Laret van Niekerk submitted this video to Latest Sightings. She was fortunate to witness the incident while visiting the Kruger National Park, South Africa.
On the prowl
It is always a pleasure to view a cheetah in the wild. But when you’re fortunate enough to find one hunting, the experience becomes a rare privilege.
At the beginning of Laret’s video, we see an adult female cheetah walking across open grassland. By her lowered head, we can tell that she is stalking something.
Despite their legendary speed, cheetahs can’t run very far. As such, she tries to get as close as possible to her target.
Target revealed
As the camera pans ahead of the cheetah, it settles on a lone impala ram. As it continues grazing, the antelope is completely oblivious of the approaching danger.
Prey species periodically raise their heads while grazing, scanning their surroundings for danger. However, as the experienced cheetah gets closer, she remains undetected.
However, the impala’s senses are ever alert, and when the cheetah launches its attack, the ram is quick to respond. Immediately, it takes off in the opposite direction.
Lightning acceleration
In just a few seconds, the cheetah is already at high speed, covering up to 10 metres with each stride. Even a fallen log is no obstacle, as she easily sails over it in pursuit of her prey.
Meanwhile, the ram runs away from Laret’s position, and it seems it will soon disappear over the ridge. But, with the cheetah closing in, it jinks hard to the right, narrowly avoiding being caught.
Closing in
Impalas can reach a top speed of around 90 km/h and are incredibly agile. Even so, this ram is having a hard time keeping ahead of its pursuer.
The impalas’ only hope seems to be in being able to outlast the cheetah at full speed. Cheetahs normally tire after 400 metres, so every second of the chase is crucial.
Decoy
As the cheetah closes in, the impala changes direction and runs towards a lone wildebeest. It may be trying to distract the cheetah by showing it something bigger…
Unfortunately for the impala, the cheetah is not to be easily deterred. Seconds later, the pair streaks past the bewildered wildebeest. Surely both must be reaching the limit of their endurance.
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Last burst
By now, the cheetah is just metres behind the impala. At any second, it will either give up the chase or try to trip its prey and end the pursuit.
Just as the pair are about to disappear over the ridgeline, the cheetah reaches towards its quarry. In doing so, it appears to hook its claws into the rump of the impala.
And that is all it takes to send the ram clattering to the ground. A millisecond later, the cheetah decelerates to a standstill, and a cloud of dust obscures predator and prey.
SuperMom, SuperPredator
Thanks to their spectacular speed and agility, cheetahs are amongst the most efficient predators of the African savannah. Rivalled only by African hunting dogs among the large predators, they are successful in one of every two attempts.
Unfortunately, their solitary nature and smaller size see them lose much of their prey to scavengers.