Category: THANDA

All the common ‘rule books’ for Lions talk about well-formed prides ruled by single males or coalitions of males.

Our Thanda Safari Lions have not read these books. The dominant male roams between multiple prides and often chooses to have quiet time by himself.

And our pride structures are quite loose, especially when various females have litters of cubs of different ages.

Females give birth secluded and then, on many occasions, choose not to join their original pride again but to raise the young ones by themselves.

So keeping track of all groups of Lions is not an easy task, but a very interesting one.

Technical data: Canon R6 with RF lens f4-6.3/24-240mm | ISO 25600 | 1/20sec | f6.3 | ev-3 | 240mm | WB 6500K-edited | AV Mode | Crop to 30% of original image | Note: This picture was taken last night using the light provided by a spotlight from another vehicle. Side-light works very well for night portraits | Limited image quality did to distance and low light

#amazingwildlife #africansafari #safarigetaway #christiansperkaphotography #thandasafari #big5 #gamereserve #wildlifephotography #learnphotography

On my way home last night, I encountered two Lionesses. They were inspecting all the various game on a open savanna with great interest. From their appearance, I could tell that their stomachs were quite empty, so I concluded that they were actually hunting.

From their shaded position upwind, they must have been quite invisible to the Giraffes, Zebras, Wildebeest, Nyalas, and Impalas. On occasion, some of them looked straight towards the two cats but did not see them.

I stayed with them for about ninety minutes until the sun had set.

Unfortunately, their patience was not rewarded that evening. As they approached a Zebra very carefully, a nearby Nyala bull spotted them and gave an alarm call. All the prey animals immediately retreated to a safe distance, and the Lionesses moved on to try somewhere else.

Technical data: Canon R6 with RF lens f4-6.3/24-240mm | ISO 800 | 1/500sec | f6.3 | ev+0 | 240mm | WB 6500K | AV Mode | Crop to 60% of original image

If you want to read more of my stories and see more of my pictures, you should visit my blog at https://sperka.info/blog/

#amazingwildlife #africansafari #safarigetaway #christiansperkaphotography #thandasafari #big5 #gamereserve #wildlifephotography #learnphotography