Watch the Sighting:
Ashlea Dennison and her boyfriend were on a safari trip in Kruger National Park, driving down the H4-2 when they witnessed this incredible sighting. Ashley recounted that they turned onto a sand road that led to a view of the Gezanftombi waterhole, when all of a sudden, they spotted several birds converging on an area in the tall grass.
An Unusual Encounter in the Kruger
When her vehicle came closer, Ashlea was able to discern amongst some of the smaller birds that some vultures were present, leading her to the conclusion that there must be a recent kill or some food source hidden in the grass. A few moments later, a Kori Bustard entered the scene, causing the vultures to scatter, but the excitement was far from over…
The safari vehicle continued to drive forward and suddenly, a secretary bird launched itself from a nearby tree, taking flight. Ashlea traced its flight path and watched as it landed beside the Kori Bustard.
With everyone anxious to see what would happen next, the safari vehicle reversed to get a better view. In an unexpected turn of events, the two feathered giants began to brawl, seemingly fighting over the food on the ground.
The Drama Unfolds
Ashlea immediately pulled out her camera to capture the drama. She described how exciting it was to see the two birds engaging with each other — “We were very excited when we saw this sighting because these birds are both amazing sightings on their own and we have never seen either of them behave in this manner before”.
The Kori Bustard ran around on the ground trying to get behind the secretary bird who continuously flew into the air, flapping and kicking its feet out. Ashlea and her boyfriend laughed at how comical to watch the secretary bird running around on the ground with its wings outstretched.
The birds fought for a few minutes, kicking, flapping and chasing each other around, until finally they settled down. The secretary bird eventually chased away all the small birds that remained nearby, and both it and the bustard stood amicably by the food for the remainder of the encounter.
Lessons from Safari
Ashlea recounted how rare this sighting was for her. In past sightings, she and her boyfriend had seen secretary birds and bustards, but they had never witnessed them act aggressively towards other birds.
Her advice to other safari-goers who experience amazing sightings is never to interfere and always let nature play out as if you weren’t there. This sighting is a great reminder that nature always has surprises in store, especially when you least expect them!
The Fearless Raptors of the Grasslands
Secretary birds rely on their strong legs and sharp claws being primarily terrestrial hunters. They incapacitate their prey by stomping with a force of five to six times their body weight and use their sharp beaks to tear flesh off the bone or pick at smaller prey items such as insects.
While secretary birds may seem large and terrifying, they are not known to be aggressive except in territorial disputes. What is interesting about Ashlea’s sighting is that the secretary bird seemed to be aggressive towards all the other birds in what appeared to be a battle for a meal.
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This could be the case, but secretary birds rarely eat carrion, so unless this was a very recent kill, the aggression could be related to the defence of territory. We often lack context for animal behaviour while observing an encounter on a safari, but after the fact, we can piece together clues from their natural instincts and typical behaviours to form educated guesses about what transpired.
In this case, the presence of vultures suggests a possible food source but the unusual aggression between the secretary bird and the Kori Bustard leaves room for speculation—was it a battle over territory, dominance, or an unseen meal?