Some mornings, we leave camp without a clear plan. That’s not unusual. The bush rarely rewards rigid thinking, and after enough time out here, you learn to hold your intentions loosely.
The other morning, I made a bit of a bold call with my guests. They have been to Londolozi around 40 times, so they know the place incredibly well, and when guests come back this often, they normally have a few favourite animals or sightings that they are hoping to see again.
Tracker, Phendulo, and I were not quite sure where to start that morning. As we left camp, I gave the guests two options. We could go and look for a female leopard, or we could go and look for buffalo and hopefully find some lions following them. I even went as far as saying that maybe, just maybe, we could watch lions hunting a buffalo. It was a bit far-fetched. In all my time here, I had never seen two lions actively take down a fully grown buffalo bull. I had seen plenty of videos, but seeing it happen in front of you was still very much on my bucket list.
We chose the buffalo.
A Buffalo bull staring at the vehicle amongst the sea of the herd.
Not far from camp, Phendulo picked up on tracks of a herd moving through the area. More importantly, there were fresh tracks of the Styx male and the Kambula female woven in among them. Things were already looking interesting.
Moments later we managed to find the buffalo on the move. The buffalo had spent some time on a crest in an open area before slowly making their way towards water. For the first 30 minutes, we couldn’t see the lions anywhere. We knew they were around here somewhere. As the buffalo moved into thicker vegetation and started circling towards the water, we eventually spotted the two lions coming out into the open. Their body language said everything.
A note before I begin: I didn’t take a single photo or video of what I’m about to describe. For once, I chose to just watch.
Styx Male stops to gaze over an approaching herd of buffalo
The problem was that hunting a herd of buffalo in the open is not an easy task for two lions. The strength of the herd is their biggest defence, so we decided to wait and see what happened when they moved into thicker cover. For the next 20 minutes, we followed the lions as they followed the buffalo. We covered about a kilometre, maybe a little more, through thick vegetation. Eventually, it looked as though the lions were giving up. The herd knew they were being followed and were moving further away. One large bull had fallen behind, still trying to close the gap with the rest.
At that point, I thought the sighting was probably over. Then everything changed. The two lions suddenly got up and moved closer. Before we really had time to think about what was happening, the Styx male launched himself onto the buffalo, with the Kambula female following closely behind. We scrambled around to get a better view as the Styx male managed to get hold of the buffalo’s throat, while the Kambula female hooked onto its back and tried to weigh it down. They were on a slight slope in a small gully, and as the buffalo struggled, its footing went. It slipped, and that was the moment the lions won the battle.
What surprised me most was just how quickly it happened. From the moment those two lions pounced to the moment they had successfully brought down this huge buffalo bull was no more than four minutes.
I had always imagined a buffalo hunt taking hours. You see the videos of the back and forth between buffalo and lion. Yet here we were, watching two lions bring down a fully grown buffalo bull in front of us in a matter of minutes. It was one of those sightings that you don’t really stop thinking about.
Almost like this sighting of James Souchon’s
It was raw, it was powerful, and it was a reminder that out here, you can make a plan in camp, but the bush always has the final say. I certainly never expected that morning to end the way it did, and I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.
Morning LGR. That was such a interesting blog you put up about the big young Styx male lion & his beautiful Kambula girlfriend there. It was also very interesting to read and hear about them both working together to bring down a large adult male buffalo in a gully system. I’d think the buffalo bull would have lasted them at least 4 or 5 days at the most, and would have kept them very well fed, so they will be able to enjoy their own feast together at their own leisure for a while.
As they’ve been together and totally besotted with each other for at least a good couple of years now, I would have thought the Kambula breakaway lioness and the Styx male would have got down to business and start mating together as she hasn’t had her own very first litter of cubs there yet at all unfortunately. I’m hopeful that will happen very soon one day. I bet she’s keen to become a mum.
Maybe the next time they’re mentioned in a blog, perhaps they will be mating together nonstop relentlessly for the next four or five days in a row. Then hopefully in one hundred and ten days and three and a half months time, she’ll give birth to her own very first litter of cubs there and start her own pride there. If all goes well, then I hope she will have a litter of at least three or four cubs in total.
I know the big Styx male has made and been great company for her, but ideally she’ll need to mate with a coalition of related male lion brothers like the Gajima males or Plains Camp males to mate and sire her first ever cubs with, and to ensure they’re raised successfully, the fathers of her cubs will need to patrol their territory a lot on a daily basis to make sure that rival males don’t trespass into their territory and kill the vulnerable young cubs there at all. But although they rid well to bring down and kill that large adult male buffalo together, and despite the fact that the Styx male managed to grab and hold onto the bull’s throat, but to suffocate him more quickly and effectively, I thought he would have gone for the buffalo’s muzzle to silence him. I can’t believe they managed to do it together in about 4 minutes flat jointly and ever so very successfully indeed. I hope they’re enjoying it a lot, if they’re both still at it to this very day.
Hope to hear from you shortly.
Robert 6.10.26
Wow! Incredible siting!
We were at Londolozi mid-September and were able to see the aftermath of a hunt.
The Royal couple making a statement! Love it. That is impressive and I would have been in totally awe seeing that unfold in front of me.
What an exciting manifestation! And impressive that two lions took down a full grown bull. I always imagined 3-4 lions would be needed for that kind of prey. Sounds like they did it very efficiently, which was “lucky” for the buffalo.
Wow, that had to be a “lifer” experience! Great storytelling as I didn’t even miss images or video.
Incredible sighting. Goal next safari is to take less photos and be more present! Another goal is to go on 40 safaris!
Hi Dean, yes it’s a drama, buffalo are so huge and full of muscles pure power, sometimes they kill lions, I remember the Mapogo family as they were young… a very hard lesson from buffalo. This time the buffalo in question appears worn out, an older one. The Styx male is in his full, young power. The final of the story seemed already written. I admire buffalo a lot and admire lions. This time youth and fresh power won against the older relentless enemy….
Exciting experience!
Hi Dean, this hunt will stay with you for some time reminding you that lions and buffalo are old enemies and anything can happen at any given time. So glad for you, your tracker and guests that you could experience this take down in 4 minutes. Styx male is in his prime know and lady Kambula female helping him was a perfect duo.
Wow, what an incredible experience, Dean.
It’s amazing how only two lions can bring down such a powerful animal as a buffalo.