Lion

Sunday May 26, 2013

Asiatic Lion- present-day female, 163 kg, India (lives on border of Gir Protected Area)

A strong wind. It lifts enticing scents. The smells of cow. Pig. Feathery fat birds: chickens. Livestock. I lick my lips. Anticipation. It runs thick in the pride. Two lionesses. My sister and my cousin. They creep forward. Toward the Man dwellings. But there is something else out there. Something else.

Man. Dusk has fallen. Stars are bright. But Man stands guard in front of the pens. They defend their livestock. Their own food. We compete for the food. They round the meat up. We must fight for it. Pig tastes different from boar. It is tastier. More filling. Easier to catch. It is food. We need food. Man does not need it the way we do.

We wait in the brushes. One of the creatures come out. They dump delicious scents into a large container. The smells are interesting. Yet tainted with Man. As one. Most of the lionesses crawl forward. The cubs tag along. I make sure they are safe; behind me. I lean my ears back to make sure they are there.

The lionesses trot down the hill. I am not far behind. We instinctively crouch in the long grasses. Tense. Afraid. Taking big risks. We sniff at the big container. It is tall. It smells like Man. Disgusting. Repulsive. But there is something else that attracts us: blood.

Organs of slaughtered animals. Delicious meats. Intestines, stomach. The head. Man have no use for these. They leave it in these containers to rot. But we will scavenge the remains.

We surround the container like we surround prey. It is tall. There is a steep roof on top. I circle it. Inspect it. I don’t understand how meat would have gotten in there. But there is a crack. It is closed on all sides except for a meat scent. Meat scent escapes from the top. I rear unsteadily on hind legs. I am unbalanced, but the smell is stronger here. I nudge the weak side with my paw and it lifts. Startled I tumble back on the grasses. The lionesses scatter. But they know now.

We take turns. Watching the lid. Seeing if it will open. Desperation. It has driven us to search in Man’s backyard. My sister jumps onto the top and the meat scent streams out. But we can not find where it originates.

Suddenly something bright flashes above our heads. The cowardly lionesses dart away immediately. Into darkness. I back off, startled. I bare my teeth and I put my cubs behind me. I snarl at the light. I am not ready to give up my search for food.

Man sounds. Voices grow louder. Startled yells. My sister jumps off and runs to where I stand. I back away slowly. I wait for the Man to leave. But they do not. My mother ignores the commotion. She is focused on the container.

And then. Man appears. It holds a large long stick. I wonder if it is the killing stick. I inch into the darkness. My mother’s sister snarls at the Man and stays with my mother. Then Man puts the stick near his eye.

BOOM! It is unlike anything I have ever heard before. The sound is deafening. Earsplitting. It is loud and I jolt away in fear. Something has landed in the grass with superspeed between the elder lionesses and my sister and I. My mother roars. She scatters into the darkness. My tail flicks anxiously. I clench my male cub in the scruff with my teeth. My sister takes the female. We trot quickly away. But we will be back.

A little ways off I turn around. Mother and mother’s sister are determined to find food. They taste the air. Creep slowly back to the Man dwelling. The Man keeps watch for a while. He goes back into the dwelling. The brightness above the container remains. It shines and cuts into the shadows. As risk-taking animals we will go back for another chance. And another. Until we get the meat. There is no other way. The pride will be split up soon if we can’t feed ourselves. And we are a fairly small pride.

I do not want to risk my cubs. My sister drops the female and I drop the male. She turns back to join my mother and mother’s sister. Another lioness who shares my blood passes me as I head to where the males rest. Under a tree up the hill. Mate welcomes me with a small grunt. Mate’s brother pants. I lead my cubs to the males and watch on the outcropping.