Lion economics

We found the lions pretty easily on Thursday as they were basking in the sun. The male is called Mufasa and the female is called Scar. The male has a very full mane that goes right down his front and onto his back. He has no scars on his face which indicates that he has never had to fight other dominant males for his food. So he is very much a pretty boy. And he knows it, I suspect.

When I first arrived at the reserve, I was surprised to learn that there were only two lions here. When I went on a safari holiday in Tanzania ten years ago, it was not unusual to see prides of around 20 lions lying together under a tree. But there are no fences there and nature is very much left to take its own course.

On the reserve, however, there are fences and the animals therefore have to be managed in a more proactive way - just like animals on a farm. All the animals have names and are known in a more personal way. Keeping lions is an expensive proposition when you consider what it takes to keep them fed. In the three weeks that I've been here, the herd of black wildebeest has gone from 26 down to 22. So you can imagine how many more would be required to keep a large pride of lions going. The number of different animals needs to be carefully balanced so there is enough prey for the lions but the land is not over-grazed.

Interestingly, the lions are kept in a separate section of the reserve from the buffalo. The buffalo were bred in the north of the country and are all disease-free, which means they were tested extensively for tuberculosis and foot-and-mouth disease, amongst other things. Disease-free buffalo command a premium price and the herd at Amakhala were bought by an external investor for the reserve. He is therefore anxious not to see his investment munched up by the lions, hence their separation.

In the area where the lions are kept, there were some workmen called in yesterday to cut down some bush and trees directly under the power lines. They need to be kept low in case there is a bush fire, thereby ensuring that flames don't reach the power lines. The workmen arrived on site, but had no intention of getting out of their vehicle until they were reassured that the lions were not close. So we were called over to do a check with the telemetry system to reassure them. I'm not sure that a lion would attack someone wielding a chain-saw, but they were highly motivated to get the job done as quickly as possible.

In the afternoon, we made our usual visit at the orphanage to make bead bangles with some of the local teenagers. The money that is paid to them is an important source of income to them and their families. They get paid R10 (around 1 pound) for each bangle made and they each make between 7 and 10 bangles per weekly session. That adds up to quite a sum each month and I am told that they could be earning more money than their parents who are doing manual labour. Moreover, the reserve pays them for the bangles made regardless of whether they are sold or not. The teenagers are therefore keen to turn up each week and make as many bangles as possible. Yesterday was pay day, so everyone was happy.