Whilst two of the lionesses from the Sparta Pride were off unsuccessfully hunting giraffe in the thickets around the Maxabeni drainage, the seven cubs decided that they would try their own luck at a hunt. The target of their skirmish: a large Leopard Tortoise. A few days ago we were fortunate enough to witness the unusual behaviour of a Nile crocodile catching and killing a leopard tortoise. Although not as unusual as that, this sighting sure did provide some entertainment!
Priceless – The seven cubs and one lioness all huddled up and drinking at the same time.
Immediately after this drink one of the youngsters saw the slow moving figure of a tortoise up ahead. In a flash he was bounding across the clearing and was upon the unsuspecting reptile. Instinct took over and the tortoise drew into his shell. He had no option but to sit it out as each cub took their turn at trying to prize him out of his home.
Even with claws unsheathed and teeth out this little lion cub could not get into the Leopard Tortoises tough shell
Maybe the underside would prove more easily accessible…not to be
Another cub went and tried his luck
Even with two of them they could not do it
This tortoise would survive to live another day…
Written, photographed and filmed by Adam Bannister
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.
