© www.essentialafrica.co.za / Barcroft Media
They say there is a natural food chain in the wild but even on the plains of the Savuti channel the hunter can become the hunted.
For full story and pictures:
Pictured here in Northern Botswana two male cheetahs got a little more than they bargained for while feasting on a young warthog.
Preparing for a post feeding nap, the predatory pair were startled into retreat as a mother warthog was determined to protect her young.
“The mother warthog had three piglets to start with and the Cheetah managed to get one,” says South African guide and photographer Lee Wittham, who had been leading a tour at the time.
“The Cheetahs had already set upon the young warthog but the mother was determined to make a stand and turned on the Cheetah and chased them away a few times.
“Cheetah are rather timid and as soon as something challenges them they usually retreat for fear of injury.
“If they injure themselves they cannot hunt and will die as a result. ”
Lasting around 15 minutes, the sparring match produced a rare sight as the diminutive warthog tried in vein to save the doomed piglet.
“The images are interesting because it shows that the tables can turn on the predators and they don’t always have it their way as is the common perception by most people,” explains Lee.
“The Cheetah will regularly hunt small warthogs but it isn’t often that you get to see the bravery that the mother shows whilst trying to defend her offspring against two large male cheetah.”
© www.essentialafrica.co.za / Barcroft Media
However, despite the mother’s frantic efforts, the cheetahs eventually returned to finish their kill.
“Eventually the cheetahs got their reward and the mother had to resign herself to the fact that she had lost one of her piglets,” says Lee.
“The mother warthog remained in the area for some time and actually returned to the site of the kill later that day and sniffed around as if looking for her missing piglet.”
Words by Jack Fletcher
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