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Sabi and Shaka are sisters born to their mother the late Sophia in 2013
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Jasiri and Nuru are sisters born to their mother Joy in 2013, they share an enclosure with Sabi and Shaka
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The four white lionesses live happily together in a little pride since the loss of the Manzi the male lion who headed up the pride.
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These beautiful girls spend most of their time relaxing wherever it's warmest. Be that indoors in winter or outside in the sun during summer
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The white colouration of the pride is caused by a genetic mutation called leucism, they are not a different sub-species to African lions, they just happen to be white
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This pride demonstrate on a daily basis just how much love there is within a family pride, the bonds between them is clear to see
The Sanctuary’s white lions were all off-spring of Joy and Sophia, two white lionesses who came to the Sanctuary in 2012 to join Themba – the male resident white lion.
The two sisters both became mothers here at the Sanctuary, and their daughters still live at the Sanctuary and will remain with us.
Imara is the only sibling to live separately, she is currently living next door to Kasanga for some companionship. We hope they may share space in the future.
White lions were once found in the wild in an isolated area called Timbavati nature reserve near Kenya. They are regarded as a most sacred animal by African tribal elders, these rarest of the rare who have been hunted to extinction in the wild by trophy hunters and poachers. White lions still exist in a few zoos and collections around the world, but due to a lack of genetic diversity there is no breeding programme for these big cats.