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Jared Wolf and his family went to the Kruger National Park eager to see wild dogs, as he said they were his “favourite animal”.
While at the Lion Sands Game Reserve in the Sabi Sands, he reported that their “ranger said that another vehicle had found a pack of wild dogs with 16 pups” so they set off to follow.
It was good news for Jared, as they came across the pack of wild dogs quickly, but none of them knew just what was going to be in store for them.
The dogs they’d been eager to see seemed to be having a good time, and Jared said they “spent a bit of time watching the wild dog pack interacting”, with the mother coming and going.
Ambush!
The dogs had recently taken down an impala for food, and the onlookers could still see the remains, but the carcass had drawn the attention of other predators as well as the dogs.
Competition from other predators is a huge concern for the dogs, which aren’t big enough to consistently defend their kills from larger animals like lions or hyenas.
Jared and his family saw this first hand as, with lightning speed, a male lion surged out of the bush, targeting the pups.
Ferocious Attack
The speed of the lion was truly something to behold, as it appeared almost out of nowhere, startling the pups and causing them to scatter. In moments the lion had one within its jaws, and it got more of them before they could escape.
Things went from bad to worse for the dogs as Jared said the “aggressive lion was then joined by 3 other male lions”. Against such competitors, the wild dogs wouldn’t have been able to defend themselves.
After the dogs has scattered in panic Jared and his family could only hope that the dogs managed to regroup with each other and their mother before they ran afoul of other predators.
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Scavengers Like Any Other
The attacking lion looked ready to give chase to the pups, but there was a rival pride of lions on the scene, as this sighting continued to escalate.
Jared said this second pride was “1 male and a couple of females that were eating the remains of the impala carcass that the wild dogs had taken down an hour earlier”.
Hyenas have the reputation of being scavengers, but lions are just as willing to steal a fresh kill as any other predator. After all, there’s no reason to put in the effort hunting prey when there’s some there already.
Protect The Pride Lands
Wild dogs are already endangered without lions reducing their population still further, but these lions may have been establishing their territory just as much as stealing food.
Rather than pursue the wild dogs very far the attacking lion turned its attention to the other pride, indicating it would have attacked anything in the area.
Although male lions can and will hunt for their own meals, it’s famously the lionesses that bring down the prey, while the males will serve the role of protectors and guardians over their territory.
If any other predators, including dogs, hyenas, leopards or other lions come into that territory, then it’s time for the males to get to work and make sure the invaders know who the land belongs to. These poor dogs might have just been in the wrong place at the wrong time.
