Hunting in a pack requires teamwork and coordination, especially when bringing down one of the biggest prey animals in the African Savannah!
After driving down an inconspicuous sand road, Joel, Candice, and their family were just about to wrap up their day at Pretoriuskop Rest Camp in Krueger National Park. All of a sudden, their day became a lot more thrilling!
Without warning, two giraffes shot out of the brush onto the middle of the road, pursued by four lionesses hot on their heels! Joel quickly moved his car forward to get a better view as one of the lionesses pounced onto the leg of the giraffe they had chosen as their unlucky target.
Joel’s family couldn’t believe what they were witnessing, would the lions’ risky hunt pay off?
Clinging on for Life
By teaming up and clinging onto the giraffe with their claws and teeth, the four female lions stood a fighting chance of exhausting the poor giraffe and bringing it to the ground. “The fight went on for a while, with the giraffe desperately kicking and trying to get away, but the lions continued to tire it out by hanging onto its stomach and legs”.
Even with the weight of multiple lions hanging onto it, the giraffe still tried to make an escape! It struggled and struggled, tragically trying to run away, but with no success.
Joel made a split-second decision when he noticed the giraffe running towards the car with lions still attached to its legs and stomach! He reversed just in the nick of time as the lions finally managed to pull the giraffe to the ground, just barely missing the car!
After falling, smashing its head on the ground, and having its neck “bent in all sorts of terrible ways”, it was game over for the giraffe. With one final bite to the throat, the hunt was over.
Feeding a Family
Exhausted, the females took a moment to rest as their cubs arrived on the scene to feed. Lion cubs will watch their mothers hunt in order to learn how to pull their weight in the pride once they are old enough.
Although challenging, this hunt definitely paid off! A giraffe like this can often feed a whole pride of lions, providing a valuable food source and many happy bellies.
Lion’s Killer Strategies
Lions are opportunistic hunters, often preferring prey that weigh between 190-550 kg. Usually, they will take down one large prey item per week, breaking up these taxing hunts with smaller kills.
Although they often hunt solo, lions hunting in a pack are often a lot more successful, displaying incredible teamwork. Coordinated hunts by female lions, such as the one observed by Joel and his family, are often seen for larger prey such as giraffes.
In this situation, the lionesses used a variety of strategies to take down the giraffe. They took turns cutting it off, they held onto the giraffe for a long time to tire it out, and finished the kill with a bite to the throat.
Never Underestimate the Power of Teamwork!
While lions hunt over 40 different species of prey, nothing is more impressive than watching a group of females work together to take down an animal as large as a giraffe. As they watched this mighty giraffe fall to the ground in front of them, Joel and his family were reminded why lions are considered the most ferocious predators of the savannah.