A lone lioness tries to bring down a wildebeest by grabbing onto its face. Will she be strong enough to bring it down or will she go hungry?
47-year-old practice manager Lenchen de Beer recorded an incredible display of mother nature in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. He shared his incredibly breathtaking sighting with LatestSightings.com.
“Dark blue skies that promised rain engulfed the arid Kgalagadi desert. My wife and I were returning from our afternoon drive, heading towards the Kij-Kij waterhole, in anticipation of a male lion that had been seen quite often over the past few days.”
“Upon our arrival at the waterhole, the sight of two tawny eagles welcomed us. However, unfortunately for us no male Lion. We then decided to make our way slowly back to Twee Rivieren camp, where we would be spending the night. Jokingly, my husband told me to get ready for the lion.”
Lions in the Kalahari, in particular, are not uncommon, as this harsh desert ecosystem is home to a large population of these felines. However, seeing these majestic beasts in hunting mode is always a rare sight.
“The next minute we stopped, and all of a sudden, I saw the lioness trying to pull a blue wildebeest down. The battle was on. It was a one-on-one battle. A young lioness the mother to three tiny cubs and a fully grown wildebeest!”
Wildebeest are usually easy prey for a pride of lions, but when the hunt becomes one-on-one, the odds are stacked in favor of the wildebeest fighting for its life.
“The wildebeest hit her quite a few times in her tummy as she tried with all her might to pull him down. She would ease up with her claws but not her bite. He’d then swing his head back and forth, trying to get her off his face. In return, she would dig in deeper with her claws and try to bring him down. The lioness was just too fatigued, and to be fair it was a fully grown wildebeest. She didn’t stand a chance”
Lions typically kill their prey by striking vital points in their victim. The spinal area, the airways, or even the legs at times. Being a young female on her own, she attempted to restrict the wildebeest’s airway by suffocating him around the mouth and nose. Genius indeed!
“In the end, the wildebeest broke loose from the clasp of death. One last time she tried to salvage the hunt. She had nothing left in her, and the wildebeest ran off towards Rooiputs. I was rooting for her all the way, as I knew she has the three small cubs and will be on her own for a while before she reunites with her pride. I felt her disappointment at the end. But such is the way of nature.”
With her adept hunting skills, the lioness quickly caught the wildebeest. Despite her prey’s efforts to struggle and run away, the lioness still clings very firmly.
Recently, British photographer Sue Morri went to Nxai Pan National Park in northeastern Botswana and captured extremely impressive images of a fierce lioness hunting wildebeest.
According to photographer Sue Morri, right after choosing her prey, the lioness locked the target and rushed to attack quickly when the wildebeest was caught off guard.
With her adept hunting skills, the lioness quickly caught the wildebeest. Despite her prey’s efforts to struggle and run away, the lioness still clings very firmly.
It even stood completely on the back of an antelope like a horse, demonstrating its top hunting skills.
As the lion intended, after resisting for a long time, the wildebeest gradually became weak and tired. Waiting at the right moment when the antelope is weak, out of breath, the lioness strikes a decisive blow, knocking down the wildebeest.
As for the antelope, despite trying its best, bravely fighting the lioness, exhausted to protect its life, but due to the difference in species advantages, the antelope still could not compete with the lioness. dead, knocked down.
In the end, it was killed by the lion, becoming a delicious meal for the large lion family.
Dramatic video recorded in the Maasai Mara National Reserve (Kenya) shows a tenacious wildebeest fighting for life with both hyenas and lions.
The video opens with the antelope being attacked, surrounded by hyenas, and biting its teeth into its tail. When the battle was still not over, in the distance a male lion and a female lion suddenly approached. Noticing the appearance of the “natural enemy”, the hyenas immediately ran away, leaving the wildebeest behind.
At this point, the antelope has plenty of time to run away towards its herd. However, the animal chose to attack the lion with sharp horns. Due to underestimation of the enemy’s abilities, the antelope was quickly defeated by the pair of lions in a moment.