The Birmingham male with the injured hip is impressive, to say the least.
Not on account of his size (he’s semi-emaciated), or his hunting prowess (I doubt he’s pulled down anything in months) but for his sheer tenacity. There have been a number of occasions over the past year (he’s been injured for quite a long time) that we’ve found him, taken one look and presumed he’d be gone within a week.
Yet somehow he persists.
Having witnessed the final demise of the Majingilane early last year, we know what it looks like when a male lion is knocking at death’s door. Their ribs stick out, they walk very slowly (the Birmingham male in question has a pronounced limp due to the injury to his back right hip), and their whole aura is that of a defeated creature.
That being said, the injured Birmingham male isn’t quite like this yet. One thing that still looks like it’s working for him is the thickness of his mane. Males under stress tend to lose condition in their manes; when they’re being harried by rival coalitions and are struggling to hold onto territory, their manes look much sparser and that much less impressive.
The injured male lies in the background. Although much skinnier than his brother in the foreground, his mane is no less impressive.
There has been no major deterioration in the quality of the Birmingham male’s mane however, despite him being in such poor condition for so long. This is almost certainly due to the fact that there has been no obvious pressure on these lions from other males. Neighbour-wise they are fairly lucky with where they sit – the smaller Avoca coalition of two lies to the south, the even younger Avoca males to the north, and the single Othawa male to the west. The Mantimahle males to the south-east I’m not sure of. I’ve never seen them and don’t know how many are still around from this coalition of 5 big males, but they don’t seem set on any kind of territorial expansion else we would probably have been hearing a lot more about them. Or even hearing them roaring ourselves.
Two of the Birmingham males listen intently on a windy morning. Luckily for them, the chill winters air has been relatively absent of the calls of rival males. At last absent as far as we can hear.
So the injured Birmingham male has a lifeline. Two powerful brothers, a territory that is currently secure, and a pride of 6 females in the form of the Ntsevu lionesses to hunt for him. His main problem is simply keeping up. The pride moved about 9 kilometres last night, trailing a herd of buffalo, which for this male on his bad leg is a serious distance to hobble. As long as the pride are killing regularly and he is close enough to be able to catch up before the food is finished, he can keep his energy levels up, but if he lags too far, and the kills the pride makes are too small, hunger is going to win its slow battle of attrition.
The injured male’s hip. One can clearly see how much the leg has atrophied.
He’s lasted this long though, and without any imminent threats looming, it may well be many months before he succumbs to his injuries. If the pride manages to take down a large buffalo soon (and they haven’t been particularly successfully this winter), that automatically grants him a stay of execution.
It’s not a get-out-of-jail-free card, but it’s something, at least for the short term…
It is sad. He does not look good. I saw a few weeks ago that one of the Avoca males in the north was also badly injured.
It is the way of the wild, but incredibly sad.
James, He is a part of the “Londolozi family”. I know you will keep us posted. Raising a glass to him. Cheers big fellow. Keep on keeping on.
Awwwww. Look at that poor leg! Is there any chance it could heal?
So sad to watch such a majestic, powerful, beautiful creature whittle down to almost nothing and then die. Nature is tough. I hope he can keep up for awhile.
I think an animal’s ability to recover and persist while injured is remarkable and not something they often get credit for. Being in the position that he is in he is lucky that he is part of a coalition and has pride females hunting but like you say it’s more of a short term stay of execution. When herds disperse and finding prey become harder it will definitely put pressure on him. Luckily from a genetic point of view he has brothers that carry his bloodline. Will be interesting to see how he survives.
I apologize for the ignorant question, but how did he get injured? My prayers go out for this beautiful lion and hope he recovers.
Hope the pride can continue to “care” for him. It is always so sad to lose such a magnificent animal.
Let’s hope the pride takes down a buffalo pronto.
How did the Birmingham Male get injured. Never saw any mention of it. Are the other two still fit and strong. Is there any coalition of males ready to take over there territory or can the two keep there territory if and when the brother passes. Hope we hear how the brother got injured. Great blog as always.
James, we were lucky enough to see a Birmingham Male on last visit (2018). So sorry to hear about his injury😟
Hello James, thanks for this update. Do you know what cause that injury? Looks like Buffalo horns. What happened?
He’s a beautiful, proud looking male, scars and all. It’s distressful to see him so lean but to be expected given his circumstances. The Birmingham males are a force, having established quite the pride of all the Ntsevu females and the resulting offspring. Given the family the nature of lions, hopefully they will continue to provide this male with the food he needs to survive for many months more. I know you’ll keep us posted.
Are there any theories as to what caused the injury in the first place?
Sad to see Nsuku in such a state. I hope his days are many and food is plenty.. Travel safe old friend..
James, I am curious as to what exactly his injury is? Looking at your one photo of his leg, I would guess dislocation, but because it’s atrophied it may not be so. The good thing going for him is the support he has in the form of his brothers as you said and the Ntsevu Pride. I think the Southern Avocas are content in the south and numbers aren’t in their favor and the single Othawa Male and two old Matimbas certainly won’t push their luck from the west. The only real potential challengers in the Sabi Sands would be the three Northern Avocas, but they seem to be content with the Nkuhumas and Talamati Prides in the north. Thanks for the update on him and the recent photos!
Hello to you all at Londolozi. This is my first comment although I have been following you for quite a while with great appreciation. Were there not 4 Birmingham coalition males at one point? I missed what happened to the other two. I see them on Safari Live in Djuma as well but maybe not for some time. Thanks for the daily blogs to my email…I so enjoy them. Julie
James, thanks for the update on this lion. Does anyone know how the injury happened?
Very sad to see this James. The Birminghams have been a very strong coalition. That leg looks dreadful and surely must cause him a great deal of pain. However, I guess that is life in the bush. Thanks for sharing this update with us.
This is so sad, James. I hate seeing any animal in this condition. That hip must be agony. Do you know what happened to put him in this condition? Wendy M
It is of course sad but just a product of the same life cycle we all find ourselves living in. We are all just trying to keep up with the pack so as not to fall too far behind but sooner or later life will catch up. In the meantime just keep smiling and enjoy life!
How very sad. They are such a magnificent coalition. It was crushing when they left Djuma. I pray Nsuku don’t have to suffer longer.
I’m pretty confident that he’ll managed to bounce back
Well written James.
Very sad to see Nsuku or any animal in such rough struggling condition.