In northeast Botswana, you’ll find Mombo Safari in Savute, a vast expanse of dry grassland in Chobe National Park. It is a well known place where prides of lions rule over herds of buffalo, elephants and leopards.
Savute is surrounded by a river that flows in only 5 years and dries up in 25 years. When the river is active, cheetahs, giraffes, zebras, gazelles, wild dogs, hyenas and many other animals large and small flock to the area. When the water dries up, the smaller animals move away, leaving all the larger predators struggling to survive.
Here, in this piece of the animal kingdom, it’s very similar to Game of Thrones. Although generations of lion kings and lion kings have ruled this modern Eden, there are still many other carnivores willing to kill each other to get to the top of the food chain.
Lion Queen Matsumi witnesses the brutal murder of her king. During a deadly night raid, Mmamotse, leader of a pack of savage hyenas, steals the throne. Like an invading rebel army, they spread fear and dread throughout Mombo. The lions retreat and flee with their cubs, only to regroup in the distance and plot revenge.
Matsumi has been moving now with the remnants of her backpack. Now in exile, she chooses to protect her children – the kingdom’s future king and queen – while biding time to reclaim her throne. She shares motherhood and babysitting responsibilities with her sister, but treads carefully – many dangers lurk.
One of them is Blue Eye, a ferocious male leopard that no one can trust. Matsumi’s hunch proved correct. One of her more adventurous cubs left the pack thanks to Blue Eyes, and soon met a tragic and cruel end.
Another leopard, the fierce and untouchable Pula, also made the difficult decision to retire from Blue Eyes. He’s her mate, and they even have a cub, Motshidi. Although Pula is a powerful potential ally, he knows he has killed his own cubs in the past. Like Matsumi the Lion King, Pura the Leopard King sacrificed her own safety to protect her cubs.
What is clear is that these large carnivores are very intelligent and fascinating to look at. You can’t keep your guard up for a minute. They have to learn quickly and quickly, adapt and take advantage of any situation that helps them survive.
As the river continues to rise, all the different groups of predators are squeezed closer together, stranded on an island that is quickly becoming a battleground. Of course, only the strongest types survive and win.
Directed by: Brad Bestelink
