When one thinks of a male lion the thought of an apex predator at the top of the food chain comes to mind but this isn’t always the case. Sure, they are the biggest predators we get here at Londolozi but life isn’t always smooth sailing. It takes many years for a male lion or coalition of males to grow big enough to be able to be competitive in the lion world and to hold their own territory which has been the case for the Ndhzenga Coalition at Londolozi. They have held the prime territory along the banks of the Sand River that runs through the heart of the Sabi Sand since the end of 2021. When they first arrived there were four males but over the last two years, their numbers have recently been cut in half.

The full complement of the Ndzhenga Coalition on the day they made their presence known at Londolozi in November 2021

Parting Ways

Of the original four only three were related. The fourth male joined the coalition when they were still nomadic males finding their feet in the Kruger National Park (KNP). The four males were quite easy to tell apart as two of them have been carrying injuries for the last few years even before they arrived at Londolozi. Against all odds, these two had continued to thrive as part of the coalition but their injuries eventually led to their downfall.

A comparative photo of the four different males on the day they were running around roaring as a challenge to the Northern Avoca Males. The top left is the bigger, injury-free male, the top right smaller injury-free male, the bottom left male with injury in the side of the stomach, bottom right male with a crooked front left paw.

During the course of April 2022, the unrelated male with a crooked left foot was caught alone while on his territorial patrol by a coalition known as the Gijima Males. There was an altercation between them which led to him picking up a further injury to his back right leg which up until his final day on the 9th February 2023 never properly recovered. This meant that with two jeopardised legs he was not able to cover nearly the distance as the other three members of his coalition. This resulted in him, for the most part, having to fend for himself as he couldn’t benefit from the kills made by either the Ntsevu Pride that they were dominant over or the other males. We continued to see his condition worsen until his body was found east of the Sand River in February. This meant they were down to three.

The easiest of the four to identify is the male from which their coalition name came. Ndzhenga means thorn in the side because he seemingly had picked up his very noticeable stomach injury from a buffalo horn that pierced his side many years ago. The fact that he survived as long as he did with this injury shows the durability and resilience of wild lions. However, on the 25th of May 2023, he seemed to eventually succumb to his injury and his body was found on our eastern boundary.

Ntsevu Pride

The Ntsevu Pride have held the same prime territory along the Sand River and the southeastern portion of Londolozi for many years. They successfully raised a litter of six males and six females born in 2018 and 2019, sired by the Birmingham Coalition. Since the arrival of the Ndzhenga Males, the six young males have all left the pride. Two of them have moved much further northeast into the KNP and the other four have been roaming the southwestern portion of Londolozi with one of the females born in 2019.

One of the Ntsevu Young Males and the young female that is still spending time with her brothers put on quite the show one morning close to camp.

At the beginning of 2023 two lionesses, both born in 2013, were also unfortunately lost due to unknown circumstances. This means that the current Ntsevu Pride is made up of four of the original lionesses and five lionesses born in 2018. During the course of 2022, a few of the lionesses had litters sired by the Ndzhenga Males of which none survived but as of the end of 2022, we have been treated to some magnificent sightings of the next generation fathered by these males.

Two Ntsevu cubs playfully pose on a fallen-over tree.

The Next Generation

Lionesses will separate themselves from the rest of the pride just before they need to give birth. They will find a sheltered den site, typically found in thick bushes or steep drainage lines. This is important for the protection of the cubs for the first few weeks of their lives as they are essentially helpless and rely totally on the milk provided by their mothers. This is the most vulnerable time for them as they are often left alone while their mother goes in search of prey to sustain herself with the added pressure of nursing the young cubs.

This Ntsevu Lioness had had enough of these cubs climbing all over her and eventually decided to get on the move.

To our knowledge, there have been 21 cubs born between November 2022 and April 2023. At the time of writing this number has been dwindled down to 12 remaining cubs. It becomes difficult to know which female is the mother of which cubs because the cubs from the age of about six weeks are introduced to the rest of the pride. The females all share the nursing responsibilities as the cubs begin their weaning process by introducing meat to their diets.

Four of the next generation scan their surroundings looking for their mothers.

The survival of the next generation rests heavily on the last two remaining Ndzhenga Males as they need to ensure the protection of the cubs from any marauding males trying to make inroads into their territory.

The Crossroads Ahead

Over the last few weeks, we have been fortunate enough to be finding male lions in all corners of the reserve. For rangers, trackers as well as our guests this has made it very exciting to talk about what potentially lies ahead. There has been the arrival of the Black Dam Coalition of two males that have been moving through the northern stretches of the reserve and even crossing south of the Sand River. The two young Talamati Males have been spending more and more time away from their natal pride as well as being seen with the Nkuhuma Male (could they potentially form a new coalition of three?). The Plains Camp Males have made the western section of the reserve their own but from time to time are venturing further east. We have also recently seen more and more of the lone Skorro male.

One of the two Talamati young males was found early one morning marauding the southwestern stretches of the reserve.

The two Black Dam Males approach the Sand River.

The ever-changing lion dynamics of Londolozi will certainly be putting more pressure on the last 2 remaining Ndzhenga males but for the time being, these 2 are certainly holding their own. This bodes well for the future of their cubs and the hope is that as the cubs get older and are more capable of following their mothers that we will see the full complement of the Ntsevu Pride and Ndzhenga Coalition all together in the not-too-distant future.