EYREFIELD PRIDE

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December 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17
5 ADULT FEMALES                     (mostly between 10 years & 1 month and 9 years & 7 months)
1 ADULT FEMALE                         * 5 YEARS & 2 MONTHS
1 ADULT MALE                              * 5 YEARS & 2 MONTHS
2 SUB ADULT MALES                   * 35-and-a-half MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE                     * 33 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT FEMALE                * 33 MONTHS
4 CUBS (two males, two females)    * 25 MONTHS
2 CUBS (one male, one female)       * 10 MONTHS

Location: SW MALA MALA/ FLOCKFIELD/ NW CHARLESTON

There weren't any sightings of the entire Eyrefield Pride together, but all members of the family were probably accounted for at some time or another over the course of the month. Generally speaking, the two lionesses and their four 2-year-olds kept apart from the other family members, but this changed by months end when they also took the two 10-month-olds into their care.  The mother of the young cubs, the 5-year-old lioness of the family, was at the time with the other lionesses and the larger sub-adults, apparently not particularly concerned that she wasn't with her cubs.

During December the Eyrefield Pride behaved in a manner which suggested that they were on the run - probably from the Split Rock Males in the north, this threat perhaps being the reason why they spent so much time in the south of the reserve, not just in the southern parts of their range, but south of this too, deep in territory considered Selati Pride and Rollercoaster Male domain. And it was principally the two lionesses and the four 2-year-olds which went south and spent many days in this region before making their way north once more.  Towards the end of the game-report-period, when these 6 lions, together with the two 10-month-olds and one of the West Street Males, were in the north and had just killed an impala on western Mala Mala, the Split Rock Males could be heard roaring not far off.  Two days later all of them were in the south, on Toulon, and heading south and west.

All lions of the pride certainly appear fit and well and food doesn't appear to be a problem, so why else, aside from the threat of the Split Rock Males, would they move out of their typical haunts.

The West Street Males, the old male lions which have for years been the 'masters' of the Eyrefield Pride, were seldom seen together and spent much time with various groupings of Eyrefield Pride members.  But they certainly didn't impress with response to various probes initiated by the Split Rock Males and this wouldn't have inspired too much confidence in the lionesses.

But then, on the other hand, the lionesses may also want to get rid of the youngsters under their care, particularly the sub adult males.  There are now five of these young males, varying in age between two and three years and these must surely be proving quite a burden to keep fed with food.  So maybe the various travels and pride break-ups have everything to do with plans to get these youngsters gone, out of the system and independent so that a whole next generation of cubs can be started.

November 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17
5 ADULT FEMALES                     (mostly between 10 years and 9 years & 6 months)
1 ADULT FEMALE                         * 5 YEARS & 1 MONTH
1 ADULT MALE                              * 5 YEARS & 1 MONTH
2 SUB ADULT MALES                   * 34-and-a-half MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE                     * 32 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT FEMALE                * 32 MONTHS
4 CUBS (two males, two females)    * 24 MONTHS
2 CUBS (one male, one female)       * 9 MONTHS

Location: SW MALA MALA/ FLOCKFIELD/ NW CHARLESTON

The Eyrefield Pride's movements over November appeared to be less extensive than has been the case over previous months, this almost certainly a result of the concentration of game around the watering spots along the Sand River. Food was so abundant for them over the first week of the November that they scarcely moved from the general area of the confluence of the Matshapiri and Sand Rivers.

The lions started off by completing the carcass of the male buffalo killed at the end of October and then, a few days later, just when they had digested this meal, they and the West Street Males killed another adult male buffalo which had the misfortune of blundering into them whilst they were resting. After this feast of buffalo meat, the lions spent several days simply resting in the riverbed of the Sand River, occasionally dodging the odd rhino and elephant which happened by.  This period of good eating and rest would have been exactly what the two lionesses that had been injured last month needed.  These two had been found towards the end of October, scarcely able to move, with nasty looking wounds in their inner thighs, these almost certainly having been inflicted by buffaloes after some or other hunt went wrong.

Once the lions had more or less recovered from the huge feast, the pride split up with the two lionesses and their four two-year-olds separating from the others. But the separation into these two units, which has characterised the pride for so long, wasn't as rigid as has been the case over preceding months and sightings of the Eyrefield Pride over the remainder of the November report-period indicated that the four two-year-olds probably spent more time with their older siblings and aunts than has so-far been the case.  Nevertheless, the two mothers of these two-year-olds appeared more reluctant to join up and there were several sightings of the Eyrefield lions which included all members, except for these two females. Perhaps, after being more or less independent of the others for nearly two years now, they have an adjustment phase to go through, where they have to get accustomed to being and operating with their family again. However, as size differences between young lions becomes less apparent and perhaps as large food items such as buffaloes and giraffe become more regular due to basic needs of the family and the worsening drought in the area, the Eyrefield Pride will spend more and more time together as a unit.

The two 9-month-old cubs belonging to the five-year-old lioness of the Eyrefield Pride are still doing well.  As has been seen over the past few months, these youngsters continue to participate in the hunting excursions and were very involved (ineffectually but enthusiastically) in the killing of both buffalo bulls.  Should these two survive until maturity, they would have gone through what surely must be one of the toughest of schools. The wound on the end of the stub of a tail on the male cub is still raw, but seemingly not troubling the young lion.

Towards the beginning of the month there was some indication that one of the Eyrefield Pride lionesses (which had not been present when the first buffalo bull was killed) came into season and the male to dominate her was one of the West Street Males.  Whilst the mating pair was lying next to each other, the young male of the Eyrefield Pride, which had dominated mating last month, lay nearby, clearly frustrated that he had been replaced. And of course the fortunes of the Eyrefield Pride still hinge on the fate of the West Street Males.  Although last months sightings indicated that these old males had beaten off the threat of the Split Rock Males, these lions from the north still menace and, being a great deal younger than the West Street Males, have time on their side and things could change in a relatively short period of time.

October 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17
5 ADULT FEMALES                     (mostly between 9 years & 11 months and 9 years & 5 months)
1 ADULT FEMALE                         * 5 YEARS
1 ADULT MALE                              * 5 YEARS
2 SUB ADULT MALES                   * 33-and-a-half MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE                     * 31 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT FEMALE                * 31 MONTHS
4 CUBS (two males, two females)    * 23 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                              * 8 MONTHS

Location:  W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD

Resources favoured the Eyrefield Pride this month and sightings of various members were frequent and, compared with other months, quite concentrated around the central and western Flockfield and western Mala Mala areas where prey animals, particularly buffaloes, have been plentiful.  A lack of food and water has helped the lions too, not just by concentrating the prey, but also by weakening them too, making catching that much easier.
Interestingly, in spite of the greater availability of large prey animals, it was only towards the very end of the report-period when all members of the Eyrefield Pride came together to hunt.

There were several dramatic moments involving these lions.  The group of six (two lionesses and the four nearly two-year-olds), together with one of the West Street Males, killed an adult buffalo, and then, probably not 12 hours later, a zebra which came to drink from the river near to where the buffalo carcass lay.  These same lions, this time joined by the second West Street Male too, killed a buffalo cow and calf later in the month and then, two days later, chased the Mlowathi Pride from another buffalo carcass nearby.

But perhaps the most dramatic bit of viewing involving the Eyrefield Pride came towards the end of the month and started when two of the lionesses were found towards the central parts of Flockfield, looking battered and bruised, both with nearly identical wounds on their inner thighs, these perhaps having been inflicted by sweeping buffalo horns.  The lionesses looked a pitiful sight and could only move with great difficulty.  That evening, the remainder of the pride, except for one lioness and the three adult males, were found heading towards their position, almost certainly in search of them.  However, a kilometre or so before they reached their injured companions, they chanced upon a small group of buffalo bulls and immediately attacked.

One of the buffaloes was surrounded and the lions piled in; even the small cubs added their bit in order to bring the bull to ground.  But the buffalo was tough particularly without the full might of all adult lions to help.  After more than an hour, the buffalo was still not ready to fall, but could not run either and the lions seemed to be taking turns to attack.  The following morning, at sunrise, the bull was nearly gone, but still on its feet and fighting to the end.  Eventually it crashed to the ground and the lions moved in and started feeding.  By this stage the two injured lionesses had joined up with the others.

Just prior to this large buffalo kill, one of the lionesses was seen mating with the young male of the Eyrefield Pride and, surprisingly, this was tolerated by the old West Street Males.  One wonders whether the lioness missing from the pride at the end of the report-period was not away, looking for a mate or perhaps mating already, even though she wasn't with  the three adult male lions at the time. 

September 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17
5 ADULT FEMALES                     (mostly between 9 years & 10 months and 9 years & 4 months)
1 FEMALE                                       * 4 YEARS 11 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE                   * 4 YEARS 11 MONTHS
2 CUBS  (two males)                      * 32-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS (one male, one female)    * 30 MONTHS
4 CUBS (two males, two females)* 22 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                             * 7 MONTHS

Location: SE MARTHLY/ W EYREFIELD/ W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ NW CHARLESTON

The Eyrefield Pride had a good month and certainly seemed to get plenty of food to eat.  At the very beginning of the month, many of them and the West Street Males appeared to launch a concerted effort against the buffaloes and killed a sub adult.  A few days later, they were at it again, pursuing buffaloes for several kilometres along the riverbed of western Mala Mala and then even beyond, a trek which saw the lions relentlessly go after their quarry, even to beyond the northern borders of Mala Mala.  Quite why they decided to put so much effort into one operation is not known, but they did return a day or so later, fat as any lion could hope to be - so it must have been worth it.

Thereafter things changed somewhat from a lion-grouping point of view and instead of wandering around in two separate units as has characterised their behaviour for probably over a year now, they fragmented further and some members swapped between groups.  At one stage the lions were in as many as four separate units (West Street Males included in this), these comprising one grouping of a lioness with two of the two-and-a-half-year-old males, another of three adult lionesses, the two young cubs and the four 22-month-olds, another of two lionesses and the other two two-and-a-half-year-olds and then, finally, the West Street Males and the 5-year-old male.

Just why they would decide to break up at a time when one would think that they should be getting together to catch the weakening buffaloes, is not sure.  But it seemed to work and there was never an occasion when they appeared to be in poor condition. Also, varying from recent behaviour, was the fact that the West Street Males were away from the females and cubs more frequently than has come to be expected. Perhaps prey other than buffaloes, easier to catch prey, that is, has suddenly become plentiful and the lions have decided that they don't really need to work in such big groups and be forced to share as much.  Who knows, but their behaviour this month certainly represented a radical change from what has been seen in the recent past.

Towards months end, there were signs, however, that this fragmentation was coming to an end, perhaps the objective being to again target the buffalo herds now getting more and more plentiful and generally weaker by the day.

August 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17
5 ADULT FEMALES                     (mostly between 9 years & 9 months and 9 years & 3 months)
1 FEMALE                                        * 4 YEARS 10 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE                    * 4 YEARS 10 MONTHS
2 CUBS  (two males)                       * 31-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS (one male, one female)     * 29 MONTHS
4 CUBS (two males, two females) * 21 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                             * 6 MONTHS

Location: SE MARTHLY/ SW EYREFIELD/ W MALA MALA/ FLOCKFIELD/ W CHARLESTON/ NW TOULON

The Eyrefield Pride continued to prosper during August and wandered up and down the western parts of the reserve in search of prey, often accompanied by the West Street Males.  They have continued to operate mostly in two groups, the one composed of two of the lionesses and their four 21-month-olds, the other comprising the remainder of the pride.  This separation appears to have been very successful, with the youngsters amongst each group getting enough to eat without having to worry about bigger siblings out-fighting them for whatever has been killed.

The smaller group of six lions continued to favour daytime hunting, striking at midday when animals could be ambushed as they headed to drink in the Sand River.  With watering points in this river becoming all the more scarce, the success of these lions continued.As seen over the last couple of months, the lions of the Eyrefield Pride continued to explore beyond the accepted boundaries of their territory and on one occasion the group of six lions were seen feeding off a kudu kill on NW Toulon.  This foray did not last long and the lions headed north into safer terrain as soon as they had finished their kill. 

Similarly, the other, larger part of the Eyrefield Pride, was found on SW Eyrefield, territory which they have been seen exploring several times recently, but which in fact probably belongs more to the Styx Pride and Split Rock Males.But this sort of 'raiding' is perhaps not unexpected, no matter how abundant game is around the drinking spots.  As the young lions of the Eyrefield Pride grow and demand more food and also participation in the hunts (this latter probably infuriating for the mothers which have to tolerate their mistakes) so it's probably accepted that new limits have to be explored to find enough to satisfy all  needs.

There were several fine moments involving the Eyrefield Pride during August.  On one occasion, as the group of six were resting in the bed of the Sand River, a pair of Honey Badgers came bustling towards them from out of the reeds.  The lions immediately went to investigate and received the shock of their lives as the no-nonsense badgers suddenly attacked them.  And it was a humiliating defeat for the lions as they were forced to back off from the rattling, bristling badgers, which eventually left the stunned, deflated lions.

On another occasion, as the 'group of six' set out hunting, two hyaenas came loping past them, stopped and actually came up to investigate what the lions were up to.  The animosity between lions and hyaenas is legendary and the lions, upon seeing the hyaenas, stopped and moved towards them.  Seeing this, the hyaenas started backing off, but the lions kept coming.  One of the hyaenas, a sub adult, appeared to be limping slightly and certainly was not gaining ground as rapidly as it could have been.  Perhaps it was this which drove the lions on, but they immediately attacked, caught the hyaena and killed it.  The whole thing was a savage affair which almost seemed to shock the young lions as they watched their mothers maul the hyaena.

Then, towards the end of August, the group of six was seen hunting and killing an adult male Nyala, whilst, that night, the larger group, together with the West Street Males, was seen killing an adult female buffalo.  Interestingly, all lions, including the six-month-old cubs, were right up in the 'firing line' when the buffalo was attacked.  One wonders whether this introduction to a lion's life is an indication of their mother's lack of experience when it comes to the raising of youngsters; these are, after all, her first cubs.

July 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17
5 ADULT FEMALES                     (mostly between 9 years & 8 months and 9 years & 2 months)
1 FEMALE                                        * 4 YEARS 9 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE                      * 4 YEARS 9 MONTHS
2 CUBS  (two males)                         * 30-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS (one male, one female)         * 28 MONTHS
4 CUBS (two males, two females)     * 20 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                              * 5 MONTHS

Location: SE MARTHLY/ SW EYREFIELD/ W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ NW CHARLESTON

The Eyrefield Pride contributed to the bulk of lion viewing this month, patrolling up and down the Sand River looking for game.

As was the case last month, however, they did not restrict their activities to their known haunts and the 'sub-group', which comprises four lionesses and the four two-and-a-half-year-olds, was seen moving towards central Eyrefield, this area way out of their territory and closer to that patrolled by the Styx Pride and the Split Rock Males.  Last month some members of this same group were seen exiting from this area and wasting no time about it.  They kept looking over their shoulders as if expecting some retribution at any second.

So why have they been 'invading'?  Perhaps the most likely explanation is that the young lions of the group are getting bigger and need more food and also need to learn to hunt; not only will the adult lionesses need to hunt more regularly to supply this greater food requirement, but will need to hunt more regularly because more of the hunts will end in failure due to the clumsiness of the 'student' lions - full of enthusiasm, but limited by skill.

The two lionesses, which have been looking after the 20-month-olds, have continued to keep their youngsters away from the other members of the group and appear to be providing the cubs with more than enough food.  The theory behind this separation of the pride is that the younger lions, if staying with the older ones, would be outcompeted at carcasses, unless large animals such as buffaloes and giraffe are regularly killed.  But with the mega-herbivores still in good condition and dangerous to tackle, small and medium-sized prey animals remain the most frequently targeted and so it makes sense for the younger and weaker lions to stay out of the way of their stronger siblings.

One wonders just what will happen over the next few months should the rains be late and the buffaloes in particular weaken; will the lions of the Eyrefield Pride get together and if so, will the two-and-a-half-year-olds be at a stage when they can suddenly make a meaningful contribution to the killing force of this pride?

The two small cubs of the Eyrefield Pride still seem to be in good condition.  With them being older, more mobile and probably drinking less milk, the rest of the pride has not been as diligent in terms of restricting its hunting routes so that their mother, the young female of the pride, can make frequent returns to nurse them.  Their biggest threat at this stage, of course, remains infanticide - being killed by a foreign male lion should the aging West Street Males be deposed.

Both surviving West Street Males remained in good health this month and spent much time with various members of the Eyrefield Pride.

June 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17
5 ADULT FEMALES                       (mostly between 9 years & 7 months and 9 years & 1 month)
1 FEMALE                                        * 4 YEARS 8 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE                     * 4 YEARS 8 MONTHS
2 CUBS  (two males)                         * 29-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS (one male, one female)         * 27 MONTHS
4 CUBS (two males, two females)    * 19 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                              * 4 MONTHS

Location: SE MARTHLY/ SW EYREFIELD/ W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ NW CHARLESTON

After spending most of the early parts of the month on the reserve, the Eyrefield Pride were absent for over a week, apparently eating from the carcass of an elephant bull to the west of Mala Mala. But meat has been plenty for this pride of lions and they and the West Street Males appear to be prospering.

Although not always the case, the lions of the Eyrefield Pride continued to operate in two units this month, with two of the lionesses hunting with the four one-and-a-half-year-olds and the others sticking together in the second group.  At this stage it appears as if the young lioness with her small cubs is still doing well by staying with the larger of the sub-groups.

But there was some entertaining viewing from the Eyrefield Pride this month.  Towards the beginning of the month, the mother of the two young cubs was found at the Mala Mala Bridge, probably close to where her cubs were being hidden in the reedbeds. The lioness had emerged from the reeds, apparently after noticing some vultures descending not far upstream from where she had been hiding.  As it turned out, the vultures had located scraps of an impala, probably killed by a leopard.  Almost nothing remained of the kill and the biggest piece was a flap of skin caught in the branch of a large Terminalia Tree, perhaps 10 metres above the ground.  When the lioness arrived at the scene, she first sniffed around and then decided to climb the tree and get the remains.  But it was a task impossible and soon the lioness found herself high above the ground and unable to manoeuvre as freely as she wanted to.  Not only could she not reach the skin, this only mere metres away, but she could hardly turn around to attempt a descent.  And when she did turn around, the prospect of heading headfirst down the tree from such a height appeared to chill her somewhat.  So in the tree the lioness sat, trying to appear somewhat nonchalant about the whole thing.  Perhaps it was the vultures starting to ignore her and land on the ground close by or perhaps it was a barking baboon which eventually got to her, but she suddenly decided, after over half-an-hour in the tree, that it was time to get out.  Plucking up her courage, she headed down and after launching herself from halfway down the tree, landed on her feet and appeared none the worse for the experience.  She then lay down, perhaps hoping that the skin would miraculously dislodge itself.  But it did not and eventually she moved on after spending some hours beneath the tree.

The next and perhaps finest sight of the month occurred a week later when the mothers of the four one-and-a-half-year-olds killed two adult male kudus in the lower parts of the Mlowathi River, opposite the Mala Mala Main Camp just before midday.  The two lionesses and the four youngsters had been found early that morning, accompanied by one of the West Street Males.  All were lean and looked cold.  But, as the day warmed up, the lions slowly became more active and headed off upstream in the Sand River.

Leaving the four youngsters in the reeds just downstream of the Mala Mala Causeway, the two lionesses and the single West Street Male moved off upstream and on the eastern bank of the Sand River, opposite the Mala Mala Main Camp.  This particular stretch of river is popular with animals as a drinking spot.  But circumstances initially seemed to conspire against the lions; just as they were eyeing out a herd of impala ahead of them, tentatively making their way down towards a drinking spot, a huge elephant bull came up behind the lions and chased them off.  Although the impala probably never noticed the lions, the ruckus was enough to make them suspicious and they started moving off.  After waiting for a while, the lions abandoned this area and continued upstream.  As they had been waiting, however, the lions failed to see another group of animals, including a large kudu bull, a single male wildebeest and another herd of impalas head down to drink at another drinking spot behind them, just where they had been an hour or so before.

So, things at this stage did not look promising for the lions.  But this was to change.  When they reached the junction of the Mlowathi, Manyelethi and Sand Rivers, this upstream and opposite the Main Camp, they detected something in the Mlowathi River.

Working as a well-oiled machine, the two lionesses started to circle an area which included a curve in the lower parts of the Mlowathi River.  This particular spot is like a mini amphitheatre, with the outside curve in the river a near vertical and almost four-metre wall of crumbling earth, this the product of a series of floods which have cut away into the bank.  Given this lay of the land, one would imagine that prey animals would be taking a serious risk by confining themselves in this particular stretch of the riverbed.  But, as it turned out, some adult male kudus had done exactly that.  These creatures are exceptionally alert and, being adults, no doubt very experienced in the art of predator detection and escape.  But this was not to be their day; they should not have allowed themselves to be caught in such a natural ambush position.  The lions, of course, made the most of this and when they rushed in, each female caught one of the giant antelopes.  Perhaps the most surprised of the two lionesses was the one which stalked along on top of the vertical bank; one of the kudus, applying its formidable power and displaying its legendary jumping skills, scaled this near vertical mini-cliff, no doubt thinking that it had escaped the danger which it probably thought was only in the river-bed below it.  What a shock it must have had when it found itself face-to-face with the second lioness.  For her part, this lioness did not hesitate and hurled herself at the antelope.  And even though she caught hold of it, the kudu was not about to give up and struggled strongly before the lioness could wrestle it to the ground, not a small task when one considers that the kudu was probably nearly twice her weight.  But in the end the kudu collapsed and the lioness completed the strangulation process.  Meanwhile, down below her in the riverbed, the other lioness was busy subduing her kudu bull.  When the male lion saw what was happening, he came sprinting in and took over from the second lioness, going through the ritual of throttling the kudu.

The kills were then dragged to areas of concealment to hide them from the keen eyes of vultures (some of which had already started gathering) and feeding started.  After an hour-and-a-half of this, the lionesses both went back to collect the cubs, which came rushing out to meet them from the reedbeds where they had been left.  Although the male lion present certainly did much to dominate at least one of the kills, there was meat aplenty for all and the cubs soon had bulging bellies.  The following morning the second West Street Male had joined the others.

May 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 17

5 ADULT FEMALES                 (mostly between 9 years & 6 months and 9 years)
1 FEMALE                               * 4 YEARS 7 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE           * 4 YEARS 7 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                     * 28-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS                                     * 26 MONTHS
4 CUBS                                     * 18 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                     * 3 MONTHS

SOUTHERN MARTHLY/ W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ W CHARLESTON

The Eyrefield Pride had a good month.  Perhaps some of the most exciting news was the young lionesses 'introduction' to the outside world of her two approximately 3-month-old cubs.  This occurred when many members of the pride were feeding off the carcass of an adult male rhino in the reeds of the Sand River just downstream of Harry's Camp, an area where, it has long been suspected, these little cubs have been kept hidden.  Although the youngsters would have been around the carcass of the rhino for all of this time, it is doubtful that they participated in the feeding which went on for about a week.

Not all of the lions from the Eyrefield Pride were present to feed from the rhino, it seemed, although with the dense reeds in the area this was never easy to tell.  Certainly the two West Street Males were also there and profited from the bounty of meat.  Both of these aging male lions spent much time with the lionesses and youngsters of the Eyrefield Pride this month.  It is not certain if one of them is the father of the young lionesses' cubs or not.  This young lioness is in fact probably the daughter of one of the West Street Males, either one of the two still alive or from one of the three which have died over the past couple of years.  Last year, when the young lioness of the Eyrefield Pride was seen mating for the first time, she almost deliberately avoided the West Street Males, as if recognising that she should not mate with them, and sought out the Rollercoaster Males.  When this happened the West Street Males did nothing to intervene.  So, hopefully a similar thing happened this time and the father of the cubs is some 'foreign' male lion.

The lions of the Eyrefield Pride appeared to have plenty of food to eat this month; there certainly were times when the lions looked lean, but these did not seem to last.

There was only one sighting of all 17 members of the Eyrefield Pride together and here both West Street Males accompanied them.  Generally, however, the separation of the pride which was seen to come into effect some months ago with four of the lionesses and the 4 just-over-two-year-olds moving around independently from the other two lionesses and their four one-and-a-half-year-olds.  With the younger lions not having to compete for food with the older and bigger sub-adults, their chances of surviving are probably that much greater.

This separation of the two groups is not very exact and some mixing up has been seen.  For instance, when the two mothers of the 18-month-olds killed a zebra near the Mala Mala Airstrip, accompanying them were only three of 'theirs' and two of the two-year-olds.  But, in general, this 'divide' amongst the lions is how things have been working for the Eyrefield Pride.  One wonders for just how long it will last.  Sooner or later the day will come when all sub-adults get together and assist in the hunting, creating, one would imagine, quite a formidable force of lions.

Quite surprisingly, the mother of the two very young cubs has stayed with the larger group of lions and their movements have been extremely sympathetic to her requirements.  It could almost be expected that the young lioness would have a massive struggle to satisfy the demands of her cubs and at the same time keep up with the rest of her pride which might be away doing its own thing.  But this has not been the case; almost as if they recognise the need for the young lioness to regularly return to where she has hidden her youngsters in order to suckle them, the other lionesses and young lions seem to wait for her and hunt in a fashion that will assist her.

April 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 15

5 ADULT FEMALES                 (mostly between 9 years & 4 months and 8 years & 10 months)
1 FEMALE                               * 4 YEARS 5 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE           * 4 YEARS 5 MONTHS
2 CUBS                                     * 26-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS                                     * 24 MONTHS
4 CUBS                                     * 16 MONTHS

Location: SOUTHERN MARTHLY/ W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ W CHARLESTON

Compared with previous months, April delivered relatively few sightings of members of the Eyrefield Pride.  Nevertheless, there were enough encounters with them to indicate that the various members have remained separated, with two lionesses and the four surviving youngsters staying away from the other four lionesses and the four older sub adults.  This separation is probably very necessary to prevent the substantially larger two-year-olds from outcompeting the younger lions.

What was also seen this month was definite proof that the young lioness of the pride is lactating.  Whatever cubs she has given birth to would perhaps be two months old now, but it may still be a while before they are 'introduced' to the outside world, if this even happens.  Being the only lioness of the six with tiny cubs, she has much to do on her own whilst at the same time having to keep up with the others which also have their lives to live, hunting not only for themselves, but also for the 8 sub adults which they are trying to raise and which are now in a fairly critical stage of nearing independence.  Also, with this being her first litter, it would come as no surprise if this young lioness simply makes mistakes with them and they die. The behaviour of the young lioness this month indicated that she would make long journeys to suckle the cubs, before returning to join her companions which have so far have shown remarkable understanding towards her predicament.  Indications are that the cubs of this young lioness may have been hidden, at least for some of the month, in the reeds of the Sand River downstream of Harry's Camp. It is not known which male lion fathered these cubs.  Although the West Street Males are the male lions 'in charge' of the Eyrefield Pride, one of them would have fathered this young lioness and when she was seen mating for the first time last April, it was with the Rollercoaster Males.  This may have happened again on this occasion.

Compared with what was observed last month, the Eyrefield Pride spent little time eyeing out the large herd of buffaloes during April, almost certainly since they realised that the good condition of these huge animals following the rains of early March, have made them difficult to catch.  And this may very well have been why there were relatively few encounters with the Eyrefield Pride during April; they were simply out looking for easier food in far flung areas.  Certainly some sightings of the Eyrefield Pride this month had them placed in really extreme areas of their range.

The two remaining West Street Males remained alive and healthy for another month, giving the Eyrefield Pride just that much more hope that the four surviving 16-month-old cubs will make it to maturity.  It cannot be long now before these cubs will be safe from whatever male lions inevitably take over from the West Street Males.

March 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 16
5 ADULT FEMALES (mostly between 9 years & 3 months and 8 years & 9 months)
1 FEMALE  * 4 YEARS 4 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE * 4 YEARS 4 MONTHS
2 CUBS   * 25-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS    * 23 MONTHS
5 CUBS  * 15 MONTHS

Location: SOUTHERN MARTHLY/ W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ NW CHARLESTON

The Eyrefield Pride spent the month operating in two separate groups, the one comprising four lionesses and mostly the older cubs, and the other group made up of the remaining two lionesses and four of the nearly one-and-a-half-year-old youngsters.  This organisation was of course seen in February too.

Last month it was seen that the single young cub, which had chosen to stay with the group containing the older cubs, was suffering from a lack of food and was getting thinner by the day, clearly outcompeted by the other bigger lions which it was following.  This situation continued during March and the young lion became thinner and thinner and eventually vanished, almost certainly having succumbed to starvation, this the result of simply being unable to better the bigger and stronger cubs in the tussle for food.  And it is almost certainly this great difference in competitive ability which has been the basis of the split currently seen in the lions of the Eyrefield Pride. The older cubs are also probably putting more emphasis on learning to hunt and this would also place great strain on the other lions since their naivety would cost the pride food as they blundered along and destroyed hunting opportunities. One wonders for how long the separation will last.

Of course there are also other risks too.  Generally speaking, the greater the number of lions hunting together, the greater is their chance of success.  However, it also means that more lions have to share what is killed and here the competition between individuals plays a role, particularly so if the average animal killed is small - impala or kudu sized.

For the two lionesses with the four younger cubs, they obviously made the decision to move apart from the others simply because they realised that the average animal killed would be small and their cubs simply would not be able to compete.  But by operating as a pair, without others to help, they battled to kill and at one stage during March, the cubs spent five or more days without eating, patiently awaiting the return of the their mothers as the two of them patrolled the bush in vain, searching for food.  But they pulled through this bleak period and given the fate of the single youngster that had joined the bigger cubs residing with larger group of lions, the decision to separate and do their own thing was still probably the best decision.

Although it was not confirmed by the end of the March viewing period, indications are that the youngest lioness of the pride, the four-and-a-half-year-old, has given birth.  It was noted some weeks ago that she appeared to be at an advanced stage of pregnancy and now her general behaviour is such that she probably has small cubs secreted somewhere. Since these cubs represent her first litter, it would come as no surprise should she fail to raise them.  It is also not certain which lions fathered these cubs.  Last April, when she was seen mating for the first time, she sought out the Rollercoaster Males and one of them mated with her.  Since she was fathered by one of the West Street Males, two of which are still around and in charge of the area, it would not be desirable for one of them to mate with her.

The West Street Males are still in power and wandering the area, either patrolling or hunting alone or with the lionesses.  Every day that they stay alive and keep other males from taking over is a day closer to safety for the younger lions of the Eyrefield Pride.  It cannot be long now before the four remaining 15-month-old lions could be considered safe from being killed by new male lions which must inevitably arrive at some stage to replace the old West Street Males.

February 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 16

Location: W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ NW CHARLESTON

Towards the beginning of February, the Eyrefield Pride split into two groups, one comprising two lionesses with four of the younger cubs, the other made up of the remainder. There were certainly some changes, but this is basically how things stayed throughout the month. Each group hunted independently and within the overall territory of the Eyrefield Pride.

The reason for this separation of pride members simply must have been to protect the younger cubs from the competitive advantages which the older cubs would have over them when it came to feeding around a carcass. A bleak example of this was no more evident than with the single 14-month-old which chose to stay with the larger group of lions. Not only did he lose contact with the others for several days after he was left behind on one occasion when the rest of the pride wandered off, but, by months end, was as skinny as a rake whilst the others were still in quite reasonable shape.

The day-to-day desperation of a lion was well illustrated this month by the Eyrefield Pride. The smaller group of six lions was observed for several successive days. They were at one time accompanied by one of the West Street Males and were seen to fail time and again when attempting to catch prey. Eventually the now thin cubs were left behind whilst the females hunted. Even the West Street Male left them to seek out the other group. The lionesses managed to catch prey, but only small things such as baby impala or, on one occasion, a young pangolin. These creatures would only sustain their hunting efforts, if that, and could not begin to help the cubs. Whilst all of this was taking place, not 15 minutes walk for the lions from where they were doing most of their hunting, the rest of the family had killed an adult male buffalo. What a feast this would have been for all of them, but, as it turned out, the two lionesses and four cubs with them never discovered its whereabouts and continued to struggle on.

Then, when things seemed quite desperate, the lionesses caught a yearling buffalo, one which had been struggling along with a badly injured leg for some months, protected by the rest of the herd. This kill could not have been better timed and within 24 hours the lions had been transformed into fat and momentarily content creatures once more. For the rest of the month, still remaining separated from the rest of their pride, this small unit of the Eyrefield Pride continued to do well. But if it had not been for that one kill, one wonders what might have happened.

As conditions continue to get drier and drier, the large herd of buffaloes has been forced to stay almost entirely in the general environs of the Sand River in the area controlled by the Eyrefield Pride and West Street Males. Although the lions certainly put some effort into targeting these huge creatures, they remained mostly very wary of them. It was only towards the end of the month, when the buffaloes started losing condition, that the lions began to make headway and attacking with more success. If things continue as they have been and the buffaloes cannot leave because there simply are no greener pastures, then the Eyrefield Pride will be on a good wicket with abundant food to be plucked.

But, as this month indicated, life for lions can be made and lost on a single well-timed kill and things can change fast. With only two West Street Males still alive, the younger lions of the Eyrefield Pride have an extra worry; all they probably need to avoid being killed by foreign male lions taking over the area is just a few more months and then surely they will be safe. Not so secure, however, is the youngest lioness of the Eyrefield Pride. Towards the end of February she looked decidedly pregnant; any cubs born now would be most vulnerable to foreign male lions coming in to take control of the pride.

January 2003

EYREFIELD PRIDE = 16

5 ADULT FEMALES (mostly between 9 years & 1 month and 8 years & 7 months)
1 FEMALE * 4 YEARS 2 MONTHS
1 SUB ADULT MALE * 4 YEARS 2 MONTHS
2 CUBS * 23-and-a-half MONTHS
2 CUBS * 21 MONTHS
5 CUBS * 13 MONTHS

Location: SE MARTHLY/ W MALA MALA/ W FLOCKFIELD/ W CHARLESTON

Although there were some sightings of as many as five of the six lionesses of the Eyrefield Pride together at one time, as well as all 9 of the cubs, there were no records during the January game-report-period of all members of this family together at one time. Mostly it appeared as if the lionesses separated into two groups, one of four and the other of two. The cubs seemed to wander between these two groups, although, towards months end, some stability appeared to have established itself, with four of the cubs going with the two lionesses and the other five cubs with the group of four lionesses.

Just prior to this end-of-the-month pride-structure, four of the lionesses, one of the West Street Males and seven of the cubs spent some time following behind the large herd of buffaloes. Eventually the lions and the buffaloes came face to face, but instead of the lions catching a buffalo, they were forced to flee for their lives as the angry buffalo rounded on them. At one stage three of the cubs, which had become isolated when they had crept into a bush, were forced to scramble up a tree as the buffaloes sought to trample and gore them. Fortunately for the cubs they managed to cling on until the buffaloes retreated.

Generally speaking though, the lions of the Eyrefield Pride seemed to battle to get enough food this month and were often seen looking very thin. But they survived the month and hopefully will continue to soldier on. One of the big concerns still remains - male lion stability. Although their fathers and protectors, the West Street Males, are still around, things do not look so good for them. Towards months end it appeared as if one of the West Street Males had died, perhaps from a disease such as bovine tuberculosis. This lion just became thinner and thinner and was not seen for the last two weeks of January. If he has indeed died, it will be that much more difficult for the remaining two to hang on and keep new male lions away. The five youngest lions of the Eyrefield Pride still remain vulnerable to being killed by any new territorial males.

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Telephone: + 27 11 442 2267 or 0861 SAFARI.
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