On a recent early morning game in Hwange National Park we made a fantastic discovery of some tiny lion cubs that were being moved by their mothers down a road. Buli, our guide, informed us that the two lionesses had been seen mating with a male named Xanda some months back. Xanda is a son of Cecil the lion that has recently come into his prime, and the cubs seen here are thought to be the ‘grandcubs’ of the legendary Cecil. Written and filmed by: Graham Simmonds
Xanda holds a large swathe of Hwange and was recently seen chasing off two nomadic young males on his own.
He obviously took after Cecil the lion who held vast areas of Hwange during his reign and fought off many would-be challengers single-handedly, even when he was sometimes outnumbered three to one.
Guides from Hwange lodges had seen the cubs a week before when they numbered 10. During our sighting, we counted only eight.
We watched for a while as the cubs called to their mothers and the mothers back to the cubs in an effort to move them to a new location.
We left them be as they disappeared into thick bush, hopefully, to continue the legacy of Cecil.
To comment on this story: Download our app here - it's a troll-free safe place 🙂.
HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF AFRICA GEOGRAPHIC:
- Travel with us. Travel in Africa is about knowing when and where to go, and with whom. A few weeks too early / late and a few kilometres off course and you could miss the greatest show on Earth. And wouldn’t that be a pity? Browse our famous packages for experience-based safaris, search for our current special offers and check out our camps & lodges for the best prices.
- Subscribe to our FREE newsletter / download our FREE app to enjoy the following benefits.
