For #WorldLionDay, Desert Warriors: Lions of the Namib – A Film of Hope and Tragedy

In March 2015, I walked into the small chic bar in the Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp, located deep in the desert of the Skeleton Coast of Namibia, a place so remote you have to fly in to reach it. 

Sitting on a stool was a man looking rather pleased with himself.  He sipped on a glass of red wine and he wore a satisfied, albeit weary, smile on his face.  He was celebrating the end of a two-year journey. 

I too, was happy.  That morning I’d seen the famed Five Musketeers.  Five, two-year old male, deserted-adapted lions that were a symbol of Mother Nature’s quest for survival.  You see, there are only a 150 desert-adapted lions left and shortly before the birth of the Musketeers, the last adult male in hundreds of miles was killed, threatening the survival of these magnificent cats.  But the Musketeers, if they managed to beat the odds and live until adulthood and mate they could potential save the lions from extinction.  But that’s far easier said than done. 

The Namib desert is the oldest desert in the world and one of the most inhospitable environments on the planet.  Between lack of food, blinding fog banks and frequent sandstorms, temperature fluctuations that range from freezing cold to blazing hot, often in the same day, conflict with humans, and the day-to-day dangers that plague any wild animal, it would be a miracle if one, let alone all survived.  But somehow, they had. 

To see the lions in person was a thrill of a lifetime. 

The man was Will Steenkamp, one half of the husband and wife duo of Into Nature Productions, and he’d just spent two years filming the story of the Musketeers for a documentary and in 48 hours he’d leave the Namib desert to begin post production on the film that would later be named, Desert Warriors: Lions of the Namib airing tonight on the Smithsonian Channel at 8pm and 10pm ET.  It will be rebroadcast on August 14, at 9pm ET. 

[Please see below to read about a tragic recent update on the fate of the Five Musketeers]

I saw the film last week and the footage is spectacular.  It’s definitely worth the hour of your time. 

I asked Will to answer a few questions about the lions and the production.  See below…

How long did it take you to make the documentary? 

It took us almost 5 years, from concept till completion.  We spent more than two years following this special pride of lions in the desert. 

What inspired you to take on the story of the five Musketeers? 

Scientist Dr Philip Stander discovered a very unique phenomenon in the Namib desert – a cohort of five male cubs!  This has never been recorded before in the Namib.  With adult male lions vanishing at an alarming rate due to trophy hunting, poaching and also conflict with rural farmers, the survival of the 5 male cubs was crucial.  We realized that if we were able to follow the lives of this extraordinary cohort of male cubs, with a backdrop as striking as the Namib Desert, it would reveal a true and unique wildlife story that’s never been documented before! 

What was the most challenging aspect of capturing your remarkable footage? 

The desert landscape!  Not only is it an immense area, desert lions are known to have enormous home ranges.  One of the male lions we filmed covered an area the size of New Jersey!  We had to become desert nomads ourselves, living in our 4×4 Landcruiser, away from civilization for months on end.  Often we watched our lions walk away across a breathtaking, endless gravel plain and we couldn’t follow due to the sensitivity of the terrain.  This landscape is so sensitive to human impact – should we drive across one of these plains, our vehicle tracks would scar the landscape for decades to come.  We lived by strict rules not to harm the fauna and fauna, as much as the aesthetics of this remarkable place… It meant we would sometimes spent many days, sometimes up to a week, without any lions. 

The footage with the old female was heartbreaking.  It must have been devastating to watch.  How do you keep the balance between wanting to stay true to the circle of life and wanting to help?  It wasn’t easy.  As you can imagine,when you spend more than two years with one pride of lions you get really attached to the individuals – but it’s a one-sided relationship.  They are wild lions, in one of the last truly wild places on Earth, and we have to respect that.  We are just observers, documenting the rarely seen behaviour of a highly elusive cat.  As sad as it was to sit with a dying lioness and not being able to help her, there was also something beautiful about being part of a natural process, that in this day and age, seldom happens.  Trophy hunting, poaching and human-wildlife conflict kill most of our lions at too young an age, but this lioness died of natural causes, of old age… She had lived a remarkable life, she was an exceptionally strong and courageous lion, and we were there to document her last moments.. We were able to tell her story, which was a great privilege. 

What understanding, message, life lesson, or moral do you hope viewers of the film will come away with after seeing the film? 

On a personal level: Never underestimate the power of the pride.  At the end of the day, family is all we have.  Lions are essentially the only social cats on Earth, and when one spends time observing them, you learn how valuable their social bonds are- working together (as lions would co-operate during a hunt) and caring for each other (like a male would defend his pride).. Our film also shows that every lion has an individual character, a personality, with its own intimate story to tell.  We also hope that viewers will see the urgent need to stop Trophy hunting of lions, as we are losing them at a rapid pace.  We all need to do what we can to contribute to conserving their diminishing habitats. 

Any interesting/funny/crazy anecdotes you can share about the making of this film? 

The moment you think you understand lion behaviour, you are making the biggest mistake possible..!  We learn from the lions every day, and every day is different.. Filming lions is incredibly rewarding.  It can take weeks for something to happen, we wait many hours, many days with very little happening, lions conserve a lot of energy, spend a lot of time resting.  But then suddenly something incredible happens and it makes up for all the waiting..! 

What are you working on now? 

We just cannot stay away from the incredible Namib and the desert lions.  We’ve been assisting the BBC with their new flagship series “Planet Earth II” and have been spending a lot of time working with local authorities and the Desert Lion Trust on a Pilot Project to assist local communities in mitigating human-lion conflict.  We’ve started a Foundation for this, which keeps us very busy besides our filming. 

Where else can people see your work? 

In the USA, Smithsonian Channel has been a fantastic partner on two of our films – “Desert Warriors: Lions of the Namib” as well as “Turf War: Lions & Hippos”. 

Update: TRAGIC NEWS

While following up on the fate of the lions, I learned the painful news this morning that in June, one of the lions was killed by a bullet to the chest in a human-lion conflict.  In the last couple of days, three more of the lions who had ventured too close to cattle, were poisoned by villagers and their bodies and satellite collars burnt.  Only one lion survives.  The news is even more painful (if that’s possible) because Dr. Stander, the researcher who was studying them, saw that the human-lion conflicts were heating up and was just about to translocate the lions to an area of the desert where they would be safer.  Thankfully he’s moving the lone survivor now. 

THE LAST MUSKETEER Photo: Will Steenkamp

A Note from Will Steenkamp and his wife that I received this morning as they are in Namibia and rushing to where the survivor is to aid in the translocation. 

Susan, we have very little time to spare, but what I would like to add, is that Lianne and I are as shocked as the rest of the world.  We are saddened by this tragic event.  We’ve worked so hard, although that’s nothing compared to people like Dr Philip Stander, to get systems in place to address human-wildlife conflict.  What needs to be mentioned, is that the majority of the local community members in fact have shown tremendous patience and worked alongside us and Philip to set up a new programme called H.E.L.P (Human Elephant Lion Project) where we are actively busy with finding donations and funds to launch a rapid response team to address these unavoidable human-lion conflict situations.  We were so close to make this work (in fact a major re-location of the 4 Musketeers was just days away from happening), and this very unfortunate incident might overshadow what all the people on the ground (on government level as well) have been achieving so far. 

Especially on World Lion day, we hope that this is a wake up call for all people, that us humans need to stand together to help not only the lions, but those living with lions.  We encroach this planet, and just because the majority of us lives in cities (which used to be beautiful natural areas too, don’t forget) we cannot put full blame on people still living in rural areas.  We all have a right to live, whether it’s in New York or in a small village deep in the Namib desert.  So it comes down to us finding ways to avoid this kind of conflict.  The harsh reality is, it will never go away.  So we need to develop, through trial and error, and more tests, to keep developing systems to address this. 

With the H.E.L.P project (a co-operative venture between the Desert Lion Conservation Foundation (www.desertlion.org), the Desert Lion Trust (www.desertlion.info), the Desert Elephant Project (www.desertelephantconservation.org), the IRDNC (www.irdnc.org.na) and the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism we aim to make a real and actual difference with real pro-active management and actions.  The H.E.L.P project will be officially launched early November (hoping we raise enough funds).  In the short run, Lianne and I have already donated a year’s salary, satellite phone and basic camping gear for the first lion guardian in that area, and together with the Desert Lion Trust and organisations such as TOSCO (www.tosco.org) he is actively assisting local farmers avoiding more conflict. 

What happened over the last couple of days was a very unfortunate incident, and sadly far away from the one village that had been so affected by the Musketeers over the last couple of months.  It’s an isolated incident and we do believe, as sad and tragic as this is, we will use the death of these Musketeers as a catalyst to get going with a crucial project to keep lions and people safe…! 

I loved the trailer and had to forward it to my husband.  My little brother and I used to wake up pretty early most mornings to watch things like the big cat dairies, so we’re we can’t wait to see this documentary! 

So sad to hear about the lions! 
Trophy hunting and poaching is terrible.  There is no need for this.  Humans are using animals as they wish without concern for them.  Where is the respect for other living creatures? 
Beautiful pictures! 

It’s tragic what happened to these lions but they were not the victims of poaching or trophy hunting.  They were killed as a result of human-lion conflict which typically means a lion has threatened a human or a human’s livestock and is killed.  One was shot, the other three were poisoned and burned.  Sad story nonetheless. 

Oh, actually I knew they weren’t victims of poaching or trophy hunting.  I was just mentioning it because your post mentioned these things happen and I really hate that.  How horrible though that they were poisoned and burned!  How can people do this? 

It’s a complicated situation.  If you’re only means of survival is your livestock and you’re very poor, a lion in your midst is the enemy.  I’m assuming they tried to burn the bodies after they saw they were collared meaning they were being monitored by researchers and probably tied to government support, but I don’t know that for sure.  It’s just all so sad. 

yes, absolutely.  As I said in my story, they were only days away from translocating the lions elsewhere but were too late.  Another reason it was so tragic.  Tullamore, the surviving lion, was moved shortly thereafter and from what I’ve heard is doing well. 

I was initially so happy reading your post and then suddenly saddened by the news.  Especially since the lions were only days away from being relocated…heartbreaking.  Having just returned from a safari in Kenya where I saw only two mature male lions, somehow makes it even sadder.  I think many people here in the states are unaware of the constant loss of these majestic animals.  Articles and posts like yours, and documentaries so helpful and necessary to educate all of us.  Thank you. 

It must have been an honor to live such a remarkable life telling a tale of lions living in desert.  It just makes me think how mankind evolves on one side in the field of technology and science; while on the other side, does wonders living with lions filming their every move to keep the humanity alive.  Thank you so much for sharing your experience with the world. 

Hi Paras –
I wish I had lived with the lions, but alas, I only spent a short while with them.  I did however have an opportunity to meet Dr. Stander who spent over 25 years ( and still lives) in Namibia researching the lions, and the Into Nature producers who created the documentary after following Dr. Stander and the lions for over two years. 

You were lucky to have had such a wonderful opportunity and I hope Dr. Stander is nice person too.  If I ever buy a camera for myself, it will one of those you have mentioned in your about page.  Thank you! 

Humans think the earth and everything in it made only for him/her.  All these cruelty not only happens to wild animals..tamed animals are also suffering a lot both big and small. 
Let’s hope this all will end and humans and animals will live in a harmony soon ( fingers crossed). 

Oh, Susan, thanks so much for this story and reminder of the documentary.  Tears.  How tragic and disastrous it is that these magnificent animals are losing their habitat and becoming extinct.  Human-animal conflict is a huge issue and programs need to be funded and addressed far more aggressively.  It’s easy to say humans should stay out of areas where there are wild animals, but human-animal conflict has occurred since there have been humans and animals on the planet.  It’s just that in the past there were more animals, so it wasn’t seen as “tragic”.  There is an excellent study on the problem found here: “Human-wildlife conflict in Africa” http://www.fao.org/docrep/012/i1048e/i1048e00.htm

This is heart-rending.  I didn’t realize it was World Lion Day–I wrote today about a sad circus lion. 
We are an invasive species on the planet.  We need to leave wild places wild and to restrict ourselves a little–not just in Africa but also–especially–in the U.S. and Europe, where a lot of the encroachment is about individual desire for space and cheap land for giant lawns, rather than a struggle for survival.