This sneaky leopard hid silently in a tree before jumping on its unsuspecting prey from above.
The cunning predator is almost impossible to see as it hides in the branches – waiting for the perfect moment to pounce.
After darting out of the tree it quickly takes down an impala grazing happily underneath, much to the delight of some excited baboons watching on.
Phil Hankinson filmed the spectacle during a game drive in Ruaha National Park, Tanzania.
He said: “He was incredibly difficult to see but we had a few pairs of binoculars which helped tremendously.
“I’m still in awe really of the spectacle which unfolded. The cat started stalking slowly moving toward the trunk and the impala was unaware of its impending doom. Then. In a matter of a second or two he pounced.
“The baboons started screaming as some of them wanted a piece of the action and the impala was sent careering by the full force and weight of the attached cat. Dust was flying everywhere.
“The noise from the baboons was one of a craze and then there was silence. We watched as a group. Stunned. And in silence too.
“What we had witnessed our guide advised was something which he would see once every five years. And I had it on video.
“It’s hard as I really did want to watch it live without the iPhone so I could mentally replay it in my head. Instead, I have to fall back on the images the iPhone captured.
—WATCH—
“At this point, I stopped filming. The leopard had started to suffocate the impala by latching its jaws over its mouth. It took approx 30 more minutes for it to take its last breath, its legs gave one more attempt at life before it fell still.”
