Two male lions had recently moved into this area of the Okavango Delta in Botswana after fighting between older males caused mass displacement.
With the throne empty, two brothers looked to reclaim it. The challenge was that, in order to become king, all males in the area had to be pushed out or killed. Every cub would be slaughtered. Lionesses guard their kin with their lives, and fighting these males was inevitable. The males had to establish their bloodline, and the females had to protect their own.
On this day, we were actively tracking the pride (lionesses and cubs) when we noticed male paw prints following them as well. The pride successfully evaded the males (and us), but we found the usurpers as they caught a whiff of a herd of sable antelope. We then had the unbelievable opportunity to watch them actively stalk, corner, and ultimately miss the herd during a late-morning hunt. The males would go hungry. The cubs would live another day.
On The Prowl is a piece that tells more of a story than merely that of a predator looking for breakfast. This shot was taken as one male pushed the herd of sable toward the other. While the hunting effort was not fruitful, the event is cemented in my mind.
By far the most surreal experience of my life.
