The Lions of the Sabi Sand are called Mapogo Lions that are a pride of six large, unique looking lions that live in the Sabi Sand Game Reserve in South Africa. The lions have been well studied and were found to have distinctive features that set them apart from other lions.
Mapogo lions use very special ways of hunting and will often walk from up to five miles away to find prey. They also eat up to 110 pounds of meat per day, which is about 20 times the amount eaten by an average lion. The group of six lives together in one pride.
Why they become infamous:
This group of males became well-known for their unusual hunting methods. They would synchronize their movements with each other, stalking and attacking prey from different directions. As a result, they had an extraordinarily high success rate and were able to hunt down large prey more often than other coalitions.
They were known for their tendency to attack, kill and devour the larger animals in the park, including giraffes and elephants.
The Mapogo lions were also known as the Eyrefield Males, the Sparta Males and sometimes the “Cannibals.” They are a pride of six to eight lions that roamed the Kalahari desert in South Africa and Botswana. These lions were notorious for attacking people and livestock until they were finally killed in 2012 by a coalition of conservationists and wildlife rangers.
Names of the six male lions:
Makhulu:
This member of the Mapogo Lions was born in 1998, and it is the eldest of all. It was one of the last two lions that remained alive. This lion got the name Makhulu because it was very big in size and was very impressive in the Zulu language.
Pretty Boy:
This lion was among the last two remaining Mapogo lions. It came from Sparta pride. He was a very magnificent male lion.
Mr T (Satan):
This Mapogo lion has a unique name. He was given the nickname Satan. This name was given to him when he returned back to his four coalition members.
Skew Spine/Scarred Male:
This Sabi Sand Lion had a unique scar on his back which made it very unique.
Dreadlocks/Rasta:
Rasta was given another name, Dreadlocks, because he looked like dreadlocks.
Kinky Tail:
This Mapogo lion had a kinky tail which made it unique. Rangers and trackers identified this lion with the help of his tail.
So these are the Lions of the Sabi Sand that had ruled the entire national park of South Africa. To learn more about this topic visit our website.