Watch an impala’s daring escape from a leopard, hyenas, and crocodiles in this thrilling wildlife encounter captured by a tourist in Kruger National Park
The life of an impala out in the wild is tough, this one showed just how tough it can be while being the target of a leopard, hyena, and 2 crocodiles.
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IT Consultant, Travis Carreira, during a trip to Marloth Park, which borders the Kruger National Park, captured this once-in-a-lifetime sighting.
“Maureen and Piet, a couple of my friends, spotted a leopard from within the fence of Marloth Park, on the other side of the Crocodile River. As the day progressed, the temperatures peaked at around 41 degrees Celsius.
“I was watching the beautiful sunset on the river when a gentleman came up to me and asked if I could see anything. I explained to him that there had been a leopard hanging around all day, but I couldn’t see it.
“When running to the fence, I lost sight of it again but caught a glimpse of a hyena who moved into a gully.
“Shortly after that, the hyena tried to catch one of the other impalas but failed. A little disheartened, the hyena turned its attention to the leopard.
“Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed more movement. Two massive crocodiles, likely attracted by the commotion, emerged from the river, complicating the situation
“The leopard who made the initial kill was very hesitant of both the hyena and the crocodiles, so it made one or two half-hearted attempts at getting its food back but was not successful. All this commotion and noise attracted another hyena.
“The 1st hyena now also confident with its buddy around, joined in the tug of war. The two hyenas tried using tactics to steal the meal again, but this time, they were left with just some scraps of meat, and the majority was taken by the crocodile.
There were a few other people at the sighting with me. At times, it felt like we were spectators in an arena. The excitement couldn’t be contained as we witnessed this once-in-a-lifetime sighting.”