THE LIONS OF NGORONGORO

It was 6:30 am. The magical African dawn was breaking on the horizon – we were on the rim of the Ngorongoro crater where we had halted briefly, before descending to the floor. 

Standing on the edge and looking down inside the rim of the crater, the teeming wildlife dissolved in a misty haze was a spectacular and unforgettable sight. The diffused light and dancing mist inside the caldera were magical.

The Ngorongoro Crater is amongst the most spectacular destinations on Earth, born over two million years ago. It is the largest extinct volcano on the planet. With a diameter of about 22kms it is the worlds largest Caldera. It is also the home of some of the world’s most exotic wildlife which include the big five of Africa and some rare species of birds.

But this spectacular crater is also home to the world’s most ferocious and powerful lions. The crater lions are different from all other lions I’ve seen (in the Serengeti or savanna plains). Numbering over a hundred these animals have been living on the floor of the extinct volcano for hundreds of years. The floor descends over 600 meters from the rim of the crater. The animals and lions of the crater do not migrate and these ‘captive’ population of lions are, according to some scientists and environmentalists, believed to have developed aberrations and other features that scientists attribute to inbreeding. And if so, one of these could be their aggressive and explosive behavior, far from the lazy sleepy lions of Africa.

These are the magnificent black-maned lions – thick maned and powerfully built these handsome lions look larger and more formidable than their cousins on the Serengeti plains. There are over 130 lions in this small area – the highest density of predators to be found anywhere.

Highly territorial the lions move in prides – thunderous roars re-verberating the Ngorngoro caldera shatter the silence at short intervals throughout the day – indicating that one pride has inadvertently run into another.

We witnessed two such small skirmishes on our way to the elephant point where we were headed.

To me the Ngorongoro crater also holds one of the most bloodcurdling and awesome experience of my life!

Zobe, my Jeep driver and friend of many years is also one of the finest trackers I have known. That morning we were looking to film a newly born baby elephant. The 670m descent down to the crater floor surrounded by the walls of the caldera is like climbing down to the center of the earth.

The crater floor has Impala, Antilope and roughly over 30-40 thousand animals. Zebra and wilderbeest dominate. The other species include the leopard, cheetah, hartebeest, hyena, elands and many others including the rare black rhinos and hippos and many hundreds of species of birds unique to the crater and found nowhere in the Serengeti.  The lakes also support a large population of flamingoes.

Soon we were trvelling off road, our battered land cruiser ploughing a path through the golden grasslands and scrubs, heading towards a cluster of Acacia trees. It was here that Zobe had seen the mother elephant in labour 24 hours before standing in a clearing.

Fully aware of the power of a nervous and protective elephant we stopped a safe distance away. The mother elephant was tending to its newly born which was making efforts to stand up. The cow on its knees was attempting to raise it, using its tusks and trunk in the gentlest way. It was an emotional experience for all of us.

Wary of our presence the mother elephant mock charged us twice but soon settled down when it realized that we were no threat and ignored us. Having acquired this confidence we moved a little closer to the Acacia trees and continued filming.

Suddenly a group of Impalas disturbed by some movement shot into the clearing across our jeep and headed for the Acacia thicket. Our forest guard ‘Askari’ looked through his binoculars traceing back the path of Impalas.

He spotted some movement (30 metres away) in the grass along the path the impala had taken.

Strange sounds like little bleats could be heard. Zobe said it was probably a mother in the little group of Impalas that had prematurely dropped a baby while running away in shock frightened by the movement. The Impala herd had disappeared and was nowhere to be seen. There was no chance of the mother returning.

Abandoned and far from help the new born had no chance of survival. We waited.  For one hour nothing happened, nothing stirred. The elephant baby was up on its wobbly feet and the mother was happily nursing it. The crater floor was silent only the bleat of the baby Impala now weakening reached our ears.

Many thoughts were running through my head. Zobe was the first to break the silence and decided with the forest ranger that they should rescue the Impala baby. 

With momentary hesitation and after screening the area and clumps of grass, Zobe and the Askari moved on foot to retrieve the newly born. I too had got off the Jeep and they beckoned me to stay closer to the Jeep in case I was needed to drive.

Zobe was about 5 metres from the baby when we heard a shrill trumpet from the elephant. We turned around and saw the young mother elephant, both its ears held forward and its trunk held high sniffing the air, but it was looking beyond us. We turned around confident that the elephant was not disturbed by us.

Zobe once again scrutinized the area with his binoculars. The grass was still and nothing moved. With momentary hesitation he took another step forward… and all hell broke loose. Suddenly the most powerful and bloodcurdling growl shattered the stillness of the crater floor. The clump of golden savanna grass in front of us transformed into a sight that I will never forget…  it shook and came alive morphing into a huge living charging form – a vision I shall remember forever. The crater lion in full charge, the anger in his eyes the bristling mane and flattened ears and the cannonball speed. It looked larger than any lion I had seen.

It was a lion and he too was bidding time to get to the Impala baby. It was this stalking lion that had disturbed the herd of Impalas. It was the lion that the elephant had smelt.

The rumbling deep throated growl that never seemed to end followed the charging lion. Time and space froze… we knew nothing on earth could stop the charge of the most powerful predator defending his territory and food… we were the intruders - whatever our intentions.

Everything happened in slow motion and lasted only a few seconds. But a dozen parallel thoughts ran through my mind in those few seconds. All my life, past and present had replayed itself. It’s amazing how the mind escapes. I could actually anticipate and see myself going down under the force of the charging lion but there was no fear. Perhaps the power of that low frequency growl which rumbled through the forest had deadened and numbed all our senses. Only the eyes were registering the unfolding scenario.

Suddenly I was pushed from behind and nudged aside. As I regained my balance I saw the large bulk of the mother elephant go past followed by the most earth shattering trumpet. I saw the lion drop… and turn, halted in its track. Fearing for the safety of its baby and assuming the lion was charging its baby, the mother elephant had charged to meet the charging lion.

Zobe unfroze from his transfixed state and rushed to the Jeep. I was already at the wheel. We backed off. No words were spoken.

The alert young mother had saved the day for us all. We watched with deep gratitude in our hearts as she moved away and melted into the mist with her calf. The lion too had disappeared into the grass. We drove close to the newly born fawn… picked it up and wrapped it up in a warm jacket. We drove in silence to the game park hospital.

We had learnt a lesson….  perhaps the hardest way… never trespass on the territory of the super predator, never leave your jeep and never trust your eyes, especially when you are in the territory of the most powerful charging beast on earth – The Lion! Master predator and master of camouflage. Such is the supremacy of nature’s most powerfully designed creations.

The crater lions are faster, more powerful and more ferocious looking then all other lions.

Compassion is a part of our lives, but the jungle has its own rules and when in the wild that has to be respected.

The Ngorongoro is a must if you are in that part of the world. It is spectacular, awesome and a world with its own secrets and adventures but don’t try for an experience like mine!