lion – Page 30 – Christian Sperka Photography

2013-10-23

Thandarized!

What a welcome! When the boma gates were opened yesterday morning it was not the new dominant male coming out to look at his new home. No, it was the oldest female of the North Pride walking into the boma and immediately initiating mating behavior.

They walked out together and started mating procedures. As Lions mate over several days (in short frequencies between 20 minutes and an hour) we found them this evening still engaged in the process.

What a welcome for the new “man on the block”!

See also yesterday’s blog message https://christiansperka.wordpress.com/2013/10/22/thanda-lion-news/

2013-10-22

Thanda Lion News!

To maintain a healthy Lions gene pool and to control the number of Lions on Thanda, five of these magnificent cats have been moved to a new section of the reserve (called the Mduna Royal Reserve). The two adult females, two cubs and the dominant male will form a new pride in an area which had no Lions until now.

A film crew from the UK (www.thebigsky.co.uk) recorded the capture and transfer of these Lions to the Mduna. In this image the Lions were still sedated as the Thanda Wildlife Team and the attending Veterinarian performed a “physical check” on each Lion.

One day after this re-location procedure Thanda’s new dominant male was release onto Thanda. Only a few hours after his release he started mating with one of the females, who was waiting for him outside the boma 🙂 see previous blog from 16 October: https://christiansperka.wordpress.com/2013/10/16/my-new-man/

If you are interested to actively participate and contribute in Thanda conservation activities please contact research@thanda.co.za for more information.

2013-10-16

My new man!

One of the young Thanda Lionesses is really looking forward to the release of the new dominant male onto the reserve. She checks regularly if her “new man” is still in the boma.

Soon after the current dominant male will be moved to a new section of Thanda the new guy will be released onto the reserve. Changing dominant males on game reserves is very important to keep a healthy gene pool.

The young lady is ready for him 🙂

The new Thanda dominant male Lion!

2013-10-10

Nature at Work

Observing “nature at work” can be difficult at times. Last nights Lion sighting showed that human sentiments do not apply to animals.

We observed a Lioness, which had killed a Blue Wildebeest, first eating the unborn calf fetus before returning to the adult kill.

Shortly afterwards the Lioness was chased off the kill by Thanda’s dominant male Lion who took over the feast.

The first image above shows the Lioness when feeding. The second image shows the male after the take over.

I got some amazing footage from this very unusual sighting. The links below lead to four more images.

WARNING: Please do not click on the links below if you are disturbed by images of animals feeding on other animals.

http://wp.me/a1rzfb-MB

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2013-10-07

Mummy, get him!

Imagine you are a Baby Elephant …

“Well, today is a very windy and cold morning. We were all were pretty thirsty and moving towards a waterhole …

… when grandma spotted a Lion …

… We do not like them! …

Mummy started walking really fast, trumpeting and everything. Great! …

… I love a good chase and I ran as fast as I could – keeping up with mum. But we did not get him 😦

Grandma decided to turn back towards the water.

Maybe next time 🙂 “

This is a “record” of an exciting Elephant/Lion chase at Thanda Private Game Reserve, enjoyed by many Thanda guests on a very windy morning.

2013-10-05

Enjoying the morning sun!

Thanda guests and Thanda Lions are enjoying the morning sun together!

Seeing these magnificent creatures makes a great start for the day.

2013-09-30

Angry under the sun!

When this young Lioness saw Thanda’s dominant male approaching she got very upset. She started growling in his direction and her four cubs ran for cover. She then prevented the male from following the cubs by blocking his way.

All of this happened under a beautiful morning sky with a colorful rainbow. What a sighting!

2013-09-26

Sit still, watch and learn!

These young Lions were sitting still and watching their mother, aunts and older sister going off hunting.

The guest on my vehicle were very exited when the complete Thanda North Pride moved around the car towards their prey. The Lions just came from a meal – judging from their reddish fur – but they were looking for a second course. As long as we watched them they were not successful. Better luck the next time!

2013-09-15

She loves birds!

The face of Lions change completely if they are looking up at the sky and follow birds.

One of the Thanda guests on my vehicle suggested that this Lioness must really love birds – I am sure she does 🙂

2013-09-06

Experience and Youth!

When this Lion mum was watching a few approaching Zebras she was “frozen” whenever the Zebras looked in her direction. Her daughter imitated mum and was very still as well. Her brother on the other hand was moving around behind them and alarmed the Zebras. Boys will be boys – No dinner this time!

The Thanda guests on my vehicle enjoyed this display of experience and youth!