It is night in the African bush where the familiar becomes mysterious and the unfamiliar is strange indeed. It is the time and place where lions come into their own... and man does not willingly venture. In this dark realm they reign supreme; they are the kings; They are the Lions of the African Night. A day in the bushveld of southern Africa draws to a close and a pride of 30 lions that has dozed and slept through the long, hot day lazes on. This pride is unusually large two or three times larger than most, and for small cubs life in such a pride can be hard.

When food is scarce, competition at kills is fierce, and it's the little cubs that always suffer. The males that sired these cubs have deserted their big family to form a new pride elsewhere with younger lionesses. Now, all the adults in this pride are females. They rest on, waiting for the day to cool, for lions are seldom active when it is hot and like most prides, this one hunts mainly at night. They'll hardly stir until the sun has set. As the day winds down, young baboons cavort in a last burst of play. The sounds of day merge through the evening into those of an African night