Arun Rao, a 53-year-old safari guide with Legend Safaris, sent in this sighting. He told Latest Sightings that they were out for a drive when they noticed “a pack of wild dogs running alongside” the vehicle.
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When they first sighted the animals, they were “approximately 1km North of the waterhole,” and the pack quickly broke off to head for what was likely headed to a much-needed drink after their run.
While on their way to the waterhole, the dogs “noticed a lonesome impala calf”, and the hunt was on.
Between A Rock And A Hard Place
The impala calf must have known it didn’t have any chance of survival against the dogs, so it headed straight for the water, hoping for a last-minute swim to safety.
Unfortunately for the impala, there was another animal at the waterhole, and it would not tolerate the impala being in its territory.
The hippo surged towards the impala, and the stricken calf hurriedly swam back towards the bank. The impala was already doomed between the pursuing dogs on land and the territorial hippo in the water.
Dangerous Waters
African wild dogs are more than capable of swimming, but they must have seen the hippo and decided to wait for it to force the impala back onto land.
The pack did not seem willing to risk a swim with a huge, angry hippo in sight.
The hippo, meanwhile, was more than capable of killing the impala if it continued to trespass, but was very unlikely to eat it. While hippos do consume meat, it’s extremely rare.
The impala wasn’t as safe in the water as it had hoped, and it made the choice for land, perhaps hoping that it would be able to get lucky and outrun the wild dogs somehow.
Even More Dangerous Shores
The wild dogs were waiting patiently on the banks of the waterhole for the impala to emerge. As soon as it did, they started sprinting towards it. Wild dogs have evolved specifically for endurance running, and that’s why they are the most successful carnivores in the savannah.
Wild dogs are capable of outrunning almost every prey animal in Africa, even in some wetlands.
The impala had made an impossible choice, and now the dogs were hot on its heels as it tried to flee. It managed to run in a quick loop, which bought it a little extra time, but one of the dogs got close enough to bite its jaws down on the impala’s rump and bring it down.
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A Successful Hunt
The hippo watched as the wild dog that had caught the impala dragged it behind the hill and out of sight. It had been yet another successful hunt for the pack.
Despite this success at securing food, African wild dog populations are on the decline, and they’re listed as being endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.