Lioness SF010 “Steph”

On the evening of same day that male SM009 was collared, a female was collared from the from the eastern end of San Pan, as part of a group of four lioness. After darting the vet immediately recognized that she was quite newly pregnant. She gave birth a few weeks later hiding the new cubs, and soon mixed her cubs with another females of a very similar age. Milk feeding was shared, and as such it was never determined how many, or of what gender were her cubs. Between the two lioness, three male and two female cubs were raised until the collars were removed two and a half years later. SM010 was always shy of the vehicle, but I was able to approach the cubs and other lioness quite easily. Adult females were constantly joining and leaving the group and group size varied between two and five adult females of a total of seven distinct individual adults during observations.

SF010’s ranging behaviour, daily distance moved were otherwise very similar to that of other resident lioness studied.