On African soil
territories mean everything
No other animal knows the importance of only oil more than the Lions
Occupy a territory and you own the animals that tress us on it their lives at the lions mercy
Defend the territory and the pride can rest in peace
But that you'll go down and all could be lost in the blink of an eye
On African soil a lion knows that his life depends on the territory he owns
Tis the king's pride
You
For millennia Lions have carved their territories on Africa's vast and ancient ground
Through time the pressures of the modern world shrunk these wild expanses to isolated wilderness areas
The last frontiers of true Africa
In South Africa Kruger is the largest
And
On Krueger's western flank an old male lion owns a prime piece of land in an area called the timber Vaati
His family is the shoe belly pride with two lionesses and five cubs
He leaves his pride most nights to patrol his 150 square kilometer territory
It takes dedication to make sure no enemy crosses the boundaries
But some nights he gets distracted
Muffled sounds giveaway that a warthog is in its den
The old lion digs to make the hole bigger and tries to get within biting distance of the animal
Determined to get to the warthog he digs into the night
But his old muscles are not what they used to be after a few hours he gives up
He leaves the morning shift to the pride
While one of the lionesses and the older Cubs dig the youngest one keeps herself busy
She's almost 6 months old and still supplements her diet with her mother's milk
For the rest of the pride it's a waiting game
Listening for the slightest sound
Digging to enlarge the hole
Waiting
The youngest Carmen takes the best seat
Within minutes the bore is torn apart
Seven lions fight for their share the two lionesses bully the Cubs and take the largest pieces
The little one tries to grab what you can but her mother is not sharing
When it comes to feeding there is no love between the Lions
The young cub who learns this quickly
The 40 kilogram warthog is too small to be a problem eel, each lion grabs what it can get
In less than an hour the keel is devoured all that the youngest cub managed to grab is a bone
The old male is now 13 years old he's held on to this great piece of timber party for almost nine years
In Lyon terms this is unheard of eternia usually lasts no more than five or six years
He has been a strong leader for the shubee LI pride but times are changing a
Few months ago three lionesses left him and the pride
After roaming
The expanses of kruger three brothers moved into the timber party and found an unattended piece of land south of shabbily territory
They have not crossed the invisible line into the old lions turf
Not yet
The brothers are four years old they are strong and confident every week. They kill the Buffalo
Their constant success in hunting attracts the attention of the three lionesses that left the old shabbily male
The bravest one tests the brothers
It's a very bold move it's the brothers kill and as an outsider she has no right to it
Submission is key
Getting in with these strong brothers will bring a prosperous time
Boldly she moves in
Right under one of the brothers knows
By morning two of the sisters are still feeding and there is a third line with them a young male
The oldest sister's son
His presence at the kill could jeopardize his mother and aunts future relation with the coalition of males
By being here he is taking a dangerous chance
The brothers return
The young male moves away before they can attack him
The brothers claim their kill
The sisters time at the carcass is over
They now settle for some scattered bones which they take a safe distance away from the brothers
One of the male's keeps an eye on them
The young male hasn't moved far
But long-term if he stays he will be killed because he is a male intruder on the brothers land
He is a threat to their authority. They must chase him away
The brother stops the chase
This time he is lucky to get away with just a bloody scratch
The young male knows his time here is coming to an end
Out there every hectare is owned by lions more powerful than he their territories are clearly defined
Forming a giant puzzle where each piece slots into the other on level ground
But here it's not that
There is a more obscure layer that belongs to another cat a more elusive character
But by no means less impressive than the lions
His name is McCutchen, which means Batman master of the night
So vast is his territory that he spends a large part of his day patrolling it meticulously
Leaving his scent on every point that to him
represents a crucial landmark
The Lions disregard his carefully laid scented footprint, but they're not the animals he worries about right now
He's on the trail of a young female and Toby she's been in East respond several days ain't no thermal smear
She's comforting with impotence Modi
she didn't need your pensioner and Alexi alone and her for self but
She does need his strong genes to father her cubs
She spots him first
He hasn't seen her yet, but he follows her trail
By instinct she walks away
leopard encounters are never easy a
Hyena carefully follows their moves
Maka John is sure that in toby is a nice trace
But she's not sure she wants to accept his favours
He doesn't know that he can still smell her inviting scent
Mokou John realizes that he's not going to win her over and leaves
The two leopards go their separate ways back to the solitary lifestyle typical of a leopard
They leave behind their unique cat smell and behind arose in it to mask her own
If she smells of leopard, she might be able to get close enough to one to steal his kill
Toby is gone, but her scent lingers
He calls her hoping that she hasn't gone far
But his lone rasping is drowned by some unruly sounds
Hyenas are reaping an Impala kill apart
But this isn't their kill they stole it from the old shibori lion
Irritated he takes it back
His roar is a powerful weapon
It scares off scavengers like these and Ward's off enemies
But how long before the three brothers realized that the old males roar goes unanswered
How long before they understand that the neighboring land is owned by only one male
They are young and new to this game of territories and for now they are happy with their newfound Kingdom
The complexity of the Lions territories is lost to the larger animals of Africa to
Giraffes it makes no difference whose turf they're on
Lions are dangerous anywhere when they find them they keep them in their sight
For the elephants, that's not good enough
Lions kill their newborns. So the further they make them run the better
Elephants have seen generations of lions come and go
They've walked through the invisible boundaries that change with the strength of the reigning king
All this is unimportant to them
Their survival depends on the best food and water that they can find over an expansive land that stretches
far beyond these Lions territories
They're on the three brothers man now only because it has the best source of water around
and
Nearby there is an enormous expanse of bush land to feed
The old chabela male takes some time out with his pride at his age he tires quickly
His joints are stiff and riddled with arthritis
He doesn't hunt with a pride anymore
For the two young lionesses and the five cubs. This is a problem
They depended on the experience and strength of the old male and his three lionesses
Now the females are gone and the old male is tired
The show bellies are in trouble
The two remaining lionesses used to take the older ones lead
Now they find themselves alone having to provide for a handful of almost fully grown Cubs with matching adult appetites
At every opportunity they try to go for buffaloes
Just two lionesses against a whole herd the odds are against them
Inevitably the lionesses lose
Despite being almost 2 years old the Cubs are of no use
They just don't know how to hunt because they missed out on some crucial guidance. Usually given by the adults in the pride you
Take special skills to hunt buffaloes skills that the three brothers perfected during their nomadic years in Kruger
You
Getting her protection while trying to get close to the carcass
The sisters arrival has unsettled the brothers
They are unsure of what to do
Fight them or accept them
The female scent is distracting
Quietly one of the lionesses starts to feed
Her sister tries to move in two, but she's too fast for the Lions liking
Meanwhile the one feeding eats as quickly as she can and the male makes sure that the lioness is see who owns this
kill
Having learned from her mistakes the mother moves closer slowly
Her son follows
But he is getting too close the brothers have had enough and take out their frustration on each other
Undeterred the lioness carries on feeding but soon her time is up
The male's reclaim their meal
You
Near by mother and kill
well-secured above ground
Being alone has its advantages. He doesn't have to share with anyone
But he has a following of intruders that try to steal from him
Hyenas Amica John's plague
Almost every time he has a kill they find him and
They are very patient thieves
He feeds into the night dropping nothing but crumbs
Every little scrap counts eventually, the carcass will come apart and fall
But McEachern will not allow the hyenas to be around for that
Not many leopards would single-handedly take on a group of scavengers his own size
But he is a powerful cat and the hyenas know when to back down
He settles at the bottom of the tree to ensure they do not return
The night was good for the cats of timber party
The shoe belly's killed a water bug
It's not a large prize weighing only 1/3 of a buffalo, but it will provide enough food for the two lionesses and their cubs
The youngest one is learning how to get her own piece of the meal
Her older cousin is more cautious
The little one submits to her mother, but she doesn't back down
The older cub is too cautious as a result she doesn't get any food not on this side of the carcass
The youngest one managed to get a bone this time it has more meat on it
The water bark provides just enough meat to go round but soon the shoe bellies will be hungry again
Maintaining a territory is hard work
Even harder when doing it alone
Despite the difficulties the old Chappell email has done very well on his own
But he's old and tired his days as the king of his territory are numbered
It's a sad prospect. But a reality that all lions need to face towards the end of their lives
If he's lucky he will have a dignified send-off walking away alone to rest in peace
If he's not he will face a bloody battle with the three young brothers
But the brothers have others that are keeping them distracted
The three sisters have worked out the winning formula to free food
And
Now they have an extra car to play one of the lionesses is an Easter Asst
She's only at the beginning and not ready to mate yet
But the change in hormones produces a sense that the male's find inviting
The lioness is careful of the sudden attention and tries to keep the male at a distance
At the same time she's hungry but wants to get close to the kill
But the other brother is not happy about this
The males seem to have mixed reactions to her altered state this one finds her a threat
while the other one can't keep his eyes off her a
Hyena arrives on the scene, but she doesn't stay long. There are too many lions around
Each brother protects his own prize one the Lyoness the other the kill
The hyena goes past unnoticed
Between the Lions and the leopards. She's sure to find another kill
With patience and a great sense of smell. She patrols their territories from corner to corner a
Leopards skill is to kill swiftly and feed quietly to avoid attracting such scavengers and
Toby has killed again. She returns to the tree where she stashed a dega carcass
First she checks that she hasn't been followed
You
The kill is still intact and far from the reaches of scavengers in yet until Mia's nervous
she keeps looking to make sure she is alone, but
For reasons only known to her she's not convinced that this is the best place to settle to eat
You
She settles to feed
The cats of Tim avati hunt and kill day and night
Some like and Toby kill often
Others like the shoe bellies are not so lucky
The old male hasn't eaten for a week
Lately he prefers to scavenge from other predators and he'll try everything he can to steal a meal
You
Tinh Africa has its advantages but climbing trees is not one of them
He'll have to forfeit this chance to eat
One of the most important attractions to a certain territory is the food it holds
Grass trees and water attract the great herds
And the
Lions have a varied menu to choose from at their doorstep
All they have to do is catch it
But the Chevalley pride has had no luck in hunting the Cubs are the ones that suffer the most
Although they are weak and tired they must keep moving searching for food
Finally a lucky break
The shoe bellies find the young female elephant. She died an untimely death
Her one-ton body provides the shoe bellies with the jackpot
The old male joined in
The pride let him feed first
They managed to tear the elephant skin in one of the thinnest places
Most of it is 3 centimeters thick but under its legs. It is paper-thin
With such a large meal the Lions can afford to take their time in feeding
They will eat for the next 7 days and
Take time out to groom and cuddle
During this time the old male will alternate between feeding here and patrolling the rest of his territory
When he finishes his turn the Cubs and their mother take theirs
You
Every day more vultures arrive on the scene
They wait patiently for the Lions to finish with the elephant carcass
They know that eventually the Lions will leave
Nevertheless, they test the Lions
But the Cubs keep an eye on them, especially the youngest one
She loses interest quickly and gives her cousin a cuddle
For the first time in many months the Cubs are well fed, they regain their strength and have enough energy to play
By the sixth day insect eating birds find the carcass they are here to feed on maggots
Usually their window of opportunity to pick out insects at a kill is very small if at all
They cannot feed when the Lions or the vultures are eating
But here they get a chance while the Lions rest
It's a little bird feeding party
In the brother's camp the tables have turned now
It's the males that have to be careful in approaching the females even though they have accepted them
You
He submits
Mating is quick
In between sessions the lions rest now that she's consented she doesn't give him the runaround anymore
They will mate several times an hour for the next few days
During this time she will probably mate with all three brothers to ensure that the strongest genes will father her cubs
With this act the three sisters that left the old Chappell email cement their bond with the brothers
But there is a casual teen for the youngster his mother and her sisters newfound partners pose a serious threat
To have any chance of surviving he will have to leave the brothers territory
He smells his mother's familiar scent desperately he calls her
You
You
He looks for her he listens for her familiar call
But she'll never respond
His mother is gone forever
Eventually he resigns himself to his new fate
The hyenas seem to sense his vulnerability they come in close for a better look
You
With no one on his side his life will be a struggle to find food and just to keep alive
He leaves his home a great piece of land owned by some impressive cats
Maka John Annan tobe have gone their separate ways
He continues to be the undisputed leopard master of his territory
tombi retreats back into her secretive domain
In the brothers land a new chapter is about to begin
You
With such strong fathers and a prime piece of land the Cubs are guaranteed to have a great start in life
You
On the neighboring territory the old male leaves forever
His reign is over and he goes off to a private and dignified em
Without a file male protector the show belly comes walk into an uncertain future
On African soil old territories are lost and new ones found
To a lion nothing is more important than holding his own
alliance territory
You
Is not sharing when it comes to feeding there is no love between the lines
The young cop who learns this quickly
The 40 kilogram warthog is too small to be a proper meal each lion grabs what it can get
In less than an hour the kill is devoured all that the youngest cub managed to grab is a bone
The old male is now 13 years old he's held on to this great piece of timber party for almost nine years
In Lyon terms this is unheard of eternia usually lasts no more than five or six years
He has been a strong leader for the shabbily pride but times are changing a
Few months ago three lionesses left him and the pride
In South Africa Kruger is the largest
And
On Krueger's western flank an old male lion owns a prime piece of land in an area called the timber Vaati
His family is the shoe belly pride with two lionesses and five cubs
He leaves his pride most nights to patrol his 150 square kilometer territory
It takes dedication to make sure no enemy crosses the boundaries
But some nights he gets distracted
Muffled sounds giveaway that a warthog is in its den
The old lion digs to make the hole bigger and tries to get within biting distance of the animal
Determined to get to the warthog he digs into the night
But his Oldman
After roaming
The expanses of kruger three brothers moved into the timber party and found an unattended piece of land south old shabbily territory
They have not crossed the invisible line into the old lions turf
Not yet
The brothers are four years old they are strong and confident every week. They kill the Buffalo
Their constant successive hunting attracts the attention of the three lionesses that left the old shabbily male
The bravest one tests the brothers
It's a very bold move it's the brothers kill and as an outsider she has no right to it
Submission is key
Getting in with these strong brothers will bring a prosperous time boldly she moves in
On African soil
territories mean everything
No other animal knows the importance of only oil more than the Lions
Occupy a territory and you own the animals that tress us on it their lives at the lions mercy
Defend the territory and the pride can rest in peace
But that you'll go down and all could be lost in the blink of an eye
On African soil a lion knows that his life depends on the territory he owns
Tis the king's pride
You
For millennia Lions have carved their territories on Africa's vast and ancient ground
Through time the pressures of the modern world shrunk these wild expanses to isolated wilderness areas
The last frontiers of true Africa
They used to be after a few hours he gives up
He leaves the morning shift to the pride
While one of the lionesses and the older Cubs dig the youngest one keeps herself busy
She's almost six months old and still supplements her diet with her mother's milk
For the rest of the pride it's a waiting game
Listening for the slightest sound
Digging to enlarge the hole
Waiting
The youngest Carmen takes the best seat
Within minutes the bore is torn apart
Seven lions fight for their share the two lionesses bully the Cubs and take the largest pieces
The little one tries to grab what she can at her mother
