Lions, Donkeys and Long Grass: Lions in Limpopo
Spring 1907 was not a great time to be a donkey in northwestern South Africa. The discovery of gold in the area, then known as the Zoutpansberg, had brought miners and mining companies up to the remote subtropical region, and the beast-of-burden of choice for the transport riders and merchants working in the area was donkeys. Donkeys need less food than horses and do more with it, as well as being less prone to illness (they still do better with good food and decent veterinary care, though). Being a desert-adapted species descended from the African wild ass (Equus africanus), they are also pretty heat-resistant and built for hot climates.
They are also, apparently, delicious to lions. The Grocott’s of 13 October 1907 reported that several transport-riders and their donkeys had been attacked by lions in the Klein Letaba region, which is neat present-day Giyani, about 100km from the Kruger National Park and the Mozambican border. A Mr Grobbelaar, outspanning one night, heard “a noise as of a donkey falling, and taking a lantern to see what was the matter, he found a lion standing over the donkey.” The lion made a move towards Mr Grobbelaar, possibly deciding he would be a tenderer morsel, and Grobbelaar, who had no gun, quickly moved off. In the morning, he found that lions had killed four of his donkeys and injured two. Several mines in the area had also lost many donkeys to hunting lions.
Peeved, Grobbelaar decided to track down the lions. He summoned a friend, Mr Matthewman, and several beaters from nearby villages, and eventually tracked the lions down to thick grass and reeds on the banks of the Letaba River. The local men decided that because the lion had not bothered them they would not bother the lion, opted out at this point, as did Mr Matthewman. Grobbelaar found himself with no backup and, since he was armed with a shotgun that wouldn’t be much good if a lion attacked, he too decided to try his luck another day. The Grocott’s did not report whether he had success then. The lion is one of the Big Five, a list of African animals made up by 19th-century hunters who ranked them by the amount of danger they posed if hunted on foot. (Other members of this elite group include leopards, elephants, rhino and Cape buffalo, all of which can put quite a dent in you if you rub them the wrong way. So it’s best to leave them alone.)
Today, lions are mostly only found in protected areas. The complex of wildlife reserves in eastern Limpopo, KZN and Mpumalanga, including the Kruger, Blyde River Canyon, Timbavati (home of white lions) and Mala Mala, still have populations of wild lions, and so does Mozambique’s Parcue Nacional de Limpopo. These populations are, however, threatened by poaching for the illegal trade in wildlife parts.
For a glimpse of lions closer than the Kruger, try Addo Elephant National Park, which, like many SANParks parks, offers special reduced rates for South African citizens if you take your ID with you.
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