A Safari All Over Zambia - September 2013

[Kitsafari]

what a handsome fellow he is!

[Game Warden]

"Busangadude" is a great looking dude @@Safaridude...

[Safaridude]

An excerpt from a report from Busanga Bush Camp on Wilderness Safaris' website below ("Mr. Busanga" is Busangadude; "Barberton" must be a new nickname given to him):

 

The month of October had many exciting lion experiences for our guests. The big Busanga male lion, Mr Busanga, commonly known as Barberton, and his young mate had a tough time battling it out with the coalition of the Musanza Males in their quest to secure the Busanga territory. On several occasions, it looked like the young Musanza Males had taken over the Busanga Plains but to everyone’s surprise after a short exile from his territory, Barberton and his counterpart reappeared and kicked the two Musanza Males out of their territory.

[Kitsafari]

May Busangadude rule for a long while yet.

[Safaridude]

By the way, there are some outstanding sightings being reported from Nanzhila Plains, Kafue this year. It is good to see that the conservation efforts appear to be paying off...

 

https://www.facebook.com/NanzhilaPlainsSafariCamp

[Safaridude]

Has Busangadude left us?

 

http://www.wilderness-safaris.com/blog/posts/the-unfolding-mystery-of-the-busanga-lion-prides

[Kitsafari]

Has Busangadude left us?

 

http://www.wilderness-safaris.com/blog/posts/the-unfolding-mystery-of-the-busanga-lion-prides

Noooooooooo

[Kitsafari]

Busangadude is back! @@Safaridude.

so pleased with the news. good news brighten an otherwise very sad day.

Long may he live.

 

from the FB page of

 

Wilderness Safaris

17 hrs ·

Look who's home! Mr Busanga made his return to Shumba Camp a few days ago, strolling majestically across the plains in front of the deck, much to the delight of our guests having breakfast – which was quickly abandoned in favour of confirming this his identity up close. No other lion in our area quite matches his size!

He spent the day lazing in front of camp, scaring the puku and lechwe and doing his MGM pout for our guests, which was kind of him. That night was a noisy one as the Papyrus Pride, who must have picked up his scent, came ploughing and roaring through camp, restaking their claim on what they now consider their territory.

Many thanks to Laura Waite for this most welcome (and entertaining) update from the Kafue!

250 Likes9 Comments11 Shares

[madaboutcheetah]

How come they have some impressive Male Lions in Kafue? While in South Luangwa I haven't read or seen pictures of too many impressive males?

(I have not been to either) - so, I am asking from just observation. Thanks...

[ZaminOz]

I would think that terrain plays a part. The Busanga area being mostly open grassland the males there tend not to lose chunks of mane in thickets like they do more frequently in the Luangwa Valley. I have heard it said that there is a genetic difference between the Luangwa lions and the Kafue lions, but I am not convinced that there is... in my own totally unscientific mind ...

[Safaridude]

@@Kitsafari

 

Unbelievable!

 

@@madaboutcheetah

 

Some believe that altitude (and the associated cold weather) has a lot to do with mane development (makes sense). Kafue sits higher than Luangwa. You can get frost in Kafue but not in Luangwa.

 

The lions in Selous, Tsavo and West Africa (never a cold morning) all tend to have scraggly manes.

[Safaridude]

Here he is from six years ago:

 

 

 

 

[ZaminOz]

 

Some believe that altitude (and the associated cold weather) has a lot to do with mane development (makes sense). Kafue sits higher than Luangwa. You can get frost in Kafue but not in Luangwa.

 

The lions in Selous, Tsavo and West Africa (never a cold morning) all tend to have scraggly manes.

I can understand that.

[Sangeeta]

Oooh, @@Safaridude, I remember that last photo so well, though I must say our man looks just as wonderful even now.

 

@@Kitsafari - Kit, thanks so much for posting the update. Made my day! We'd just been talking about him again, haha. What a lion. A very good thing he wasn't at Shumba when Jane & I stopped there for lunch last year - no power on earth could have stopped me from hugging this guy - he is such a character! Wonder where he's been lurking this past wet season and what he's been up to...

Edited August 11, 2015 by Sangeeta

[SafariChick]

@@Sangeeta aw he's such a beauty but I think I would have stopped you from hugging him! @@Kitsafari so great to see him again, thank you for sharing that! @@Safaridude thanks for sharing the wonderful photos from six years ago. How old must he be by now?

[KaingU Lodge]

How come they have some impressive Male Lions in Kafue? While in South Luangwa I haven't read or seen pictures of too many impressive males?

(I have not been to either) - so, I am asking from just observation. Thanks...

 

Without trying to sound like a Texan (and without wanting to offend Texans) EVERYTHING is big in the Kafue. In all seriousness, our elephants - to name one example - are much larger than in South Luangwa (okay, so is their attitude).

 

One of our guides (JohnD Muleka) who worked Busanga for the last 6 years + saw a male lion on our 'pools loop' last week that he reckoned was as big if not bigger than Mr Busanga. Sadly he only had a phone with him. This is in the area opposite us which is completely unexplored (in tourism terms). The Kafue is full of surprises.

 

Hopefully one of us gets pictures one day.

[Safaridude]

@@SafariChick

 

He has to be at about 13 or 14!

[Safaridude]

@@KaingU Lodge

 

John D is pictured on page 4 of this thread. Please say hello for me.

[Kitsafari]

@@SafariChick

 

He has to be at about 13 or 14!

 

@@Safaridude he's still looking dashing and ages gracefully and handsomely, quite like What Hans Solo is doing I've got to get myself to see him in person, but safely in a vehicle.

[KaingU Lodge]

@@KaingU Lodge

 

John D is pictured on page 4 of this thread. Please say hello for me.

 

Will do! He is on a few days break at the mo'.

 

The goatee is still grey, he is ageing like Mr Busanga - still powerful and knows lots of tricks to keep the younger guns at bay.

[egilio]

 

How come they have some impressive Male Lions in Kafue? While in South Luangwa I haven't read or seen pictures of too many impressive males?

(I have not been to either) - so, I am asking from just observation. Thanks...

 

Without trying to sound like a Texan (and without wanting to offend Texans) EVERYTHING is big in the Kafue. In all seriousness, our elephants - to name one example - are much larger than in South Luangwa (okay, so is their attitude).

 

One of our guides (JohnD Muleka) who worked Busanga for the last 6 years + saw a male lion on our 'pools loop' last week that he reckoned was as big if not bigger than Mr Busanga. Sadly he only had a phone with him. This is in the area opposite us which is completely unexplored (in tourism terms). The Kafue is full of surprises.

 

Hopefully one of us gets pictures one day.

 

 

One of my colleagues saw a picture from a scout 3 years ago of a lion in the South of Kafue that looked like he had a fuller mane than Busanga dude too. Indeed Kafue is full of surprises as so much area is unexplored!

[Sangeeta]

 

 

How come they have some impressive Male Lions in Kafue? While in South Luangwa I haven't read or seen pictures of too many impressive males?

(I have not been to either) - so, I am asking from just observation. Thanks...

 

Without trying to sound like a Texan (and without wanting to offend Texans) EVERYTHING is big in the Kafue. In all seriousness, our elephants - to name one example - are much larger than in South Luangwa (okay, so is their attitude).

 

One of our guides (JohnD Muleka) who worked Busanga for the last 6 years + saw a male lion on our 'pools loop' last week that he reckoned was as big if not bigger than Mr Busanga. Sadly he only had a phone with him. This is in the area opposite us which is completely unexplored (in tourism terms). The Kafue is full of surprises.

 

Hopefully one of us gets pictures one day.

 

 

One of my colleagues saw a picture from a scout 3 years ago of a lion in the South of Kafue that looked like he had a fuller mane than Busanga dude too. Indeed Kafue is full of surprises as so much area is unexplored!

 

 

@@SafariChick talked about this in her report but when we were at Musekese and coming back from the Busanga Plains (sadly without having seen the beautiful Dude), just like that @Tyrone spotted 1 brand new adult lioness and 2 juvenile lions eating a hippo in the rain. Not that many parks left in Africa where hitherto unknown lions can pop out of the blue any more. The Kafue is indeed full of surprises and I wish there were some way to get people as excited about it as SLNP. I loved the park - it isn't a flashy place but it has so much depth.

[ZaminOz]

 

 

 

How come they have some impressive Male Lions in Kafue? While in South Luangwa I haven't read or seen pictures of too many impressive males?

(I have not been to either) - so, I am asking from just observation. Thanks...

 

Without trying to sound like a Texan (and without wanting to offend Texans) EVERYTHING is big in the Kafue. In all seriousness, our elephants - to name one example - are much larger than in South Luangwa (okay, so is their attitude).

 

One of our guides (JohnD Muleka) who worked Busanga for the last 6 years + saw a male lion on our 'pools loop' last week that he reckoned was as big if not bigger than Mr Busanga. Sadly he only had a phone with him. This is in the area opposite us which is completely unexplored (in tourism terms). The Kafue is full of surprises.

 

Hopefully one of us gets pictures one day.

 

 

One of my colleagues saw a picture from a scout 3 years ago of a lion in the South of Kafue that looked like he had a fuller mane than Busanga dude too. Indeed Kafue is full of surprises as so much area is unexplored!

 

 

@@SafariChick talked about this in her report but when we were at Musekese and coming back from the Busanga Plains (sadly without having seen the beautiful Dude), just like that @Tyrone spotted 1 brand new adult lioness and 2 juvenile lions eating a hippo in the rain. Not that many parks left in Africa where hitherto unknown lions can pop out of the blue any more. The Kafue is indeed full of surprises and I wish there were some way to get people as excited about it as SLNP. I loved the park - it isn't a flashy place but it has so much depth.

 

I think now that Proflight has started regular scheduled flights to Kafue, things will pick up and hopefully new areas of the park will open up too.