E17n8AbLvlpPOtee6CUUYeU5hgIy-CKTEBpOBqid5903HPZbFAGGpS5cgPprynlsFOXR&__tn__=-UK-y-R]https://www.facebook.com/excellent.mnisi.545/videos/1205573806945235/ =AZVi0yJ5zQ2Ed9HEn-KBCYP-ZCedW2CFI8GRHPm3xritQKkf_H8__-K9c0OxMguyUXnmfmkO_xS9-S32TfYVpeG4k5UkGqsPB550LCCeccbpIjZ99gHWEvcNp9bwARuB9L1jXMv-T4MKiJAd9F71E17n8AbLvlpPOtee6CUUYeU5hgIy-CKTEBpOBqid5903HPZbFAGGpS5cgPprynlsFOXR&__tn__=-UK-y-R]https://www.facebook.com/themba.zwane.7771/videos/411108727635909/ September 12th, 2022 both Masungulo brothers were seen with Takazile females. Our pride takeover is still on-going, this morning even, the two Masungulo Brothers bumped and chased Takazile lions. They escaped; this time. Translated to English, Masungulo means “beginning / let’s start". Our lion dynamics once again change. New Masungulo stock arriving in Balule West end-December 2022!  *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 wilderness's most powerful sound, the sound of its king's roar, could be heard from very far distances of up to five miles away. The voice that means courage, strength, dominance, defiance, accepting death and taking risks.
In this recent video, one of the five Vuyela males announces his presence with a mighty roar? Klaserie, South Africa Photographer Credit:@guidegeena
Xikukutsu males
Bank Holiday Bonus, not far from Shumbalala Lodge, Thornybush Reserve  *This image is copyright of its original author
On Alert!
Over the last few days we had witnessed some intense moments between the 6 Young Birmingham Breakaway Males and the Mayanbula Pride. The six young males caught a buffalo in the heart of the Mayanbula Pride’s territory. With the pride having so many young cubs, the presences of the Nomadic males left us all feeling a bit nervous to what might happen when the groups come across one another. We did not have to wait long for the action to start as the next morning the Mayanbula Pride had taken over the buffalo kill from the 6 Birmingham Breakaways. The females left the cubs with one of the Skorro Males and went on to confront the young males. The Females successfully pushed the young males out of the area. Captured by field guide Karel Jacobs  *This image is copyright of its original author
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