Predation Upon Large Herbivores by Lions

Lions are amongst the most capable predators of large herbivores. Macropredation in lions is an important issue with ecological bearings. Lions prey upon several big animals.

The first example that comes to mind is that of buffalo. The Cape Buffalo is considered by many to be amongst the most dangerous animals in the African bush and yet lions in many parts of Africa routinely prey upon these one-tonne animals. The modus operandi is to encircle the formidable herd and try and isolate vulnerable individuals. Next the big cats proceed to force their prey into an organized trap laid out for them. Each individual lioness plays a specific role in the hunt, often consistent throughout the animal's lifetime. Still it's never easy to bring down the buffalo and despite the help of male lions, it's still quite a risky undertaking for the predator. The islands of Okavango, Botswana bear witness to the perish of many a lions at the hoofs and horns of the formidable buffalo.

And this is not all. Lions in Etosha National Park in Namibia have been observed hunting black rhinos. There are reports of hippo kills from certain parts of Africa and even video recordings of lions actively hunting calves and adults of elephants in Savuti, north Botswana. What drives these great cats to hunt such mammoth creatures? Is it simply depletion of their natural prey in that locality, or is it something more sinister... for many believe that like the buffalo-killing lions of Duba Plains in Okavango, these Savuti Lions have become specialists at tackling their huge foes. Certainly a very interesting and disturbing trend, one that requires further study and understanding.

Borne out of necessity or desire - macropredation is definitely an established trend in certain populations of African Lions. And it is already demonstrating biological effects. What impact will that have on those grasslands and individual population groups of various species in the long run, remains to be seen.

The author is a blogger about cats and an expert on macropredation