These photographs will show you how and why wildlife can steal the show on any safari or moment you’re in the African wild. Leopards, lions, new cubs, stolen kills, unusual interactions, battles between animals and the wonderful season of new births, it’s all there to discover. These riveting moments are brought to you below.
Marthly Male Steals from Tutlwa Female
Mouth full and muscles ready to take the drop. Mike Sutherland
Leopard Threesome
The Tu-Tones male, seemingly favoured by the Tamboti female, dismounts after a relatively non-aggressive mating bout. Notice the gash on his leg, which in no way slowed him down when it came to mating. James Tyrrell
A Young Starving Leopard Takes an Uncalculated Risk
The desperate leopard fends off a pack of wild dogs. Richard Burman
Wild Dogs Take on a Dazzle of Zebra
The chase between a zebra and wild dogs. Chris Goodman
A Kill and Steal
The leopard is chased off its kill by lions. Kee Loon
Stealing seems to be the easiest way to get something without having to do the actual hunt. It began with a leopard killing a warthog, piercing screams, followed by stillness and a lone hyena lurking nearby. The cat however had even more to worry about. Within a few minutes the Sparta pride appeared… The pride had the upper hand in numbers and managed to frighten off the leopard, much to his dismay.
Incredible Lions vs Hyenas
The hyena shrieks in pain as the lion bites down. James Tyrrell
An Elephant and a Snare
The other elephants in the herd would carefully tend to the youngster. Generally tugging the wire free, loosening any attached debris and even going so far as to carry the wire over the more rugged terrain. Amy Attenborough
When Tyrants Collide
Two hippo bulls take each other on in a fight of epic proportions. Territorial males will allow other males in their waterholes as long as they show signs of subservience and typically a bit of yawning, flicking of dung and honking is enough to decide who the boss is before any conflict is actually needed. However, in this case, the two opponents were apparently evenly matched and both were vying for territoriality. Amy Attenborough
This sequence of images shows the mighty force of two hippos fighting in a territorial battle. As Amy says: ‘You’ll never look at the ‘placid hippo’ in the same light again’.
Elephant birth. Irene Nathanson
See anything unusual about this herd of elephants? Well, if you observe closely, you’ll see an elephant about to give birth.
Ultimate Lions vs Buffalo
If looks could kill… The pride faces another repulse from the old bulls while their prey struggles gamely for air. James Tyrrell
Lions and Buffalo are two iconic prizefighters of the African bush. To see a a fight between the two was an adrenaline filled moment for everyone involved. James Tyrrell captured the extraordinary scenes of this incredible battle.
A Prickly Dance: Lions and Porcupine
The porcupine backs into an approaching lion. Lucien Beaumont
Written by: Kate Collins
Which of the above moments fascinated you the most? Share with us in the comments below!
Rich Laburn is filmmaker, photographer and writer who is based at Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa. Spending his time capturing scenes of the wild and communicating the beauty of the African bushveld, he runs the Londolozi Blog as a way to entertain and engage people wishing to visit these wild lands.
