This photo belongs to Chris McLennan, from here.
Two prides. One territory. A battle to remember.
Once there was a female lion. She was born and raised in the Isaiya pride. Later she had two cubs of her own, males who spent every second together. The pride was happy, calm, well-fed, and thriving. Everything was going great. Until one day, when that all changed. The Lead male was shot and killed by a trophy hunter, and mounted on the man's wall. The female lions were left with no protector, and one by one, eventually died out from age. With no males to mate with, there were no cubs except for those two brothers.
They were forced to move on. They kept their home turf, so they wouldn't have to take over a pride through a gruesome fight. They decided they would wait for their muscles to grow, their spirits to rise, their strength to unite. The brothers lived alone on this land, living off small mammals and by chasing off small groups of hyenas from old carcasses.
One day a lone female came.
The brothers thought that this was great, finally they could make a pride of their own which would grow and flourish. They didn't know that this female would unwillingly end their friendship.
Bearing cubs in the lion world is an honour. Every male lion's goal in life is to father as many cubs as possible, and pass on their own bloodline. So, which brother would father the first cubs of the pride?
They fought, argued, reasoned, and nothing worked. They couldn't decide, so they just thought that they'll think of something eventually. But one of the brothers was eager to have the pride be of his own bloodline, so he wandered off with the female and the other lion didn't know.
Until he noticed her swelling belly.
In blind rage, he killed the female before she could have her litter and confronted his brother. They battled each other, be neither won or lost, for they had lived together their whole lives, one was no stronger than the other.
Angry, they decided they can each make their own prides. They split up without so much as a last glance, and moved on.
Today they are adults with their own lions in their prides, neighbours and with only a line of scarce dried trees marked as the borderline.
Will the prides be forever at each other's throats? Will they join the two prides together? Will they just ignore each other until the end of time? Whichever way, it will certainly be a battle to remember.