Baffled.
Initially when the vultures arrived on the buffalo carcass the lions chased them away. But they soon gave up and left the area. Yes they left. Now that’s just not like lions to leave a carcass. I’ve never seen that before. So I was sure they’d return at dusk.
For the rest of the day the vultures made a feast of it and were still at it at dusk. Still no sign of the lions.
About 11pm the lions arrived. They skirted the carcass and lay about 50m away. A few of them investigated the carcass and left. That was it. They never went back to the carcass. That is so unusual for lions. A free meal and they didn’t want it.
All I can think is they thought the vultures had finished off most of it having gone in the small hole the lions had made and eaten it inside out. So they were faced with a buffalo carcass blanketed with its own skin and nothing inside. And to chew through that hide would be one huge mission.
The lions moved on and rested up about half a kilometre away.
And strangely no hyaenas found the carcass either. They will often use vultures as a clue as to where a carcass might be.
Soon after midnight the Nduna pride were on the move north. Zebra in their sights. But they had little chance catching one of these guys in the open savannah, so I thought. The subadult male moved ahead of the pride and attacked front on. But he was spotted long before he got near them. They took off west. In the meantime a lioness had circled around and the zebra ran straight into the trap. A young zebra mare was soon made short work of by the 13 Nduna lions.
At dawn nothing remained but a few bones and some huge bellied lions!
The lions left the scene of the crime heading south. They walked for about an hour and had a good drink at Chekwa pan before going to lie up a short way away.
The vultures were back on the carcass at dawn in their numbers.
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