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The Matimba coalition
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The matimbas were spotted on sabi sabi reserve and managed to get a small buffalo calf according to facebook. Not sure how long that will sustain these guys. Is there any reliable stats for how much calories a male lion needs at their age? better than nothing though as they were looking painfully thin.
Pretty much confirms what we'd been talking about recently in the Majingilane thread. At this stage, declining males need eachother more than ever and truly have to stick together like glue(The moment DM and SN seperated it was over quite quickly after that). I love seeing these two legends helping eachother to survive another day. Cheers to Ginger and HB, may they continue marching on for longer.
(04-26-2018, 01:08 AM)Musa15 Wrote: Pretty much confirms what we'd been talking about recently in the Majingilane thread. At this stage, declining males need eachother more than ever and truly have to stick together like glue(The moment DM and SN seperated it was over quite quickly after that). I love seeing these two legends helping eachother to survive another day. Cheers to Ginger and HB, may they continue marching on for longer. Yeah at that age, you need your bros. With out your companion, your life is going to be very difficult. I hope they do. Those matimbas are some tough was lions. Ginger and hb held out at londolozi which is ground zero for lions for a good while, even with the ever powerful majings nearby. I think their run ins were largely stalemates though. 
Credits to Joffers Photography.
New male lions that are pushing into unknown territory. exciting times ahead to see how this all progresses. Here this Matimba male stands tall after chasing a few lioness off of a zebra kill.  *This image is copyright of its original author
This is really unbelievable from Matimbas. Hairy Hairy was seen in bad condition in deaths door around 12 days ago in MalaMala. Now the both oldies are stalking their claim over a territory. They chased off Mhangeni lionesses off a zebra kill, this will not unnoticed by Birmingham’s.
MY BOYS ARE BACK I feel like as the west is basically empty they can probably claim it but as the Birminghams are slowly moving in they should go back to the north but you never know because as the Birminghams are always seperated the matimbas ma my have a fighters chance. But how’ve amazing is Thisbe we all were thinking that this might be the end and they PROVE US WRONG
Credits to Tiffany Franks - Singita.
One of the most incredible and powerful things I have I ever witnessed in my whole life!! A Matimba male mating with one of the Othawa lionesses. Exciting times in the Sands! So very blessed to see these things in person and to witness nature at its best. It's good to see them bounce back, hope they can stay for some time.
WHAT ON EARTH the matimbas have been wanting and have been fighting for the west for years and they finally have it in there hands. And this all started by one buffalo and it gave them so much energy . The KINGS are not done yet and they clearly want a territory for themselves again.
But this might be the end for the young Ottawa male being around his pride and he would be kicked out.
Credits to James Tyrrell - Londolozi.
Matimba Males Return: Over a year ago, the two huge Matimba male lions simply packed up and left. Reports filtered in of them heading north, back to their old stomping grounds. Then nothing was seen of them. Then more reports of them popping up to the south. Without any consistent movement being recorded, and with only third-hand information reaching us, they quickly became a thing of the past, especially as the arrival of the Birmingham males took over the coalition headlines. But now it seems, history has repeated itself, and the Matimba males have once gain moved into a territory recently vacated by the Majingilane. Although the lighter-maned Matimba male was seen near Ximpalapala Koppie, it has been many months since both of these males were viewed together on Londolozi.  *This image is copyright of its original author Eastern and north Londolozi were left vacant when that amazing coalition (tribute to them coming soon) moved westwards in the Sabi Sand, and the Matimba pair, recently deposed from the northern sector of the reserve, simply moved in to fill the vacuum. This unexpected windfall came at just the right time for them, and it wasn’t long before they began mating with the Tsalala Pride, producing a number of cubs. Only one Tsalala cub is still alive, but truth be told, we can’t be sure who the father actually was, as both Matimba and Majingilane were possible suspects. Anyway, the Matimba males were in residence for just over a year before they simply decided to leave. It was a fair number of months before the Birmingham males began making their presence properly felt, so it didn’t seem to us that they were the immediate cause of the Matimba exodus. We still don’t know the exact reasons the Matimba males vacated Londolozi in the first place.  *This image is copyright of its original author Whatever the case, the fact remains that the Matimba males moved into Londolozi after the Majinglane moved out, and now they appear to have done the same in the western sector of the Sabi Sand Reserve. Both the ginger maned Matimba and the male with the hairy belly have been reported mating with one of the Othawa lionesses (report yet to be confirmed), which follows on from a brief sighting of the ginger maned male at Ximpalapala Koppie a few weeks ago. At first there was confusion as to who that mystery lion was, so long had it been since one of the Matimbas had been seen on Londolozi, but after a few references to earlier photos, his identity was confirmed. The lighter-maned Matimba male.  *This image is copyright of its original author Now, with the Majingilane coalition entirely deceased, the whole western section of the Sabi Sand Reserve is up for grabs, with mating rights to the Othawa and possibly Mhangeni females at stake (and possibly the breakaway sub-adult Mhangeni lionesses, depending on their future), and the Matimba males, in yet another opportunistic move, have been seen roaring and scent marking, proclaiming the territory as theirs. I don’t know where they have been in the interim, but surely from a purely genetic perspective, their inconsistent movements and relatively short tenures over the areas they’ve occupied can’t have in any way ensured breeding success? A male lion’s role is to protect an area in which the females he’s covered can safely raise their cubs, but occupation for just over a year in each territory almost certainly won’t allow enough time for any of the females to get their cubs through to independence. I don’t know much about these males’ history prior to their arrival on Londolozi in 2015, but I do know that only one of their possible offspring (the Tsalala cub) remains alive, and his future looks bleak, given the age of his mother and the fact that his pride no longer falls under the protection of a dominant coalition. Genetically then, the Matimba males can be deemed failures since 2015. The lighter maned Matimba male with some of the Tsalala cubs, late-2016. None of these cubs survived.  *This image is copyright of its original author I speak purely from a male lion-reproduction point of view. One can argue ad infinitum about which coalition did what and who is braver and whose legacy is more powerful, but unless the Matimba males sire cubs in the western sector, and then stick around long enough to see those cubs through to independence, their legacy in the reserve will fall far short of what it could have been…. (05-07-2018, 05:40 PM)Tshokwane Wrote: Credits to James Tyrrell - Londolozi.i hope they don't stay too long cause they don't have much time left to secure any of the prides, I think they made more problems when they came to londoliza by procreating only to leave and not securing any of the prides they took over! need some young bloods to create some stability! |
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