It goes without saying that learning to hunt is one of the most important skills a young lion must learn. To them, if it moves, it is worth stalking… even if that means tackling mom.
Watch the video here:
Barry Peiser submitted this footage to Latest Sightings, which he filmed at Tswalu Kalahari Reserve in South Africa.
Unusual but not unheard of
Joining the action in Barry’s video, we’re met with a somewhat unusual sight. A lioness is descending a tree while two large cubs wait at the base.
While lions can climb trees, they’re not nearly as competent as leopards. Nevertheless, possessing sharp claws and a cat’s sense of balance, she seems to be doing just fine.
So much so that she has the rapt attention of the youngsters on the ground below. The question is: why are they so fascinated?
Is it because they’ve never seen this happen before, or do they have something else in mind?
Shuffling with excitement
As she inches down the steep trunk, you can see the cubs’ bodies shuffle with excitement. With eyes and ears intensely focused on the descending lioness, we get the sense that this is more than just observation.
As for the lioness, she is more concerned with keeping her footing on the steep descent. It wouldn’t do for wildlife royalty to slip up while the paparazzi watches on.
Moving into position
Subsequently, as she places her front paw in preparation for a short leap back to Earth, we see the cub on the left shift its body. It seems to be aligning itself to intercept the imminently descending female.
Seeing the cub below moving to obstruct her path, the lioness veers slightly, intending to jump past the waiting cub. Meanwhile, the two cubs can barely contain themselves.
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Attack!
Precisely at the moment the lioness jumps, the cub launches its “attack”. With gravity now in control, the lioness has no choice but to fall into the youngsters’ waiting paws.
At this point, there’s nothing the lioness can do except blink reflexively. Meanwhile, the cub throws its legs around her neck, while its sibling gets ready to assist.
Showing signs of the hunter it will become, the cub lands an accurate bite to the nape of the lioness’s neck. In later life, this bite could kill prey instantly.
Additionally, the cub has its paws around her neck. Again, if this were a real hunt, the prey would have little chance of escaping.
Coming back to Earth
As mother and cub return to Earth, the little one maintains its hold on her fur. In time, its canines will reach 5 centimetres (2 inches) in length, spelling disaster to anything unlucky enough to be caught in their grasp.
As for the other cub, it remains an enthusiastic spectator. Who knows how Mum might react to such an audacious attack?
Thankfully, she takes it in her stride and doesn’t retaliate. You’ve got to have thick skin if you want to raise boisterous cubs to become efficient killers.