There is a world somewhere between reality and fiction. Although ignored by many, it is very real and so are those living in it. This forum is about the natural world. Here, wild animals will be heard and respected. The forum offers a glimpse into an unknown world as well as a room with a view on the present and the future. Anyone able to speak on behalf of those living in the emerald forest and the deep blue sea is invited to join.
Yesterday, 11:32 PM( This post was last modified: Yesterday, 11:34 PM by FACR2212 )
Hello friends of wildfact! I'm honored with the responsability of creating the Ximhungwe pride thread.
Before introducing the current pride members, we are going to review the nearly 30 years old history of the Ximhunwge pride. I will be posting the chapters one by one, for easier reading.
Without further ado, let’s begin...
CHAPTER 1 – ORIGINS AND TURMOIL: THE BIRTH OF THE XIMHUNGWE PRIDE
The Legacy of the Castleton Bloodline
Before the rise of the Ximhungwe Pride, the Castleton Pride reigned as one of the most fruitful and influential prides in the Sabi Sands. During the rule of the legendary West Street Males, the Castleton Pride flourished, producing strong generations of cubs and establishing a bloodline that would leave a deep imprint on the region.
In 1996, a group of six male cubs born into the Castleton Pride would later form the Rollercoaster Coalition, also known as the Shaw’s Males. Then, in 1998, two Castleton lionesses broke away, believed to be pregnant after mating with the West Street Males. They denned their cubs near Taylor’s Crossing on the Sand River. After a deadly clash with the Sparta Pride that left three cubs dead, and later tragedies involving hyenas and injury, the pride came to be known as the Tsalala Pride.
But while the Tsalala Pride was carving its identity in the eastern territories, another powerful branch of the Castleton lineage was about to emerge in the west—the Ximhungwe Pride.
From 2000 to 2004 the famous Castleton/Ximhungwe Pride faded out of the limelight with clear lack of updates or information of any kind during this time. The Ximhungwe Pride began its rise in 2004, when the six lionesses from the Castleton Pride were taken over by a male known as the Sand River Male or Dzunani. Under his leadership, the pride quickly became productive, with 18 cubs born between 2004 and 2005. However, scarcity of food and the size of the pride made survival difficult. The number of cubs dropped to 16, then 12, and the lionesses were frequently seen in poor condition, recovering only temporarily after large kills.
As the pride spent less and less time on Castleton property and more in the surrounding open grasslands, it was renamed after the area it now occupied: Ximhungwe.
Collapse and Survival
The year 2006 was catastrophic. A combination of bovine tuberculosis and the arrival of the Mapogo coalition decimated the pride. By the end of the year, five of the six original lionesses and Dzunani were dead. Of the many cubs, only three subadult females and one young male remained. Two females became known as Long Tail & Short Tail.
Simultaneously, the Ravenscourt Pride—another offshoot of the Castleton line—was also in decline. A male from that pride began interacting with the Ximhungwe survivors. When a young Ximhungwe lioness was killed by hyenas, observers noted that the pride’s number remained the same, leading to the discovery that a young Ravenscourt lioness had joined the group, merging the remnants of two Castleton descendants.
Soon after sadly, the two young males associated with the pride were euthanized after feeding on a rabies-infected domestic dog, just days before they were due for vaccination.
New Alliances and Bloodline Reconnections
In 2008, under increasing pressure from the Mapogo, the Tsalala Pride moved into Ximhungwe territory. While the lionesses began mating with the Mapogo, a sub-adult Tsalala female called Queen, survivor of the Mapogo takeover of the Tsalala Pride, eventually joined the Ximhungwe Pride, reuniting distant Castleton relatives and reinforcing Ximhungwe’s numbers.
"Queen". For five years, Londolozi were unaware of this change in pride until late 2011, and it was her reddish coloured eyes that one could trace her lineage back to the Tsalala Pride.
*This image is copyright of its original author
Mapogo Reign and the Young Core of Ximhungwe
By the end of 2008, the Ximhungwe Pride found itself under the control of the four Mapogo males who had split from Mr. T and Kinky Tail. These Mapogo males had established dominance over the western sector, and Ximhungwe territory fell within their sphere of influence.
At this stage, the pride was composed of five lionesses, but only one of them was fully mature. The rest were not yet of breeding age, and represented the next generation of Ximhungwe descendants from multiple lines:
The one older adult lioness, known as Kokwana.
Two sub-adult lionesses, Long Tail and Short Tail.
One sub-adult Tsalala lioness, survivor of the Mapogo takeover, known as Queen.
One sub-adult Ravenscourt female, who had integrated into the pride.
Dreadlocks mating with a Ximhungwe female in 2009
This created a temporary lull in reproduction for the pride, a moment of relative calm and consolidation, but one that would soon shift as the lionesses matured... to be continued...
Yesterday, 11:47 PM( This post was last modified: Yesterday, 11:59 PM by sunless )
(Yesterday, 11:32 PM)FACR2212 Wrote: Hello friends of wildfact! I'm honored with the responsability of creating the Ximhungwe pride thread.
Before introducing the current pride members, we are going to review the nearly 30 years old history of the Ximhunwge pride. I will be posting the chapters one by one, for easier reading.
Without further ado, let’s begin...
CHAPTER 1 – ORIGINS AND TURMOIL: THE BIRTH OF THE XIMHUNGWE PRIDE
The Legacy of the Castleton Bloodline
Before the rise of the Ximhungwe Pride, the Castleton Pride reigned as one of the most fruitful and influential prides in the Sabi Sands. During the rule of the legendary West Street Males, the Castleton Pride flourished, producing strong generations of cubs and establishing a bloodline that would leave a deep imprint on the region.
In 1996, a group of six male cubs born into the Castleton Pride would later form the Rollercoaster Coalition, also known as the Shaw’s Males. Then, in 1998, two Castleton lionesses broke away, believed to be pregnant after mating with the West Street Males. They denned their cubs near Taylor’s Crossing on the Sand River. After a deadly clash with the Sparta Pride that left three cubs dead, and later tragedies involving hyenas and injury, the pride came to be known as the Tsalala Pride.
But while the Tsalala Pride was carving its identity in the eastern territories, another powerful branch of the Castleton lineage was about to emerge in the west—the Ximhungwe Pride.
From 2000 to 2004 the famous Castleton/Ximhungwe Pride faded out of the limelight with clear lack of updates or information of any kind during this time. The Ximhungwe Pride began its rise in 2004, when the six lionesses from the Castleton Pride were taken over by a male known as the Sand River Male or Dzunani. Under his leadership, the pride quickly became productive, with 18 cubs born between 2004 and 2005. However, scarcity of food and the size of the pride made survival difficult. The number of cubs dropped to 16, then 12, and the lionesses were frequently seen in poor condition, recovering only temporarily after large kills.
As the pride spent less and less time on Castleton property and more in the surrounding open grasslands, it was renamed after the area it now occupied: Ximhungwe.
Collapse and Survival
The year 2006 was catastrophic. A combination of bovine tuberculosis and the arrival of the Mapogo coalition decimated the pride. By the end of the year, five of the six original lionesses and Dzunani were dead. Of the many cubs, only three subadult females and one young male remained. Two females became known as Long Tail & Short Tail.
Simultaneously, the Ravenscourt Pride—another offshoot of the Castleton line—was also in decline. A male from that pride began interacting with the Ximhungwe survivors. When a young Ximhungwe lioness was killed by hyenas, observers noted that the pride’s number remained the same, leading to the discovery that a young Ravenscourt lioness had joined the group, merging the remnants of two Castleton descendants.
Soon after sadly, the two young males associated with the pride were euthanized after feeding on a rabies-infected domestic dog, just days before they were due for vaccination.
New Alliances and Bloodline Reconnections
In 2008, under increasing pressure from the Mapogo, the Tsalala Pride moved into Ximhungwe territory. While the lionesses began mating with the Mapogo, a sub-adult Tsalala female called Queen, survivor of the Mapogo takeover of the Tsalala Pride, eventually joined the Ximhungwe Pride, reuniting distant Castleton relatives and reinforcing Ximhungwe’s numbers.
"Queen". For five years, Londolozi were unaware of this change in pride until late 2011, and it was her reddish coloured eyes that one could trace her lineage back to the Tsalala Pride.
*This image is copyright of its original author
Mapogo Reign and the Young Core of Ximhungwe
By the end of 2008, the Ximhungwe Pride found itself under the control of the four Mapogo males who had split from Mr. T and Kinky Tail. These Mapogo males had established dominance over the western sector, and Ximhungwe territory fell within their sphere of influence.
At this stage, the pride was composed of five lionesses, but only one of them was fully mature. The rest were not yet of breeding age, and represented the next generation of Ximhungwe descendants from multiple lines:
The one older adult lioness, known as Kokwana.
Two sub-adult lionesses, Long Tail and Short Tail.
One sub-adult Tsalala lioness, survivor of the Mapogo takeover, known as Queen.
One sub-adult Ravenscourt female, who had integrated into the pride.
Dreadlocks mating with a Ximhungwe female in 2009
This created a temporary lull in reproduction for the pride, a moment of relative calm and consolidation, but one that would soon shift as the lionesses matured... to be continued...
What a good way to start the thread being with it history of them.
Also can you make the title of the thread from this "Ximhungwe pride: past and present" to this (all capital at the start of the words) "Ximhungwe Pride: Past and Present" just to make it more uniform as a title of the thread, forgive my ADHD for kicking in LOL.
(Yesterday, 11:32 PM)FACR2212 Wrote: Hello friends of wildfact! I'm honored with the responsability of creating the Ximhungwe pride thread.
Before introducing the current pride members, we are going to review the nearly 30 years old history of the Ximhunwge pride. I will be posting the chapters one by one, for easier reading.
Without further ado, let’s begin...
CHAPTER 1 – ORIGINS AND TURMOIL: THE BIRTH OF THE XIMHUNGWE PRIDE
The Legacy of the Castleton Bloodline
Before the rise of the Ximhungwe Pride, the Castleton Pride reigned as one of the most fruitful and influential prides in the Sabi Sands. During the rule of the legendary West Street Males, the Castleton Pride flourished, producing strong generations of cubs and establishing a bloodline that would leave a deep imprint on the region.
In 1996, a group of six male cubs born into the Castleton Pride would later form the Rollercoaster Coalition, also known as the Shaw’s Males. Then, in 1998, two Castleton lionesses broke away, believed to be pregnant after mating with the West Street Males. They denned their cubs near Taylor’s Crossing on the Sand River. After a deadly clash with the Sparta Pride that left three cubs dead, and later tragedies involving hyenas and injury, the pride came to be known as the Tsalala Pride.
But while the Tsalala Pride was carving its identity in the eastern territories, another powerful branch of the Castleton lineage was about to emerge in the west—the Ximhungwe Pride.
From 2000 to 2004 the famous Castleton/Ximhungwe Pride faded out of the limelight with clear lack of updates or information of any kind during this time. The Ximhungwe Pride began its rise in 2004, when the six lionesses from the Castleton Pride were taken over by a male known as the Sand River Male or Dzunani. Under his leadership, the pride quickly became productive, with 18 cubs born between 2004 and 2005. However, scarcity of food and the size of the pride made survival difficult. The number of cubs dropped to 16, then 12, and the lionesses were frequently seen in poor condition, recovering only temporarily after large kills.
As the pride spent less and less time on Castleton property and more in the surrounding open grasslands, it was renamed after the area it now occupied: Ximhungwe.
Collapse and Survival
The year 2006 was catastrophic. A combination of bovine tuberculosis and the arrival of the Mapogo coalition decimated the pride. By the end of the year, five of the six original lionesses and Dzunani were dead. Of the many cubs, only three subadult females and one young male remained. Two females became known as Long Tail & Short Tail.
Simultaneously, the Ravenscourt Pride—another offshoot of the Castleton line—was also in decline. A male from that pride began interacting with the Ximhungwe survivors. When a young Ximhungwe lioness was killed by hyenas, observers noted that the pride’s number remained the same, leading to the discovery that a young Ravenscourt lioness had joined the group, merging the remnants of two Castleton descendants.
Soon after sadly, the two young males associated with the pride were euthanized after feeding on a rabies-infected domestic dog, just days before they were due for vaccination.
New Alliances and Bloodline Reconnections
In 2008, under increasing pressure from the Mapogo, the Tsalala Pride moved into Ximhungwe territory. While the lionesses began mating with the Mapogo, a sub-adult Tsalala female called Queen, survivor of the Mapogo takeover of the Tsalala Pride, eventually joined the Ximhungwe Pride, reuniting distant Castleton relatives and reinforcing Ximhungwe’s numbers.
"Queen". For five years, Londolozi were unaware of this change in pride until late 2011, and it was her reddish coloured eyes that one could trace her lineage back to the Tsalala Pride.
*This image is copyright of its original author
Mapogo Reign and the Young Core of Ximhungwe
By the end of 2008, the Ximhungwe Pride found itself under the control of the four Mapogo males who had split from Mr. T and Kinky Tail. These Mapogo males had established dominance over the western sector, and Ximhungwe territory fell within their sphere of influence.
At this stage, the pride was composed of five lionesses, but only one of them was fully mature. The rest were not yet of breeding age, and represented the next generation of Ximhungwe descendants from multiple lines:
The one older adult lioness, known as Kokwana.
Two sub-adult lionesses, Long Tail and Short Tail.
One sub-adult Tsalala lioness, survivor of the Mapogo takeover, known as Queen.
One sub-adult Ravenscourt female, who had integrated into the pride.
Dreadlocks mating with a Ximhungwe female in 2009
This created a temporary lull in reproduction for the pride, a moment of relative calm and consolidation, but one that would soon shift as the lionesses matured... to be continued...
What an amazing first post, to what I hope will be the long lived, and long over due, Ximungwe thread. Thank you, so very much for all your efforts, I, truly, cannot wait to read the rest of the amazing story, of this legendary pride!
(Today, 12:33 AM)Ttimemarti Wrote: Yes it’s so incredible to know that the tsalala mhangeni kambula and nsevu prides all come from the ximhungwe pride an incredible lineage
Well almost all the prides in Sabi Sands is somewhat related to each other except for the Sand River Pride as it seems they are more related to the Kruger side of things.
Today, 12:57 AM( This post was last modified: Today, 01:58 AM by FACR2212 )
CHAPTER 2 - LIFE AND LOSS UNDER THE MAPOGOS
The First Litters and Internal Tragedy
By late 2009 and into early 2010, the young Ximhungwe lionesses had finally reached reproductive maturity. After nearly two years under the control of the four western Mapogo males, they gave birth to their first litters. At least six cubs were born during this period. The lionesses, now fully matured, were beginning to fulfill their role as mothers.
In mid-2010, following the death of Kinky Tail at the hands of the Majingilane coalition, Mr. T rejoined his Mapogo brothers in the west. Mr. T had not been involved in siring the new cubs, nor was he familiar with the western pride structure or its offspring.
Shortly after his arrival, the Ximhungwe cubs began to disappear, the timing and circumstances strongly suggest that Mr. T killed the cubs, a tragic but not uncommon behavior in lion dynamics when unfamiliar males join a pride with existing offspring. The lionesses, still young mothers, had just begun their journey of motherhood, only to be forced back into estrus by the loss of their litters. This act of infanticide shocked those who had followed the pride’s struggle to recover and earned Mr. T a chilling nickname: “Satan”, it underscored the ruthless nature of lion hierarchy, where even cubs of one’s own coalition can be killed if not directly sired or recognized.
A New Bloodline Emerges
Kokwana, the oldest lioness of the pride, who had long served as the stabilizing force among the younger females, was already pregnant at the time of Mr. T’s return and mated with him. In August 2010, she gave birth to two male cubs, though Mr. T was not their biological father, he did not harm the cubs. Instead, he accepted them and this act of tolerance ensured their survival. The two male cubs born in August 2010, raised by the pride’s oldest and most experienced lioness, had become symbols of hope for the future of the Ximhungwe Pride. Observers affectionately nicknamed them the "Mini-Pogs".
In early 2011, a new litter consisted of a male and a female cub, both of whom were seen outside the den and were successfully introduced into the pride. More litters were born during 2011, but for different reasons like hyenas or leopards, many of those cubs didn’t survive.
Ximhungwe pride and playful cubs
In November 2011, tragedy struck again. The Castleton/Ximhungwe matriarch, the last original adult lioness of the pride and mother of the Mini-Pogs, was found caught in a snare—a cruel reminder of the growing pressure of human-wildlife conflict in the region. One of the cubs was killed by the Othawa Pride and the second cub attempted to rejoin the Ximhungwe Pride. However, having been raised in isolation with their mother, the remaining lionesses did not recognize him as part of their social unit, and attacked him.
Despite all adversities, four cubs of the core Ximhungwe pride made it to early 2012. The entire Ximhungwe pride of lions quench their thirst at 's Scotia Dam (in the front, Short Tail Ximhungwe).
By 2012, the winds of change were on the horizon with the arrival of a new coalition to challenge the three remaining Mapogo males. As the now ageing males struggled to maintain control over their territory, they were often spending extended periods of time away from the pride as they checked up on their other prides and patrolled the borders. So when Short Tail came into oestrus in early 2012 after losing her cubs in 2011, she took the only other available option and mated with the nomadic Selatis...
CHAPTER 3 - THE FIRST SELATI OFFSPRING AND THE LAST HOPE OF THE XIMHUNGWE BLOODLINE
Selati Takeover and Tensions with the Ximhungwe Pride (2012–2013)
After killing Mr. T in March 2012 and driving off Makhulu and Pretty Boy by mid-year, the once powerful Mapogo males were ultimately dethroned by the Selati coalition. Their relationship with the Ximhungwe lionesses was strained from the start. Still traumatized by previous cub losses during the Mapogo era, the lionesses worked hard to keep their cubs hidden and away from the Selati males. One of the Selati males stood out for his aggression and independence, he also chased the Ximhungwe lionesses at one point and was attacked by all four females.
Short Tail female was the first lioness to mate with a Selati male. Over time, more mating occurred, and the Selati males spent extended periods with the Ximhungwe lionesses. Ximhungwes mating with Selati in May 2012
*This image is copyright of its original author
Queen was left to feed and take care of the last Mapogo cubs and hunt alone while limping, as her sisters focused on securing acceptance from the Selati males
*This image is copyright of its original author
Despite their valiant defense, the Ximhungwe lionesses were unable to protect their offspring, the last four Mapogo cubs dissapeared by mid 2012, victims of yet another takeover-driven purge, a harsh evolutionary mechanism that forces prides into reproductive reset under new male leadership. For the second time in less than a decade, the Ximhungwe Pride was left without any cubs, and once again, the lionesses were forced to start over.
One of the last sightings of the Mapogo descendants. Three subadults (2 males and 1 female) with a Ximhungwe adult lioness, July 18 2012
*This image is copyright of its original author
Despite tensions, new litters sired by the Selatis were born in late 2012 and early 2013. By early 2013, two lionesses had brought their cubs out of hiding, one of the was Short-tail female.
Photo: Short Tail and Long Tail in February 2013
*This image is copyright of its original author
Although the Selati males were starting to behave like pride males—feeding alongside the lionesses and patrolling regularly—distrust remained. On several occasions, the lionesses ran from them, and the males rarely followed. In one incident, a Selati male chased and instinctively killed a cub.
Two sisters, Selati daughters in March 2013
*This image is copyright of its original author
The Selati males soon abandoned the pride, shifting their focus to the Othawa Pride during their territorial conflict with the Majingilane coalition. On the other hand, Queen started to lose condition and passed away around early 2013, most likely due to disease.
Ravenscourt-Ximhungwe female, she had a litter of three cubs born in Jan 2013
*This image is copyright of its original author
After all, some progress was made. The cubs were growing, hunting improved, and the pride managed multiple kills. For a moment, there was hope that at least part of the new generation might survive.
Ximhungwe pride with subadults sired by Selatis, around two years old, Nov 4 2014
*This image is copyright of its original author
Death of the Short-Tail Lioness and the Fall of the Old Line (2015)
Some years passed with relative calm until the year 2015, when the lack of dominant males took its toll. Within a short space of time clashes with hyenas resulted in the loss of one of the subadult females, as well as the Ravenscourt Lioness.
Conflicts arose between Ximhungwe females and Othawa pride & Majingilane males. Ximhungwes began to mate with with Majingilanes, but since the remaining subadults were not the offspring of the Majingilanes, the four youngsters had to tread carefully and avoid the attention of the males, who also had the welcome distraction of the Othawa Pride to divert their interest elsewhere. The presence of the Othawa Pride inevitably became more of a hinderance than a help and the close proximity resulted in fights between the two prides. These repeated clashes resulted in the tragic death of all the two Ximhungwe females, Short Tail and then Long Tail. On April 7, 2015, the short-tail Ximhungwe lioness—mother of some of the pride’s most recent surviving cubs—was killed by the Othawa pride during a nighttime confrontation. Majingilane males were seen feeding on the remains of the lioness afterward.
Long Tail Ximhungwe, the last of Ximhungwe of her generation. She left two female subs born mid Nov 2012 (daughters of Long Tail), one female sub born mid Nov 2012 (daughter of Short Tail) and one male sub born January 2013 (son of Ravenscourt female).
*This image is copyright of its original author
The pride was left in the hands of four surviving sub-adults, uncertain and exposed in an increasingly hostile landscape. This marked the beginning of a long period of wandering and instability for the Ximhungwe lionesses, left without protection or consistent territory. Only three subadults survived in the end to adulthood: two females and one male, all sired by the Selati males. These three lions eventually reached adulthood and became the last known descendants of the original Ximhungwe Pride…
Ximhungwe subadults hunting buffalo by their own. Photo by Neil at Savanna
Ximhungwe pride: past and present
