About the Pantaleon Lion Cubs
If you remember, my award-winning Pantaleon Lion painting, you will be happy to hear he, real name Masamba, fathered lion cubs at the amazing conservatory Zoo named Caribbean Gardens in Naples, Florida. During my visit about 10 yrs ago, I photographed the Mother (Shani) and Father (Masamba). During my visit, one of the zookeepers had mentioned they had been trying to get them to mate.
Please know that Caribbean Gardens is a big advocate for protecting this vulnerable species. You can read more about it here: https://www.napleszoo.org/african-lion.
One week ago today, just about a week before the cub’s 2nd birthday, I made it back and photographed the now juvenile lion cubs they’ve had. Although I wish I’d seen them when they were cubs, I was happy to photograph their 3 male cubs. According to the Naples Daily News article, the cubs are named Karoo, Ruaha, and Chobe after African national parks. Claims state that the Mother, Shani, was 13 at the time and they had waited 6 years for her to mate and had all but given up when she finally became pregnant.
As you can see, one being fed by the female was more gentle, but the one in the middle that the man was feeding seemed more ferocious over its food.
The mother and father were not out. As I was leaving, I inquired about the mother and father, but they stated they do not let them out together. I’m not sure of the reason, but I was a little sad, especially not to see the beautiful father I’d photographed.
Here are the juvenile cubs after eating. They were pacing a bit wanting back in their shelter, but finally settled and relaxed.
Obviously, I’d like to paint them again, but not sure how much of a demand there is for the juvenile male lion that hasn’t grown its’ full mane yet. I feel they are going to be stunning soon when their manes fill in and I look forward to painting them at that time. Meanwhile, I plan to return sooner next time and hope to photograph Mom and Dad again. If you enjoyed this post, please feel free to share.
It took Mom 6 yrs to get pregnant. It’s a great reminder to never give up on anything. If you would like to stay in touch, I send updates about once or twice a month. Also, I dislike spam and promise to never sell or share your information. You can subscribe here: https://tinasfinearts.com/news/subscribe-now/.
Wishing you all the best in life,
Tina Adams Stoffel
