Christof Schoeman, a 30-year-old professional field guide, sent in this footage from the Manyeleti Game Reserve, Greater Kruger National Park at Tintswalo Safari Lodge.
He told Latest Sightings that they “already knew that this pride of lions, known as the Nharhu pride, consisting of 3 lionesses with their ten 6-month old cubs, were in the area”, so they went looking for them.
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He described it as being “late in the afternoon when we approached the area” with a “dust cloud hanging overhead”. Believing it to be indicative of the lion’s presence, they settled in to wait for the sighting.
Organizing The Classroom
Christof and his group were lucky enough, not only to locate the lions, but to witness them training their cubs how to hunt just as well as they can. When the dust settled they saw that the three lionesses had captured a young buffalo without killing it.
Once the prey was secure, Christof watched as one “of the lionesses then moved off towards the dam wall” where they’d hidden the cubs. They were keeping the buffalo alive as a tool to train their cubs how to bring one down.
The lionesses had the classroom organized, and school was in session as the cubs, ready to start working for their meals, hurried over to the unfortunate buffalo.
Adorable Little Killing Machines
Due to the nature of the training exercise for the cubs, this buffalo wasn’t going to have a quick or painless death, but there is something comical about watching the cubs try to bring down an animal so much larger than them.
One of the lionesses tried demonstrating the proper technique, clamping the buffalo’s neck in her strong jaws every time it tried to escape, but the cubs didn’t seem to know what to do.
Perhaps they thought they were only meant to be helping, rather than learning, but as the lioness held the buffalo in place, they busied themselves by leaping up at its hindquarters.
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Lion Hunting Techniques
Adult lions typically hunt by ambushing their prey, and then killing it swiftly with an attack to the neck. That’s what the lioness was trying to teach the cubs through her demonstrations.
Attacking the hind legs of an animal is also a valid tactic, as it can cause an injury too severe for the prey to try and escape. Lions are ambush predators after all, and poorly suited to a long drawn out chase.
The cubs, though, are aiming too high and they’re too busy literally bouncing off the buffalo’s rear end to pay attention to what the lioness is trying to show them. It’s almost as if they’re distracted by its tail.
Hunting School
Christof said that this training lesson “went on until sunset”, and that they had kept “the buffalo alive for about an hour when we left, so we weren’t sure how long” the lesson continued for.
It was surely a terrifying and painful time for the young buffalo but, as Christof said, it’s crucial “for the predators to get protein and gain energy”. It’s equally important for the cubs to learn this lesson so that they can better survive in the future, when there’ll be no other adults to hunt for them.