Fate unknown

Olopolosie

Also known as Ginger · The Fifth Inselberg

c. 2013/14 – present

Born in Serengeti National Park, Tanzania (believed)

Olopolosie is one of the five Inselberg Males, the coalition that crossed from Tanzania’s Serengeti into Kenya’s Mara Triangle around 2018. For years he was simply the unnamed fifth male, the one guides saw least often. Later sources call him Olopolosie, and Angama’s guides photographed a member of the coalition they called Ginger; they are almost certainly the same lion. One 2025 report lists a Mkia among the coalition, which may be another name for him.

The Inselberg Males take their name from the inselbergs, isolated rocky hills near the Kenya–Tanzania border in the south of the Mara Triangle. The five are believed to have come from the Serengeti, where fans say they were first filmed in the Lamai area around 2017, and were first recorded on the Kenyan side by the Mara Predator Conservation Programme in 2018. By January 2020 all five held the south of the Triangle, ruling the Nasipa, Egyptian Goose and Purungat prides, among others.

After Slit Lip’s death in 2022 he moved east with the surviving brothers and was photographed with Manywele and Ruka patrolling together. In 2026 fans reported that he and Manywele had not been seen for many months; his fate has not been confirmed.

~8Years in the Triangle

5Males in his coalition

~12Age in 2026

3Names reported

Profile

Identity

Name: OlopolosieThe name he is best known by
Nicknames: Ginger; possibly Mkia
Origin of the name: Information not availableThe meaning of Olopolosie has not been published
Sex: Male
Distinguishing features: Information not availableProbably named Ginger for his colouring; not described in detail
Weight: Information not availableFor reference, adult male lions usually weigh 150–260 kg

Birth & Family

Born: c. 2013 – 2014Estimated; not recorded
Birthplace: Serengeti National Park, Tanzania (believed)Fans say the Lamai area of the northern Serengeti
Birth pride: Information not availableNot known
Father: Information not available
Mother: Information not available
Siblings: Manywele, Ruka, Nusu, Olopolosie and Slit Lip (brothers or close relatives)Their relationship has not been documented

Reign

Pride king: Yes, a pride male of the Inselberg coalition
Prides ruled: Nasipa, Egyptian Goose and Purungat prides, among othersRuled with his brothers
Pride size: Information not available
Reign: About 8 years so far (c. 2018 – present)
Ruled with: His Inselberg brothers
Coalition: The Inselberg Males
Home range: The Mara Triangle, Kenya, from the inselbergs on the border to Serena and Maji Machafu; later across the Mara River
Territory size: Information not available

Death

Died: Information not availableReported unseen for many months in 2026; not confirmed
Age at death: Information not availableAbout 12 in 2026
Cause of death: Information not available
Place of death: Information not available
Burial: Information not available

Names & Meanings

OlopolosieName

The name used by later sources, including the Mara Predator Conservation Programme. Its meaning has not been published.

GingerOther name

Used by Angama’s guides in 2022, probably for his colouring.

MkiaPossible other name

Swahili for tail. Listed once in a 2025 report; it may refer to him.

Family & Lineage

Not knownParentsTheir parents were never identified; they arrived in the Triangle from the Serengeti as adults.

GingerOlopolosiec. 2013/14 –

BrotherManyweleDark-maned; seen as the leading male after 2022. Reported unseen for months in 2026.View record →BrotherRukaTorn right ear; lost much of the sight of his left eye in 2022. Injured by the Kaskaz males in 2025.View record →BrotherNusuNamed for his half-broken lower tooth.View record →BrotherSlit LipCleft upper lip. Killed in July 2022, the first of the five to die.View record →

OffspringCubs of the coalitionFathered with his brothers in the Triangle prides, including the Purungat Pride’s sub-adults, noted in 2025 for being almost maneless. In a coalition, which male fathered which cub is not known.

Life Story

c. 2013 – 2014
Born, believed to be in the Serengeti, Tanzania.
c. 2017
Reportedly filmed with his brothers in the Lamai area of the northern Serengeti.
2018
First recorded with his brothers on the Kenyan side of the border in the Mara Triangle.
January 2020
All five Inselberg males held the south of the Triangle around the inselbergs.
2020 – 2021
Known only as the unnamed fifth Inselberg male.
July 2022
His brother Slit Lip was killed.
Late 2022
Photographed by Angama’s guides, who called him Ginger.
2023
Photographed patrolling with Manywele and Ruka.
2026
Reported unseen for many months. Not confirmed.

Legend & Truth

One lion, several names

The fifth Inselberg has been called the unnamed male, Ginger, Olopolosie and perhaps Mkia. Since the coalition never had more than five members, these names almost certainly refer to the same lion, but no source has confirmed it.