Calvin In The Wild

28/12/2025

A single roar from one of the Black Dam males carries across the bush — a declaration of strength, territory, and unity among the coalition.

27/12/2025

The Avoca lionesses move with purpose, driving away a Black Dam male and reinforcing the rules of their domain.

27/12/2025

Scars tell the story of survival. Male lions reach their prime at about 5–8 years old, but few enjoy it for long. In the wild, most males live just over a decade, their lives shaped by competition, conflict, and resilience.

25/12/2025

Christmas in the wild looks a little different.
Hyena cubs feeding is a vital learning stage, strengthening jaws, social bonds, and survival skills — no decorations required. 🎄

24/12/2025

🎄 From all of us at Shumbalala Game Lodge…

As the year draws to a close and the bush hums with summer warmth, we want to pause and say thank you.

To all our wonderful guests — those who’ve visited us this year, and those planning their first (or next) stay — thank you for being part of the Shumbalala Game Lodge story. Your presence, your kindness, and your appreciation for the wild make what we do so meaningful.

This festive season, we’re feeling grateful — for golden mornings, for quiet moments, and for the shared joy of nature that connects us across continents.

🎁 Wishing you and your loved ones a peaceful Christmas and a happy new year.g.

📍Shumbalala Game Lodge, Thornybush Nature Reserve

22/12/2025

22/12/2025

Maluwane enjoying a delicacy of the Leopard world— a risky meal for most predators, but one leopards have mastered. By targeting the unprotected face and belly, they avoid the sharp quills entirely.

21/12/2025

The desert drinks through its skin

This is a thorny devil.
Rain and dew travel through tiny grooves between its scales, straight to its mouth.
In one of the driest places on Earth, water finds a way.

No rivers.
No mercy.
Just adaptation.

19/12/2025

18/12/2025

He came in fast and uncompromising, a new male sweeping the landscape clean, scattering the heirs of the old regime. Dark mane billowing, muscles coiled and ready, this was authority in motion. Charges like this are as much declaration as confrontation, a rite of passage that can leave males scarred, hardened, and forever changed. I was fortunate to follow this entire surge with a long lens, capturing the intensity in his eyes, the raw resolve that defines a lion in his prime.

Moments like this feel timeless. But the reality behind the drama is anything but eternal. Lions have lost over 90% of their historic range, their numbers fractured into isolated strongholds under mounting human pressure. When dominant males are removed, whether through conflict or trophy hunting, entire pride structures unravel, and genetic futures are diminished. These cats need space. Space to patrol, to clash, to raise their young, and to endure. Protecting lions means protecting the wild landscapes that allow moments like this to exist at all.

Today is the final day of our conservation fundraiser. This portrait, along with six others, is available as a limited-edition fine art print, with 100% of proceeds supporting Great Plains Foundation and vital initiatives working to secure a future for Africa’s big cats.

If you’ve been considering a print, now is the moment: https://greatplainsfoundation.com/wildlife-conservation-festive-fundraiser

18/12/2025