db cooper

Ok, these next two pics require some imagination and perhaps a bit of squinting of the eyes but I think my hypothesis is sound. Let me know what you think. This lion runs a series of canyons and washes and this tortoise was found on a small ridge where I had previously found a javelina and 3x3 whitetail whacked by the big guy. One pic shows the tortoise compared to my 1911, it is a good sized tortoise. If you look at the other pic, the close up, you will notice a puncture wound in the shell on the lower right side. Harder to see, on the lower left you will see a divot in the shell and on the upper left and right two other scars on the shell. I believe the lion tried to eat this tortoise but the shell was too wide for it to get its jaws around.

I like this pic because it shows the raw-boned, muscle and bone look of these killing machines.

Here is a good pic of the lion showing what it thinks of my hunting abilities. This pic was taken a few seconds before the pic above, where the lion looked in the camera. I suspect the flash attracted its attention and caused it to turn around. Lesson learned: Spend the extra cash for cameras with IR flashes.

Here's a cool pic. If you look carefully, you will notice that the lion put his face right into the camera. The flash whited out the pic but the triangle in the top center of the pic is an ear.

Personal experiance, backed by some book reading, has shown me that lions can and will come back around the same paths. My experiance with one lion in particular is that he will be in a certain canyon the third week of the month most every month. He will visit one specific tree in order to freshen up his sign post between 9 and midnight at leat one of those nights. Amazing how consistent he is and how consistently we miss each other. I would leave the camera out for a couple of months and watch for a pattern. If one develops, I would try to call when you suspect it is in that area. Just my humble two cents worth.

I've been after a particular lion for the last couple of years. Here is the best of about a dozen pics I have of it.