The life of Field Guide is full of surprises! We were on our way, Zeze and I, to Doreen. We had heard earlier today, through our radios, that a male lion with a beautiful mane was near Caracal Road. So we started looking for the big cat. As we approached the road where the lion was seen earlier in the day we were alarmed at the barking of a kudu. This large antelope, relatively common in Balule, is not very talkative but knows how to use its voice when necessary. This is why it is said that a kudu never lies! Because unlike the impala who barks for nothing, the kudu only lets out its cry of alarm when there is a good reason.
So we stopped, a kudu female visually, she's not the one screaming, she's another female hidden further away in the shade of the bushes. The female is alert, ears straight and forward, head raised, she is staring at a bush a little further to our left, I move the vehicle forward ... When we stop in we come face to face with a huge male lion, a majestic mane surrounds his massive head, a one-eyed eye has fresh wounds… It is magnificent! This male in question is a member of a duo, the Maaseke boys. Formerly the Maseke boys, as their name suggests, dominated Maseke, the dense and wild region of Balule Nature Reserve. One day they were dethroned and migrated to Doreen where they dominate the other males.
The towering animal was lying in the tall grass, its breathing seemed difficult, perhaps due to an overly heavy meal or an intense battle that left the marks visible on its face. In any case, he paid no attention to us or to the kudu and its piercing bark. He was just recovering, maybe he was waiting for the sunset to go hunting?
Balule, where Mopaya Safari Lodge is located, is full of lions, it is very common to observe them, including on the property of Mopaya itself, this one being erected on the biggest koppie of Grietjie, the mountain of lions, the felines come to rest on the hot rocks, to take advantage of our water points and to give birth there in order to hide the newborns in the roughness of the mountain putting them at the shelter of predators but especially of other lions. However, seeing one of the Maseke boys is an incredible experience, even if lions are plentiful here. With their imposing size and incredible mane, these kings of Balule are a must to meet!
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