Lew i lwica

These stunning pictures show a vicious lover???s tiff ??" as a female lion takes a swipe at her male friend. Wildlife photographer Gonnie Myburgh captured the scene in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in South Africa. Gonnie says of her newly revealed 2017 images: ??sThe male did something right or very wrong. The female???s reaction was very aggressive. ??sIn the wild lions breed generally no more than once every two years. Females are receptive to mating for three to five days within a widely variable reproductive cycle. During this time a pair generally mates every 20 ??" 30 minutes with up to 50 copulations per 24 hours. The longer the mating period, the longer the intervals between copulations become. ??sOn this specific afternoon when I saw this couple, I was driving alone and no other vehicles were in the vicinity. I knew they were mating because we saw the couple the previous day. They were just resting between two copulations. I stopped, got my camera ready and waited. My patience paid off! The best interaction, for me, can be seen after the copulation. The female reacted very aggressively and gave the male lion a huge smack. This is passionate love for lions at its best! However, this behaviour is not what can be expected after each copulation. After the action the male steps aside. He has to be careful because the female may react very aggressively.??? Where: Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa When: 31 Oct 2017 Credit: Gonnie Myburgh/Cover-Images.com **Editorial use only**