In the sweltering African heat, a weary newborn impala merely wanted to satisfy its thirst. However, the child’s choice had serious repercussions when it was discovered by a hungry crocodile. The small infant was born during a severe drought in Sᴏᴜᴛʜ Aғʀɪᴄᴀ’s Kruger National Park, where animals were battling to find enough water to sustain them.
The child eventually found soᴍᴇᴛʜing to drink, but as soon as it did, a crocodile waiting in the background grabbed it in search of its next meal. Wildlife photographer Karen van Damme captured the depressing sᴄᴇɴᴇ in a number of pictures.
He said that the Kruger National Park in Sᴏᴜᴛʜ Aғʀɪᴄᴀ was currently suffering from a severe drought. The animals were extremely underweight since they had given birth, but there was no green ɢʀᴀss for them to eat and the rivers had dried up and became a series of little waterholes.
These big puddles were where the crocodiles gather, and because there were so many of them, the animals must be extremely cautious when they were drinking. These crocodiles tried to catch an impala a few times, but each time the impala sprang into the air in terror.
A young impala walked too far into the water to drink since it was inexperienced and did not notice the crocodile nearby. A larger crocodile caught the impala by the hind leg after waiting for it to calm down. The croc rolled the impala into the water and pulled it under into the murky water in an attempt to drown it.
There was a ғɪɢʜᴛ over the young impala as the crocodiles in the adjacent waterholes all flocked to the crocodile holding the impala. The croc eventually made it out of the water hole with his catch and found another waterhole nearby where he could enjoy a quiet meal.