CAPE Town – A lioness took matters in her own hands and upstaged the male lions when the kill of a young zebra was not shared with the rest of the pride.
Guests on a game drive at Pilanesberg Nature Reserve last weekend, which borders Sun City, were left in awe after seeing one pride of lions hunt and kill two zebras within an hour.
The central pride was made up of two lions, three lionesses, and three juveniles, according to Mankwe Gametrackers field guide Tarryn Rae.
Two adult males claimed the first kill at about 11am of a young zebra, however, the lions refused to share with the rest of the pride.
“It was an overcast day so the lions were active during the day because the weather was cooler. The kill happened at 11am so this was on our 10am drive, which is usually too hot to see something like this, so we were extremely fortunate,” Rae said.
One hour later and 100 metres down from the first kill, a lioness took matters into her own hands and killed a larger zebra which was shared with the rest of the pride.
“We were so lucky to have not just one but two sightings of lion kills by the same pride,” Rae said before commenting what a rare sighting it was.
Non-profit focused on the conservation of the African lion and its ecosystems, Alert, reveals the strongest male lions always feast on the kill first, followed by the lionesses, and then cubs – within the order of the pride’s dominance hierarchy.
This is despite the fact that lionesses are the pride’s primary hunters, according to National Geographic.
IOL