Looking for Trouble

We weren’t far from the airstrip when our dedicated Lion Tracking Team called on the radio to say they’d found members of the Nduna Pride resting nearby. The pre-dawn light was low and the lions were sleeping. But a short while later one of the big young males woke up, yawned and stretched, and decided it was time to pester the rest of the pride. He strode over to where his brother lay and began wrestling with him.

He quickly realised that this probably wasn’t in his best interests, so decided to pick on the smallest member of the pride – a napping cub. The big oaf just threw himself on top of the cub and pinned him to the ground in a semi-toothless/clawless hold. The little cub wailed and flailed until executing a cunning ninja move that sent his big brother dancing backwards.

Having not quite finished harassing his family he stalked his sister that was lying to the right of us. With the annoyance of a shrieking alarm clock he leapt on the lioness – a foolhardy move at the best of times. She side-stepped him and with a few swift moves batted him into place.

Of course all this action happened before there was any good sunrise light, so I used an ISO of 4 000 which gives the images a grainy look but was required in order to try and freeze some of the movement with a fast enough shutter speed. By the time the sun appeared above the horizon the pride had relocated for the day by crossing the airstrip and seeking a shady spot in shaded woodland area.

What a treat to see these lions being so active and playful for that short window of time. Lions are known to spend up to 20 hours a day resting to conserve their precious energy that is required for hunting or protecting territories – so to see them being playful for the fun of it is a rare treat.