Day 14: Hunting at Dawn

Out by 6:00 am and began hunting for lions at dawn. After enjoying another spectacular sunrise, we drove on down toward the dense trees and shrubs of a lugga near camp. There we found a female lion and two cubs that must have been just a few months old. The two little ones were young enough to still be clumsy and have a long time of education and practice needed before they possess the power and grace of an adult lion. The mom was leading them through the tall grass, and we watched as the cubs played, rolled, and pounced. She led them to a tree that had been pushed over by elephants. One end of the fallen tree was about eight feet off the ground and was still being supported by its shattered stump. Agilely she jumped up onto the log and seemed to encourage the little ones to follow. It was hard to contain our laughter as the cubs kept slipping and rolling off the log. Mom seemed to give up on her agility training for the cubs and began to lead them down to water. Suddenly she went into a crouched posture that any cat owner knows is the prelude to an attack. On the far side of the lugga was a lone zebra coming down the sloping bank to drink. Within seconds, she stealthily approached closer to the zebra and then launched a sudden, explosive, brutal attack. She climbed on to the zebra’s back and wrestled down the prey. The cubs raced to join in on the lesson. Once mom had the zebra down the cubs came in and pounced. One cub moved much more aggressively than the other who stayed back a bit. Instead of killing the zebra outright, mom seemed to keep it alive so the young could experience and learn from the kill. It was only after about 30 agonizing brutal minutes that she finally grabbed the zebra’s throat, crushed its neck and choked it to death.

I have never been witness to such power. I have never seen a large animal die. But it is the way of nature - there are predators and prey, winners and losers, life and death. The zebra lost its life and the lion cubs had a meal as well as a careful lesson in skills that they would need to perfect in order to survive.

We ended our day with a celebration of new life as we visited a hyena den area where six very young hyenas and their moms were playing in the setting sun. Their fur glowed in the golden light, and we laughed at their antics. Driving away at dark, we reflect on the day knowing now, only too well, that the night will bring another kill so these young ones can grow up and be part of the circle of life on the Masai Mara.