Barely 12 hours earlier, the two males had lost a battle for territory and were lucky to still be alive.
Remaining on this side of the channel was dangerous, and they could probably hear the roars of female lions in the distance.
And one of the lions, known as Jacob by researchers, has only three legs.
The two big cats set out for what the researchers call the longest-recorded swim ever taken by lions.
The scientists describe their findings in a paper that has been accepted for publication in the journal Ecology and Evolution.
Persons:
Jacob, Tibu
Organizations:
Queen
Locations:
Queen Elizabeth, Uganda