Lions are one of the most documented wild animals on the African continent and at Londolozi, we are fortunate enough to observe and spend valuable time with them in their natural habitat. Watching the Pride and Coalition dynamics play out in the Sabi Sand Nature Reserve can be fascinating. There are many interesting facts about lions, I am going to highlight five truths about lions which you may not have known.
Here are five interesting facts that you may not have known about the largest cats in the African Bushveld:
The pride gathers – An Ndzhenga Male, flanked by two Kambula Lionesses looks on as six playful cubs bring their mischievous joy into this family portrait.
1. The Pride of Lions are run by females, but there’s no Alpha Female.
Prides are run by generations of females who own and defend a territory together. Males, on the other hand, leave the pride at about three years old and remain together with siblings, joining forces to form coalitions to conquer a new pride, fight other males, and establish a territory. Most social mammals have a hierarchical ranking for females, with older females dominating reproduction within the group, supported by subordinate females. However, female lions have more of a sisterhood, with each lioness breeding at roughly the same rate. The mothers then raise their young together, finding strength in numbers.
2. Lionesses synchronise their fertility cycles.
The myth that females who live together synchronize menstrual cycles might not be true for people, but it is partially the case with lions. Although lionesses don’t menstruate, they still have fertility cycles. Researchers have found that female lions in a pride synchronize their cycles to give birth to their cubs around the same time. This behaviour is thought to increase the pride’s reproductive success, either by allowing mother lions to rely on each other for protection or by producing a larger number of cubs, increasing the likelihood of some surviving to adulthood. Furthermore, the ability to allo-suckle allows all mothers in the pride to produce and nurse milk for similarly aged cubs in the pride.
After the feeding was over, the mother got to her feet and walked along the road in front of us and without hesitation, the cubs followed her. When she lay down, all the cubs glanced towards us.
3. Even though females are the primary hunters, male lions can hunt, too.
Female lions famously cooperate to hunt their prey with deadly precision, while male lions have typically been viewed as the lazy recipients of the spoils. However, research from 2013 revealed that male lions also hunt. Once male lions become independent and leave the pride at around three years old, survival instincts take over, and they need to hunt to survive their nomadic journeys. While females team up in their quest for food, male lions hunt on their own, ambushing their prey from behind dense vegetation. Typically, both prides and male lions rely on the ambush technique, striking their prey from a short distance. However, males have a significant size advantage and can use their strength to pull down large antelope and buffalo.
A male lion attacks a buffalo!
4. Male Lions with darker manes are more dominant- hold a higher status
One of the territorial Ndzhenga Males poses for us as he peers across to another lioness from the Kambula Pride. Notice how dark his mane is especially around his chest and shoulders.
Male lions are some of the only cats to have manes, but until this century, no one knew why. In 2002, a study led by lion expert Craig Packer revealed that males with longer, darker manes had higher testosterone levels, fewer injuries, and were more mature. Using life-sized models of lions with different coloured manes, Packer showed that male lions avoided the dark-maned models, likely to avert conflict, while female lions preferred to be close to them. A lioness will continuously seek out the stronger gene pool to have offspring, and a dark mane is a key indicator of a male’s genetic fitness.
One of The Plains Camp Males patrolling on the northern section of Londolozi. At the age of eight years, this lion’s mane is still going to darken.
5. A lion’s roar is shaped by the folds of its vocal cords
A lion roars in the depths of the African night.
If you’ve been lucky enough to experience a male lion’s roar, you know how it sounds—loud, reverberating, and low-pitched. A 2011 study examined how the folds of a lion’s vocal cords create this effect. Unlike most species, which have triangular vocal folds, lions have flat, square folds that are around one inch thick. This shape allows the folds to withstand strong stretching and tension, creating a deep and powerful roar. Humans can hear a lion’s roar from up to eight kilometres away, and it is believed that individuals from different prides and coalitions can hear roars from even greater distances as well as recognise these individuals based on the tone of their roars. Amazing!
Lions are truly remarkable creatures, full of surprising and interesting traits that make them the undisputed kings and queens of the African bush. From the intricate dynamics within their prides to the thunderous power of their roars, every aspect of their lives reflects the wild beauty and complexity of nature. Here at Londolozi, we are privileged to witness these magnificent animals in their element, deepening our understanding and appreciation of their world. The more we learn about lions, the more we realize just how much there is to discover.
Hi Nick, I remember well the beginning of the Mapogo as cubs and the rejoining of an older lion, born one year before, they formed the famous Mapogo coalition. The older lion was a deep dark maned male, very large and was accepted back into the pride as he was a prime buffalo hunter. So he had already tested the hard life of a young male lion forced to fend on his own. In the end, Makulu was the only lion to survive the coalition, along with a younger and less dominant brother Pretty Boy (a behaviourist would see the typical hawk-and-dove balance)). Great blog and pictures! Has James Souchon left Londolozi? I remember him and Sean I think helping the honey badger. The most fantastic act of humanity… the Ndzenga male looks contemplating
The females are formidable hunters and it is interesting that the females synchronize their cycles to have cubs round about the same time. Also the darker mated males are more dominant and the females prefer them to sire their cubs.
Nice post, Nick. thanks for the insight.
– Mingshu
Very cool post Nick! I especially found it fascinating that the female lions within a pride synchronize their fertility cycles in order to foster and allow protection, feeding, and sheer numbers, all leading to increased odds of success. Brilliant!
Nick, thank you for the education. I did not know about the folds in a male lions vocal cord area. Very interesting animals.
I had no idea about the darker maned lions being more dominant Nick. Fascinating!
Thanks Nick for this terrific information related to the myths that are often associated with lions. I was especially fascinated by #5, on what contributes to how lions roar.
Very interesting article, Nick.
Londolozi with its many male coalitions is the ideal place to watch interactions between males and prides
Thank you Nick.I can certainly see the logic in the females having their cubs at similar times, but this doesn’t seem to have happened with the Kambula pride? When I saw the 3 young cubs last November, their siblings seemed to be a good few months older, and I don’t think they’ve had any morre recently?
A nice re-read of this informative piece.