The four mighty Majingilane Male lions continue to make their mark on the Sabi Sand’s lion population. Their presence is undeniable as they have had impacts on every lion to call the Sabi Sands home. Over the last 26 months much has been written about this band of brothers. But just how good are the Majingilane? The piece below lists just some of the facts, stats and numbers of these males.
*Note this must not be taken as gospel as it is merely my interpretation of it all. One man’s view on a group of wild lions.
The mighty Majingilane have developed a grand reputation based on a number of factors. The sheer size of the territory and the number of prides they control all add to the appeal of these magnificent cats.
MAJINGILANE
‘Like night-watchmen they patrol the dark nights; marching with intent and chasing all those unwanted into the shadows…those that do not run are removed’
Origin: Orpen area of the Kruger National Park
Birthdate: 2004/2005
Arrival in Sabi Sands: early-mid 2010
Number of individuals: 4 (the 5th member was killed mid 2010)
Names: Dark Mane, Scar-Nose, Hip-Scar and Golden Mane
Prides that they are dominant over: 5
The four members of the Majingilane Coalition seen for the first time on Londolozi over 26 months ago (May 2010) – James Hobson
Two years after their arrival and you can see how their manes have developed and their body size increased – Adam Bannister
Cubs that they have sired thus far:
Tsalala Pride
They have fathered 11 cubs of which 3 remain
* Buffalo killed 2
* Flood killed 2
* Scar-Nose Majingilane killed 1
* 3 disappeared (2 of which at a very young age)
Breakaway Tsalala Pride
They have not fathered any cubs yet, but all four females are possibly pregnant as we speak
Fourways Pride
They have fathered 4 of which 3 remain.
* 1 disappeared
Styx Pride
They have fathered 6 cubs of which 5 remain
* 1 disappeared
Sparta Pride
They have fathered 13 cubs of which 8 remain
* Flood killed 3
* Tsalala Pride killed 1
* 1 disappeared
In summary
They have sired 34 cubs from their prides thus far. Of those 34 cubs 19 are still alive. Consider that 5 were wiped out by a natural phenomenon in the form of a flood. There is also the Breakaway Tsalala Pride whom have yet to get cubs on the list.
An oncoming herd of zebra gets this male up, on his feet and in stalking position – Adam Bannister
So as of August 2012, after being in the area for 26 months, just how much land do they patrol? Well, this is obviously just my opinion, but after sitting down with some scribbled notes and Google Earth this is what I came up with. It gives on a good idea about how supreme these males are!
Google Earth map showing the outline of the Sabi Sand Game Reserve (black lines) and then the approximate territory controlled by the Majingilane Male Coalition of lions (red)
Stats as of Google Earth Pro:
They control 26676 Hectares
i.e. 267 square kilometres
i.e. 65919 Acres
…if they had to walk their entire perimeter it would be approx. 64.6 km (40.2 miles)
Just for fun
…the area they patrol is approximately the same size as 50 706 american football fields!
The World Book Encyclopedia states that Manhattan covers 87,4 square kilometers. This means that these four male lions regularly walk and defend an area equivalent to three times the size of Manhattan, NY! This sure does prove a point doesn’t it. Also makes one feel really special and privileged when you get lucky enough to see one of these magnificent beasts!
The Hip-Scar Majingilane Male walks in front of Ximpalapala Koppie – Adam Bannister
Scar-Nose up close and personal (Aug 2012)- Adam Bannister
Written by Adam Bannister
Ty Adam very well written!!! We love those Majingilanes!
Adam,
Thank you for the great insight of these Handsome Males…I sure hope I will get a glimpse of them when I arrive in November.
Good one Adam.
Interesting story ; magnificient lions!!!!
Thanks Adam.. The knp males are dominant over the southern pride? I’m a little confused who killed Mr T ( the mapogo)?… I hope somebody can help with my question.
Have a nice day
Mr T was killed by one of the Southern Males (also known as the Selati Males). Kinky-Tail, another Mapogo was killed by Majingilane! I do believe the KNP males are dominant over Southern Pride yes.
Thelma Mr T was killed by 4 southern male’s. The 4 southern male’s came into Mr T territory the sad thing is that Maku & PB Mr T’s brothers ran away and left Mr T. Mr T was fearless and stood his ground and would not move all hell broke loose Mr T confronted the 4 male’s and did not go down with out a fight 1 on 4 just like he’s close brother Kinky tail who charged and confronted the 4 Majingilane male’s. Kinky Tail & Mr T were the fearless 2 Mapogo Males. The crazy thing is that they had a choice to fight or flee and sadly they tooked the first option.to go down fighting.RIP Kinky Tail& Mr T!! Ps Kinky Tail & Mr T are true legends and live on in our hearts “till the end of time”.
I thought Mr.T had injuries prior to being killed by the selati coalition!It could have been that the injuries he had prevented him from taking off with Makulu and Pretty boy and thus he ended up being mauled to death.Kinky Tail is the one who looked fearless in confronting the four Majingilane male lions knowing very well that he was out numbered!This is why i say most male lions die needlessly,instead of being intelligent and fleeing before it is too late they dilly dally and get punished for it.
Very true Jason had it been one on one or even two on one fight Kinky would have decimated the opposition same with Mr T they were fearless in there approach they died fighting like true soldiers they never relinquished their claim they fought like true heroes .Sadly they lost but the heroics of Kinky Shaka and ripped nose Mr T will not be lost their kids will take revenge on majingilane and selati time will tell and that day deep in the night we can hear the roars of Kinky and Mr T again somewhere deep somewhere and tears will fall .
Yeah.. We vatch about Mapogo line of lions. Discovery Channel
6 of Mapogos. 2 of them ever fought for their lines and get caught by Selati line of brothers.
i think you need to publish this information – this is exactly what the dereck and beverley joubert are saying and why lions are under threat…they need a vast area for the ultimate survival of the species.
Agree completely, francille van tiddens ; these lions need larger territories to thrive and not have all the “in-killing” that happens so frequently…So sad. I understand the lion’s nature and why this happens. However, if they had a larger territory, free from human encroachment, perhaps the “in-killing” would subside and peace could reign with the individual prides.
Amazing piece Adam! Simply AWESOME!…Finally somebody shows the territorial map of the Majingis…something I’ve been waiting for! Now we can pretty much figure out the territories of the other coalitions (Selati and KNP). Loved the stats too…thanks man!
Absolute pleasure. Il look into doing a map of all the territories too in the future. Glad you enjoyed
According to some of the reports from Malamala, the fourways pride is usually west of their land. The Manjingilane males sometimes venture west into the KNP. Do you think that their territory may stretch further west into the KNP than what you have highlighted on the map?
*east
Quite possibly. We will sadly never know i fear
Thank you for writing this article, Adam, and for the other updates that you give. Great piece. The Majingilane males have grown into beautiful lions. And they’re great pride males, bringing stability to a large portion of the Sabi Sands.
Fabulous summary! Love it! And it’s just so much more meaningful having been there a few months ago and seen these guys and so many of the other players in the magnificent daily dramas that unfold on “As the World Turns in Sabi Sand”! LOL
WOW, absolutely fascinating. I’ve mentioned before that my group was the first to see the Tsalala cubs with Talley. We followed the blogs to learn of their various deaths, including the cub that was killed by his uncle. We definitely plan to return, and tops on my list will be the thrill of meeting you Adam to thank you personally for all your wonderful blogs. Always look forward to your pictorial reports and Talley’s weekly photographs. It’s a great way to keep in touch with Londolozi.
Can’ t wati to see t hem in December.
Thanks for the info . Our group was there a few months back and I really enjoy learning and still seeing what we were able to see in the short time we were there. Hats off to all of you ! Loved that trip. Our guide was great ! The food and the staff will always be a great memory of ours. And perhaps one day we can return to Londolozi. You can’t explain it unless you have been to something similar.
Joanna
Thanks Adam, you are awesome! The Majingilane are truly Kings of their domain. Been very curious about the area these coalitions cover and the map helps also to put it all in perspective. Great stuff, keep up the wonderful work and thanks again.
Great Stuff!! 19 out of 34 is impressive. That means more lions to follow in the future, and a recovery from the mapogo reign. Even though i love me some mapogo, they were not good for the lion population of the SS. Cheers to stability and peace.
Absolutely fantastic Adam, thank you very much
Love this, Ad! Good work.
Get amped just reading this. No denying these guys are machines!
Well written piece Adam, great to see the territory mapped out. rich
I really enjoyed this piece Adam. Quick question please. I have been following the fate of the eight Tsalala cubs that I saw in August of last year. I thought only two of the older cubs were still with us. You said there are three remaining. Is one of the younger ones alive?
Sandy in the latest update I have included the brand new cub of the Tailless Female. You are indeed correct about the 2 out of the 8 being alive. We are still celebrating the arrival of another 🙂 – Adam
Thanks Adam. I had forgotten about the new arrival.
The amount of area they control is absolutely unbelievable! How can they protect/patrol such a huge chunk of land? Is this why sometimes they have to split up? It would seem quite impossible to defend the northern boundary if all were together in the southern parts of their territory. Then vice versa as well.. and east/west. Yet, these 4 brothers have been doing it for 2 years! That is incredible! How do they ever find time to eat? Sleep? Mate? It’s probably why the males don’t have very good bonds with the cubs… THEY HAVE NO TIME. Haha! Thanks Adam, Majingilane should definitely be Legends in the making!
I highly have my doubts that these coalition of four male lions are able to cover 64.6km(40.2 miles) of all that tract of land and then we can safely say that the females that they mate with from all the five prides namely Tsalala pride,Breakaway tsalala pride,fourways pride,Styx pride and Sparta prides cubs belong to these coalition!!This is because even if they patrol in twos for example Hip scar and dark mane and Golden mane and Scar nose all separately they still cannot cover all that territory with the way they walk so slowly without incidences happening in their absence.We have the Selatis and Matimbas and there is no evidence that somewhere along the way these females can not have mated with these males or any other males for that matter.Also when they patrol in twos instead of fours there is more risk to them because they can be outnumbered because they are less in number.My point is that this coalition of brothers have brought stability to the Sabi sands for this two years they have been in charge which is commendable but holding such a large territory is one thing but the cubs might not all belong to them because they cannot be everywhere and know what is happening or not happening everywhere.By the way Adam should show the approximate territory controlled by the Mapogo on a graph too!!I wonder if the Mapogos territory was larger.
Thanks Adam…nice treat to see that stats like that. I sure do appreciate the info you share with us.
cheers:)
well done adam so much people love these lions thanks for the update.
Awesome stats and map!!.
Thank you very much.
The majingilane coalition prove to be a blessing for the Sabi Sand lions population.
Keep up the good Job Guys.:)
The Majingilane have surprised me, at first I didn’t think that they had much of a chance. After seeing that 15 minute short on the Maningi’s and how they were very much solo amongst themselves, not working well with each, I thought that their future looked rather bleak. But, they are sticking together a lot more now and I am happy to see their progress. Their resume/sabi sands accolades are pretty impressive for ruling in the sands for only two years.
Thanks again.
Are these 4 males the biggest lions around? They look bigger than most of the males I’ve seen. They are going to be a tough to beat out for another 2 years.
These are some magnificent beasts. They are very intelligent and bold animals too, specially the way they systematically executed kinky tail. I am sorry if it hurts any of the kinky tail fans but being a neutral observer I think these males planned that attack and executed it to perfection.
The Mapogos ruled from 2007 till 2010, there would have been many nomadic males who might have challenged them and maybe because they were united or sometimes lucky they could defeat those rivals but these males succeeded. These males were brave enough to challenge them and were very systematic in their approach by isolating kinky tail for I feel it would have been extremely difficult for them to take on both Mr.T and Kinky together.
I think the Matimba males or selati male coalitions would not be able to defeat the majingilane’s specially if the later remain united and they if they don’t get too much carried away by the good lion life. They have brought stability to the 5 prides and it would be nice to see some cubs grow to adulthood specially after the mapogos kept killing each other’s cubs, the lion population has gone down on sabi sand and londolozi reserve.
Thank you for your update. It was nice and looking forward to hear more.
Do not underestimate the Selatis who killed Mr.T of the Mapogo coalition.I believe that they are capable of giving the Majingilane a run for their money!They are evenly matched and the Selatis are younger but are now fully mature and have come of age.
Thanks Adam, great article and photos. Do coalitions such as the Majingilane add to their number in order to hold territory or in your experience are they more likely to remain as four especially because of the time they’ve now been together.
Very interesting to know that the Majingilane males were born and bread near the Orpen area, and rumor has it that a new strong coalition called the Sky Beds pride which consist out of 9males is currently residing just north of orpen, wonder if they will also make the way down to the sabi sands in the near Future?
i would think the skybeds r much to young at the moment sounds like the matimbas would be seen before them and i honestly thnk the majingilane wil stick together and rule there lands for a couple more years at least,wel as long as they dont get cought apart they should be ok.gta love the majingilane boys.
I’m very impressed with your work Adam,keep it up mate…….
Whats the latest news for October for these big boys! I been checking in every now and then for an update
Matimba lions
Wow only 3 times bigger than Manhattan? This was as much land as they ever controlled in their prime. No wonder why the Mapogos are very much vaunted today. The Mapogos make that stat rather miniscule. The Mapogos controlled an area 7 times bigger than Manhattan in their prime.
How about Mr. T and Mapogo lions?