Chitabe: Trespassing Lions and a Thousand Buffalo
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From Brendon Cremer
Every day in the bush (especially somewhere like the Okavango Delta) is a fantastic experience, and then some days just stand out even more.
Today was one of those days.
We set out from camp and while still in the pre-dawn dark we found a herd of a thousand plus buffalo sleeping along the road and the surrounding bush.
As we arrived, the buffalo started to stir, and as they moved, they created huge clouds of billowing dust. What lovely photographs we captured with hundreds of horns sticking out of the glowing dust.
We moved away from the buffalo after a short while, intent on finding the two large black maned lions that we had seen yesterday, and who had called through the night, so we knew they were not too far away.
To our surprise, only about 500 meters away we found two young male lions who had wandered over from their adjoining territory in Moremi. They were quite anxious, glancing around all the time, aware that they were trespassing. They had probably moved into this territory because they were aware of the buffalo nearby.
As the sun started to rise they climbed a large termite mound and lay down, surrounded by the beautiful light ... more photos!
We could see the huge dust cloud moving closer and closer - and closer!
Then the buffalo herd started to cross a water channel very close by, and the sound of constant splashing filled the air, and caught the attention of the lions.
They immediately stiffened with alertness, walked toward the buffalo and suddenly they charged, causing total panic and pandemonium!
Buffalo ran in all directions, heading toward the water, splashing, bellowing and creating a scene of total confusion all around us.
The attack was swift as only a few meters from us, one of the lions launched himself at the buffalo, using his weight and power to grab the neck. He hung on tenaciously until the second lion arrived to assist. This lion leaped onto the back of the buffalo, and together the two managed to bring down the large animal.
The magnificent photos that we took throughout were now followed by fabulous feeding images!
We plan to share some of these with you soon ...
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