In the heart of the wild, a blind bushbuck’s disoriented steps lead to an inevitable encounter with a stealthy leopard. The raw reality of nature’s balance comes alive in this unforgettable encounter.
Watch the Sighting:
Moses Bokaba was on safari with his friends in Kruger National Park, when they decided to take one of their favourite routes. They drove through the Paul Kruger gate and turned onto the S3 road, arriving at a scenic riverbed crossing they were familiar with.
It was at this moment that something unusual caught their eye.
Stumbling to Survive
On the side of the road, a lone bushbuck stumbled around, circling aimlessly and acting disoriented. Moses and his friends stopped their car, watching the bushbuck stumble into the river.
As this was an unusual sighting, Moses and his friends tried to figure out what was wrong with the buck. By its movement, they realized the bushbuck was blind and assumed that it must have been recently injured from another predator interaction.
A Silent Predator Lurks Nearby
Just then, some movement in the shadows of the bush caught their eye. A leopard was casually grooming itself under the riverbed.
In the wild, weakness never goes unnoticed. The leopard quickly but silently approached the buck, slowing down and pausing intently as it got closer to its prey.
The friends got out their cameras, knowing that a thrilling encounter was about to develop in front of them. Moses held his breath – “it was a thrilling, intense, exciting, and anxious experience all at once.”
A Chase that Was Over Before it Began
The leopard was now only within a few meters of the bushbuck, who was still disoriented and oblivious to the encroaching danger. By the time it finally saw the leopard, its fate was sealed.
With its disability, the bushbuck didn’t stand a chance. The leopard pounced, using its ferocious claws to grab hold of its prey, and deadly jaws to deliver the killing bite to the bushbuck’s throat.
After a brief struggle, the bushbuck went limp in the jaws of the leopard. Moses and his friends sat in stunned silence as they watched the leopard drag its kill across the road and into the bush.
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Always Expect the Unexpected
As they processed what they had just witnessed, Moses and his friends couldn’t believe how lucky they were. Not only did they have a front row seat to this visceral encounter, but they were the only group at the sight.
What they had anticipated to be a peaceful day by the riverbed had turned into a jaw-dropping and heart-racing experience. That day Moses was reminded that the savanna is truly a place where anything can happen at any moment.
Masters of the Hunt
Leopards hunt their prey by either stalking them or ambushing them. They are not predators that will chase their prey over a long distance, so the initial element of surprise is their key to a successful hunt.
As seen in this exciting encounter, leopards will try to get as close as possible to their target and when the time is right, make a swift charge of speeds up to 60km/h that ends in a pounce onto their target, and a killing bite to the neck.
Leopards can also be opportunistic, so any animal that shows a sign of weakness such as this blinded bushbuck, makes for an easy target. This encounter was a testament to the leopard’s mastery of the hunt—silent, swift, and precise.