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Male lion watches a small cub on dry ground, South Luangwa
A male lion and cub — a tender moment in the dry season at Kaingo

Lions of South Luangwa

Lion prides near Kaingo Camp, South Luangwa National Park, Zambia — July 2025

First published: 22 Aug 2026

These images were among those I took on my July 2025 safari in South Luangwa National Park in Zambia, based at Kaingo Camp run by Shenton Safaris. The camp lies in a remote northern section of the park where the Luangwa River meanders through ebony groves and open plains.

The lions in this set belong to two prides that occupy this part of the park — a resident pride with young cubs and a second pride often seen near the camp's waterholes. Over several early morning and late afternoon drives we were able to watch cubs at play, mothers nursing and resting, and a relaxed male tolerating the curiosity of a cub. The dry-season light, dust, and weathered leadwood trees made for intimate, low-angle encounters.
A lioness standing near the sleeping members of the pride; late afternoon, Luwangwa.
A male lion watches as a small cub stalks toward himl
Three cubs getting under their mother's feet.
A lioness rests with the pride while her three small cubs explore around her.
Three young lion cubs explore near their mother, waiting to be fed.
Hungry cubs wrestling each other for access to the teats.
A young lion cub rests its paws on a weathered fallen tree in the South Luangwa savanna.
The cubs tab along as their mother strolls through the resting pride
Three lion cubs playing while a lioness rests in the background, her fur stained by the blood of the kill she has been feeding on.
A weary lioness rests in the dry grass while her cubs play and squabble nearby.
A cub playfully attacks its patient mother
A young lion cub challenges his mother to play.
A powerful young male lion; one of a pair in the pride.
Late afternoon: the older male lies resting calmly in the dry brush.
A young lion cub explores near a weathered tree trunk in the Zambian wilderness.
A pride of lions sleeps peacefully on the dry ground during a golden sunset in Zambia.