There is tremendous excitement around the discovery of the first white lion to be born in the Timbavati Nature Reserve in over a decade, and our guests were lucky enough to witness this special scene themselves over the past couple of days.
The three-month-old male cub was born to one of the Giraffe Pride lionesses, and is presently being stashed in a den site on the banks of the Zebenine Riverbed in the western part of our traversing area.
All lion cubs face a perilous first year of life, with high mortality rates – irrespective of the colour of their coat. The Giraffe Pride has not had the best of luck of late, with only one of their nine most recent cubs surviving beyond six months old.
Being born with a seemingly inherent disadvantage, this young white lion has a challenging path ahead. Enough wild white lions have survived to adulthood to teach us that it can be done. Luck is needed to avoid detection by other predators, but even more than that, this white cub and its siblings need their father and uncles – the Birmingham Breakaway males – to keep their territory safe and free of rival males; this may be the most serious risk to their survival with the arrival of the three impressive Black Dam male lions in the Giraffe Pride territory.
A Birmingham Breakaway male lion scent-marking a tree to reinforce territorial boundaries in the Timbavati. This is a powerful act that defines dominance and safeguards the Giraffe Pride’s future.
We need to be hyper vigilant in limiting our intrusion into their lives to avoid any undue pressure on mother and cubs.
This is done by following strict protocols around the den site; no viewing of the cubs in the absence of the mother; no tracking the cubs on foot; no viewing the cubs after dark when danger lurks; and most importantly, not impinging on the privilege to be able to watch such a special individual grow up by only focusing our attention on him. The Timbavati is home to several lion prides each with their own unique stories and attributes, and we won’t forget to equally share in their lives with our guests over the coming months. Yes, it is a treat and privilege to see a white lion in the wild, but we will also do so in a way that allows it to live as free and natural a life as possible.
We look forward to following his journey, and live in eternal hope that more white lion cubs will be added to our healthy lion population in this part of the Greater Kruger.
