04/22/2023
The Risasi family is one of the few whose pedigree we can trace back to 2001, when we observed her great-grandmother Resy in the reserve. The pedigree may be much richer, but we can trace it only through females. If the female raised only sons, it is difficult to know how many of them left offspring and contributed to the bloodline. Like her ancestors, Risasi spends a significant amount of time in Tanzania. However, Risasi, like her brothers, were the first members of the family to move to the Mara Triangle (Mara Conservancy). Our long-term observations in the Mara Triangle showed that its territory is capable of having up to 10 individual cheetahs during the year, including at least one male coalition. The gradual disappearance of the Lemai Boys coalition from the Triangle by 2021, provided a good opportunity for the two Risasi brothers, Ruka and Rafiki, to settle in the Mara Conservancy. But since they also began to often leave for Tanzania, new males began to appear one after another on the territory of the Triangle: Oloti, Mpaka, and a couple of new very shy males. Of the 4 cubs born in May 2022 in the Triangle, Risasi has unfortunately lost two females and continues to raise two sons. It is very beneficial for young males to be in partnership and learn to work together. Whenever possible, the mother teaches the future coalition how to hunt and how to behave in the presence of powerful predators. Cubs can hone their hunting skills while playing together with the female and with each other, as well as on the fawns of antelopes. The sooner the cubs learn to successfully kill prey and respond adequately to the presence of predators (lions and hyenas), the higher their chances of survival will be. Mara Triangle
