White lion cubs spotted near Umlani

The pride consists of 4 lionesses with 4 cubs, 2 of which are tawny and approximately 2 months older than the white lion cubs. The lionesses in this pride are particularly pale compared to other lionesses in the area. There were 4 cubs in the litter originally, 2 tawny and 2 white. Unfortunately the younger tawny cubs have disappeared recently which is unusual as people believe that white lions have a higher mortality rate than tawny lions. The white lion cubs are believed to be around 6 months old and seem to be particularly feisty. They were seen on a kill with another pride and the white lions were displayed aggression towards the other pride and towards their mother in order to get a mouthful!

It’s very interesting that the one lioness is the mother of one of the Timbavati males. This male fathered the 2 cubs from the Machattan pride that are currently on our property. This means that there is a 25% chance of white lions being born into the pride on our property!

Our guests were treated to a special sighting on the 30th September. Another white lion cub was spotted on a property next to Umlani. The cub is thought to belong to the Giraffe farm pride. This is good news for the Timbavati as we are seeing more and more white lions occurring naturally in this ar

For more, please see the Timbavati Nature Reserve blog