| EYREFIELD PRIDE Archives : 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 December 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (16) 5 ADULT FEMALES (mostly between 11 years & 7 months and
12 years & 1 months) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON During the beginning of the game report period the 6 males were seen together with 6 of the females and provided some hunting action but were unsuccessful. Frequent sightings of members of this pride were made from Rattray’s camp itself, including sightings of one of the old lionesses from the pride who was not looking in good condition. However, the fragmented nature of this pride continued with most sightings consisting of either the young males together or small groups of females. One has to wonder whether these separations are becoming more permanent with the young males coming of age and looking to confront either the ageing Rollercoaster males in the south or the equally ageing Split Rock males in the north. The majority of these youngsters almost have full manes and are promising to become a formidable coalition looking to reclaim the former territory of their fathers, the West Street males. To this date, however, they have not been heard roaring with any confidence or engaging in any real aggressive behaviour. Memorable sightings of this pride during December included some interaction between 8 members of the pride and a herd of 5 rhino who chased each other around for some time. They eventually seemed to sort out their differences with the confrontation ending with some of the lions and rhinos sharing a drink at a small waterhole. Three of the lionesses were also followed on the hunt on a different occasion that ended unfavourably for a certain juvenile impala. One of the seven-year-old females was also seen mating with the older of the Split Rock Males. November 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (16) 5 ADULT FEMALES (mostly between 11
years & 6
months and 12 years & 0 months) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON The Eyrefield Pride spent a lot of time on Flockfield in November, and ate well! The males of the pride also ventured quite far south again, and were seen on a buffalo kill quite close to KK Crossing on Toulon . A couple of days after scavenging from a buffalo kill on eastern Flockfield, a number of Eyrefield Pride members killed another buffalo in the vicinity of Hyena Water Hole, which is west of central Flockfield.
As has been the case for years now, the Eyrefield Pride operated mainly in sub-groups, but on a few occasions, as many as 12 lions (6 males and 6 females) were seen together. The Eyrefield Males appear to have not yet asserted themselves as a territorial coalition, and definitely retreated from the advancing Split Rock Males on at least two occasions. They did, however, have the upper hand in a clash with a number of sub-adult males of the Selati Pride. All in all, the lions of the Eyrefield Pride seem to be in good condition, and provided some good viewing, especially in terms of interactions with buffalo. That they spent a good deal of time on eastern and central Flockfield, can probably be attributed mainly to the good rains in November, and the good numbers of grazing animals that could be found in the recently burned areas. October 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (16) 5
ADULT FEMALES (mostly between 11 years & 5 months and
11 years & 11 months) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON
While the Styx Pride made up most of the lion sightings in the north of the reserve, the Eyrefield Pride put in a strong presence in the south, with several sightings within a few kilometres of the prominent bend in the Sand River near KK Crossing on Toulon . The majority of sightings were of a few male and female lions together, but sometimes the males were on their own. The largest Eyrefield Pride contingent seen in October consisted of 11 lions, namely 6 females and 5 males. These 11 lions were seen together just once and they were feeding on a buffalo carcass on the Kapen River near Styx Crossing. A day prior to the Eyrefield Pride arriving on the scene of this buffalo carcass three of the Skukuza Males were feeding on it. Indications are that the Eyrefield Pride, boosted by the presence of 5 males, claimed the kill from the Skukuza Males. The Skukuza Males, however, remained in the area and there was something of a non-violent stand-off. The nature of interactions between the Skukuza Males and Eyrefield Males suggested that neither coalition can yet be considered to be fully territorial. A few months ago already it seemed that some of the Eyrefield Males were establishing themselves as a territorial coalition, but the resurgence of the Rollercoaster Males in the southern parts of the reserve seems to have at least temporarily halted the march of the Eyrefield Males.
While there is still a degree of instability in the male lion dynamics in the central and southern parts of the reserve, the Eyrefield Pride females are likely to lead a somewhat disrupted existence. Until they are properly dominated by a coalition of territorial males, it is unlikely that they will have much success in raising cubs. One of the sub-adult females of the Eyrefield Pride was seen way up in the north of the reserve, near Bicycle Crossing, with some rather severe leg injuries. Her overall condition appeared to be very poor. This sighting is not reflected on the map, as it would not give an accurate impression of Eyrefield Pride movement. September 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (17) 5 ADULT FEMALES (mostly between 11 years & 4
months and 11 years & 10 months) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON Although there were not as many sightings of the females of the Eyrefield Pride as one might have expected, the pride still delivered some good viewing. On a few occasions, six of the lionesses were seen with one or two of the sub-adult males, and these lions were seen to be quite active on a couple of days. One night these lions spent more than an hour trying to dig a warthog out of a burrow in a large termite mound, but eventually gave up. The next morning, the large male warthog was seen, still lying in his burrow, reluctant to emerge, in case the lions were still around! That morning, the lions had better success, and killed a pregnant female impala just a few metres from a couple of game drive vehicles.
There were a few sightings of five of the Eyrefield Males together, looking well fed and in good shape. Although physically a very powerful coalition, the Eyrefield Males still seem to be in the process of establishing themselves, and they have not “taken over” a pride or a territory within Mala Mala’s boundaries. The return of the Rollercoaster Males, and the strong presence of four other young male lions, has no doubt given the Eyrefield Males something to think about! The 10-month old cub of the Eyrefield Pride was found dead at the confluence of the Matshapiri and Sand Rivers , indications being that it may have been mauled by male lions. August 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (18) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON There were no sightings of all of the Eyrefield Pride members together, and there seemed to be a fair amount of exchange of individuals between the groups that make up this pride of lions. At times, there were as many as seven lionesses together, with or without males in attendance. As for the six males, they were on occasion all seen together (once in the company of at least five of the females), but for much of the time, four of the males operated separately from the other two. The female that has been caring for the two cubs is not in good condition, and the two cubs often looked rather under-nourished. In a pride of this size, it is always going to be difficult for young cubs to compete and get their share at kills, and it is often better if they are in a smaller group. Indeed, the lioness with the cubs sometimes spent time away from the rest of the pride, but her poor condition probably meant that she was not having much hunting success, so the cubs often went hungry for several days. Late in the month, only one of the cubs was seen, and it is quite likely that the other one, which had been emaciated anyway, has died.
The most interesting sightings involving Eyrefield Pride members were probably those when the pride clashed with the Styx Pride. The first clash took place close to Flockfield Boma Crossing, when all 8 members of the Styx Pride, having spent the day resting at the confluence of the Matshapiri and the Sand Rivers , moved south and came upon several of the Eyrefield Pride members on the western bank of the Sand River . Both prides were active at the time, and some of the lionesses had spread out, as they often do when on the hunt. One of the Eyrefield Pride females saw a lioness lying down to her north, and seemed to think it was one of her own pride. She walked straight to that lioness, as if to go and greet her, and only after a couple of seconds, did both lionesses realise that they were not of the same pride! The Eyrefield lioness had walked up to the injured Styx lioness. There was a brief, noisy exchange, and for a few minutes, lions from both prides were running around, roaring. As was the case once before, the injured lioness and the three cubs of the Styx Pride moved well clear of the action, and did not take an active part in the exchange. The noise attracted the attention of 5 or 6 of the Eyrefield Males, who suddenly appeared on the scene, and chased the Styx Pride north and west. There were no casualties, but it was apparent that the Eyrefield Pride had the upper hand, especially once all the males arrived. On one occasion, several of the Eyrefield Pride members pursued and hunted the large herd of buffalo, and made a couple of attempts. That time, however, there were six females but only two males present, and although lions were seen to jump onto the back of a buffalo, they were not able to bring it down. In the vast majority of lion-buffalo interactions, the buffaloes end up chasing the lions off, but of course the lions’ success rate with buffalo is increased when there are more large male lions present. Members of the Eyrefield Pride were only once seen to make a kill in August, this being a bushbuck, which was very quickly torn apart and eaten. July 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES
(18) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON Early in the month, there were several sightings of a lioness, either on her own, or with two cubs. Most of these sightings were within a fairly short distance of the Mala Mala airstrip. Interestingly, the cubs were clearly not of the same age, one appearing to be about two months older than the other. It later transpired that these lions were indeed members of the Eyrefield Pride. On one occasion, the lioness and the two cubs were seen feeding on an impala kill. A little later in the month, this lioness and the two cubs were seen in the company of other members of the Eyrefield Pride. Obviously the lioness could not be the mother of both cubs, but if she and another female both lost cubs, it would make sense for just one lioness to look after the two survivors, while the other could again come into oestrus. The Eyrefield Males tended to stick together for much of the month, and seem to be doing well. On one occasion they were seen, along with two of the lionesses, to chase a rhino cow and calf. Having spent a week at the end of the previous month feeding on an adult rhino, which they probably killed themselves, these lions no doubt thought that they could do it again! The sub-adults of the Eyrefield Pride, both male and female, have grown into strong lions, and the future is again looking quite bright for this impressive pride.
June 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (16) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON Early in the month, most of the sightings involving the Eyrefield Pride were sightings of the males separate from the females. Six females were found in the Sand River on Flockfield, having killed and eaten something in the reeds there. The only other sightings of females in the first half of the month involved a single lioness, evidently a fairly old member of the pride, seen a couple of times near the Sand River, north or south of West Street Bridge. The males of the pride were seen to stick together, and provided good viewing. Evidence suggests that they had an encounter with four other male lions, all quite young, to the west of the Sand River on Charleston. These other males all suffered a few minor wounds, and it is unlikely that the Eyrefield Males escaped without any injury to themselves. Late in the month, a rhino cow was killed on the eastern bank of the Sand River on northern Charleston. Nobody saw this animal being killed, but its distress calls were heard from a camp on Charleston late one night, and they went on for a couple of hours. The next day, a few lionesses were found at the carcass, and they had started feeding. It was only later that the six males of the Eyrefield Pride were seen at the kill, along with four lionesses of the same pride. These ten lions remained at the carcass for a week, eating at leisure, and passing rather large quantities of very dark, very liquid, very pungent dung! Nobody knows for certain which lions had killed the rhino, but one would certainly think that the six males would have been more likely to succeed in bringing down such a large beast, than a group of lionesses. Whatever the case, the males of the Eyrefield Pride certainly became pretty possessive of the carcass and the area around it, and there was evidence to suggest that other lions had dared approach the area, and had been chased away by the roaring Eyrefield Males. May 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (16) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON The Eyrefield Pride provided another month of excellent viewing, and these lions were responsible for no fewer than seven of the kills recorded during this game report period. Up to 12 members of the pride were seen together, and in fact, over the last few months, probably only 12 can be definitely accounted for. For much of the month, all six of the males were together, and they spent a great deal of their time with four of the lionesses. Two of the old adult lionesses again tended to break away from the main body of the pride, and it seems that the leader of the rest of the pride is the six-and-a-half year old lioness. She is an easily recognised individual, as she is missing the top of an ear (since she was a cub), but is nonetheless a very attractive lioness.
With so many large young males in the pride, these lions have a high food volume requirement, and they have done exceptionally well, with their kills in May including 2 buffalo, a young giraffe, a kudu bull and a female waterbuck. People tend to underestimate the hunting ability of male lions. Although the lionesses are thought to be more skilled as hunters, male lions are very capable, and are frequently involved in the bringing down of large prey animals. Towards the end of this game report period, the adult male lion of the Eyrefield Pride single-handedly took on a buffalo bull, which remained on its feet for quite some time. The buffalo distress calls were heard from a considerable distance by the other five male lions and four females of the pride, and they came running to the scene, where they assisted with the killing of the buffalo. This carcass kept them busy for the next 24 hours, after which there was nothing left! A look at the map shows that the Eyrefield Pride members covered a good deal of ground, and there were virtually no other lions seen on the western half of the reserve, south of the Mala Mala airstrip. April 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (16) Location: MALA MALA, FLOCKFIELD, CHARLESTON April was a very good month for fans of the Eyrefield Pride, as these lions were seen on more days than any other pride on the reserve. As has been the case for a long time now, the lions were always seen in smaller groups, rather than all members of the pride being together. The composition of these groups varied, as certain individuals drifted from one group to another. Members of the Eyrefield Pride were seen feeding on a couple of kills during the month, but none of these kills was actually witnessed. Four of the lionesses of the pride did suffer the indignity of being chased off in no uncertain terms by the Styx Pride one evening, but one wonders how different the outcome may have been if some of the males of the Eyrefield Pride had been present. It is always interesting to study the dynamics of the male lions in an area, and the males of this pride have certainly provided food for thought. On a few occasions, five males (including the adult) were seen together. Such a combination is certainly a formidable one, both in terms of a hunting force to be reckoned with, and as a potentially powerful and successful territorial coalition. It is also interesting to speculate what will happen when lionesses of this pride come into oestrus. Will they be covered by the Eyrefield Males, or will another established coalition, such as the Split Rock Males, do the duty? Evidence suggests that the two Split Rock Males have good reason to treat the Eyrefield Males with a measure of respect. The next several months should show some interesting developments! March 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE AND EYREFIELD MALES (16) Location: WESTERN MALA MALA, WESTERN FLOCKFIELD, WESTERN CHARLESTON, NORTH-WESTERN TOULON
The three male lions, including the adult, that had apparently left the Eyrefield Pride and looked to be getting ready to establish themselves as a territorial coalition, again spent a fair amount of time with other Eyrefield Pride members in March. They certainly showed a certain level of continued loyalty to the pride. The pride continued to operate mainly on the western bank of the Sand River, and spent much of their time off the Mala Mala limits. There is still a tendency for the pride to move in fragmented groups, and they are probably still going through a period of instability, since the death of the West Street Males. This will continue, until a coalition of males takes proper control of the pride. Whether these turn out to be males of Eyrefield Pride origin (who have inherited strong genes) or a new and unrelated coalition, remains to be seen. For the first time in a couple of months, all known members of the pride were accounted for. Around the middle of the month, three Eyrefield Males were found feeding on the carcass of a young giraffe. Unconfirmed reports say that they stole this kill from some members of the Windmill Pride. February 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE = 13 Location: WESTERN MALA MALA, WESTERN FLOCKFIELD, WESTERN CHARLESTON, NORTH-WESTERN TOULON After spending a few months away from the rest of the Eyrefield Pride, the three Eyrefield Males (an adult and two sub-adults), were seen with some of the other pride members on a few occasions around the middle and latter part of this game report period. This is not totally surprising, as the bonds which existed between them and other pride members would not necessarily be broken yet. On a couple of occasions, twelve lions were seen together – 9 Eyrefield Pride members of both sexes, accompanied by the 3 Eyrefield Males. Most sightings were to the west of the Sand River, but stretched over a good length of land.
A spectacular kill was witnessed late one afternoon, after the Eyrefield Pride had spent much of the day resting in the shade of some bushes close to Mala Mala’s airstrip. A female warthog and her three piglets appeared near the northern end of the airstrip, and these immediately caught the attention of one of the sub-adult lionesses of the pride. Taking advantage of the long grass and the fact that warthogs do not have great eyesight, this young lioness managed to cross the tarred surface of the airstrip and a good deal of open terrain, before she started to chase the warthogs southwards along the eastern edge of the strip. Other pride members positioned themselves well to ambush the warthogs if they crossed the airstrip. The young lioness came very close to catching the mother warthog, but in the end it was one of the piglets which lagged momentarily, that got caught. The young lioness was not about to share her prize with any of the other lions, and bolted off into dense bush with it, leaving the rest of the pride looking somewhat nonplussed.
There were a couple of sightings of four sub-adult male lions together, and also a sighting of three females (one of them a sub-adult) and a sub-adult male. It is still difficult to be certain of the exact composition of the pride, as not all of the lionesses have been accounted for. January 2005 EYREFIELD PRIDE =
13 Location: WESTERN MALA MALA, WESTERN FLOCKFIELD, WESTERN CHARLESTON, NORTH-WESTERN TOULON The three male lions of the Eyrefield Pride that have been spending all their time away from the rest of the pride in recent months, are now no longer considered part of the Eyrefield Pride, but have been named the Eyrefield Males. They appear to be in the process of establishing themselves as a territorial coalition in the southern half of the reserve, mainly quite close to the Sand River.
As for the rest of the pride, sightings were relatively few, and on no occasions were more than four pride members seen together. Probably only 7 members of the Eyrefield Pride were encountered in January. The 6-year old female seems to be leading a small fragment of the pride, her usual companions being two sub-adult females and a sub-adult male. One of the older females of the pride has been seen on a few occasions with a single sub-adult male (probably her son). This female has a few wounds on her hind legs, probably inflicted by some young male lions which were seen to chase the Eyrefield Pride, after they themselves had been chased by the Split Rock Males. As for the rest of the pride, who knows what is happening? Chances are that they are spending much of their time to the west of Mala Mala. Whether they have been taken over by any “new” males, is not yet known. The dynamics of the Eyrefield Pride will continue to be somewhat disrupted over the next few months, but in time, stability will return, even if some of the pride members perish in the process.
Eyrefield Pride members were seen on a wildebeest kill
on western Charleston, and two of the lions were also seen feeding on
the remains of a male waterbuck to the east of the airstrip. It is possible
that they chased the Mlowathi Pride off this kill. MalaMala
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