The kill was made around midday; the sound of the two lionesses bringing down the sub-adult giraffe could be heard from Pioneer Camp. Immediately the two Breakaway Sparta Pride Females began to feed. They knew all to well that the Majingilane males were in the area and it was only a matter of time before they arrived on the scene.
By the time we arrived darkness had set in and two Majingilane Coalition Males had stolen the kill. The pecking order was plain to see. As the males gorged themselves with fresh meat so the females snuck closer and closer to what was rightfully theirs, eager to get more food! But as they moved in, so the raw aggression of the males became obvious.
We watched for over an hour as the two females tried time and time again to feed, each time the males would retaliate and charge towards them. At one stage the male even managed to pin down the female holding her hostage for over ten minutes…she could not move without being beaten! To see such bravery was incredible and the sound from the events which unfolded was spectacular. Here you can see just a minute of a saga that lasted all night. Eventually the males were joined by their two brothers…the females were wise enough to move off! At least this time they managed to leave without any obvious injuries which are easily sustained during incidents such as this.
As I watched this I could not help but feel for the females, they had been the ones who had made the kill yet they were ousted by the more powerful males.
Let us know what your take is on the roles and dynamics between male and female lions, particularly when a nomadic pair of lionesses is involved?
Written and Filmed by Adam Bannister
Rich Laburn is filmmaker, photographer and writer who is based at Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa. Spending his time capturing scenes of the wild and communicating the beauty of the African bushveld, he runs the Londolozi Blog as a way to entertain and engage people wishing to visit these wild lands.
