Star letter

Lioness spotted

Congratulations again on the award – is there a better travel magazine – you should win every year! We always get a lift when we see your gorgeous and informative magazine in our post box. We loved the photograph from

Michael Poliza [issue 203/February 2020; pictured above] but couldn’t help noticing that it shows a lioness sandwiched between the two young males.

The clue to the sex of the individuals in this case is the sprouting of longer hair on the chest of the lion in the foreground – and the lion bringing up the rear – plus the central tuft of hair on the forehead and the beginning of whisker chops of long hair on the cheeks of the males.

By comparison you can see that the lioness in the middle does not have any sign of a pending mane. They are obviously pride mates – and may all be young as the lioness has very “clean” ears (older lions and lionesses tend to have cuts and notches on their ears that accumulate over time). This could be a group of sub-adults who are either still part of a pride or they may even have been pushed out at the time of a take-over by new pride males, which is a common occurrence during the upheaval within the pride structure.

They look in good physical condition. And I am sure the long running Serengeti Lion Project would know exactly who these lions are. Each lion has a unique pattern of whisker spots (like a human fingerprint) that the researchers record photographically. [The next time] Angie and I will be in the Serengeti, we will carry a copy of Wanderlust with us so we can identify these lions if we happen to see them.

Jonathan and Angela Scott, via email

fromtheroad@wanderlust.co.uk