CHARLESTON PRIDE

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December 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5

2 LIONESSES                               *9 YEARS 4 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                         *17 MONTHS
1 CUB                                           *11 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

The Charleston pride was only seen on two occasions during the December game report period, both sightings in close proximity to the Sand River on south-eastern Toulon . All the members were found to be in good health with the three cubs doing well which was not unexpected given the good reputation of the mothers of this pride.

November 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5

2 LIONESSES                              *9 YEARS 3 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                         *16 MONTHS
1 CUB                                           *10 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

There were just two sightings of the Charleston Pride in November, both being in much the same area on south-eastern Toulon . All seems well with the two lionesses and three cubs.

October 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5

2 LIONESSES                              *9 YEARS 2 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                         *15 MONTHS
1 CUB                                           *9 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

There were no sightings at all of the Charleston Pride in October. They almost certainly spent most of the month in the Kruger National Park , to the south and east of Toulon .

September 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5

2 LIONESSES                              *9 YEARS 1 MONTH
2 CUBS                                        *14 MONTHS
1 CUB                                          *8 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

There was just a single sighting of the Charleston Pride in September, and all five members were seen.

August 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5
2 LIONESSES                             *9 YEARS
2 CUBS                                        *13 MONTHS
1 CUB                                          *7 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

Everything seems to be going reasonably well with the Charleston Pride, and nothing dramatic involving these lions was seen to happen during August. The youngest cub was seen on its own at the beginning of the month, but a few days later, all pride members were together again. Sightings were predictably concentrated in a fairly small area, in the south-east of the reserve, and there were no sightings after the middle of August, suggesting that the pride is spending a fair amount of time in the Kruger Park .

July 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5
2 LIONESSES                              *8 YEARS 11 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                        *12 MONTHS
1 CUB                                           *6 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

As has been the case since the birth of their current cubs, the two Charleston Pride lionesses were encountered mainly in the south-eastern part of the reserve. Most of the sightings were in the general vicinity of Machela Rocks. Two other cubs, believed to be Windmill Pride members, were seen on these rocks late in this game report period, but they were later killed by the Charleston Pride females.

June 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5
2 LIONESSES                              *8 YEARS 10 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                         *11 MONTHS
1 CUB                                           *5 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

Seen on just five occasions, the lionesses and cubs of the Charleston Pride showed some signs of nervousness in the presence of vehicles. Indeed, when they were found feeding on a zebra kill on south-eastern Toulon, one of the lionesses turned quite aggressive. It was therefore decided that game drive vehicles should stay away from the scene of this kill. As these lions spend a fair amount of time within the Kruger Park, it is possible that they have had some negative experiences with vehicles, which would explain their behaviour.

May 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5
2 LIONESSES                               *8 YEARS 9 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                         *10 MONTHS
1 CUB                                           *4 MONTHS

Location: SOUTH-EASTERN TOULON

Although they were only seen on a few occasions, all five members of the Charleston Pride seem to be doing well. The sightings were restricted to southern Toulon, and these lions are clearly spending a good deal of their time across Mala Mala’s eastern boundary, in the Kruger National Park. It is a precarious existence for a small pride, because if anything should happen to one of the two lionesses, the other one would have to take the full burden of responsibility for herself and the cubs. The Charleston Pride females are of good genetic stock, and their character will be put to the test over the next year or two.

April 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5
2 LIONESSES                           *8 YEARS 8 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                      *9 MONTHS
1 CUB                                         *3 MONTHS
Location: EASTERN & CENTRAL TOULON

All seems to be going reasonably well for the two Charleston Pride lionesses and their cubs. These lions were sighted mainly on eastern Toulon, and it is unlikely that the females will venture very far from this area during their hunting excursions at this stage, with one very young cub being still rather too small to follow them for great distances. As is always the case when there is a big age gap between cubs, this youngster will face an uphill battle over the next few months. However, its chances of survival will be greater than would be the case for a similarly young cub in a larger pride.

March 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 5
2 LIONESSES                           *8 YEARS 7 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                      *8 MONTHS
1 CUB                                        *2 MONTHS

Location: CENTRAL TOULON, CHARLESTON

Six of the eight sightings of the Charleston Pride were recorded on or very close to Machela Rocks on south-eastern Toulon, but the two most recent sightings of some of the pride members were on the western side of the Sand River, on Toulon. Machela Rocks offered good cover for the youngest cub (there is now just one very young cub), hence the high number of sightings at this particular spot.

The two lionesses of the pride seem to be coping well, and the continued existence of this long-standing pride hinges on their ability to stick around for a few more years and raise at least some cubs to maturity.

February 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 6
2 LIONESSES                           *8 YEARS 6 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                      *7 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                      * 1 MONTH

Location: CENTRAL TOULON, CHARLESTON

All sightings of the Charleston Pride in February were concentrated over a very small area. This is because one of the lionesses has a very young litter of two cubs, thought to be only about a month old. She needs to return to them on a regular basis to give them milk. Although the lionesses obviously did at times leave the cubs to go hunting, they were not seen to do so while game drive vehicles were in the area.

January 2005

CHARLESTON PRIDE = 4
2 LIONESSES                          *8 YEARS 5 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                     *6 MONTHS

Location: CENTRAL TOULON, CHARLESTON

Quite unusually, there were no sightings of the Charleston Pride members during the January game report period.

MalaMala Game Reserve, PO Box 55514, Northlands, 2116, South Africa.
Telephone: + 27 11 442 2267 or 0861 SAFARI.
Facsimile: + 27 11 442 2318
e-Mail: reservations@malamala.com

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