To survive in the wild, young animals must learn a range of skills that they will need throughout their lives. Among these, learning to stand up for themselves is an important lesson.
In this article, we share a montage of young animals whose big attitudes bode well for their futures. Various supporters sent the footage to Latest Sightings.
Watch the video here:
Hangry lion cub
In the first clip, a lion cub has been squeezed out of its feeding position. As Mum grooms and its siblings continue feeding, it throws a tantrum.
After a short squabble, the cub spots a gap and dives in to start suckling again.
While lions are social, sharing does not come naturally to them. So each pride member must fight for their share.
Rambunctious rhino calf
Next, we see a young white rhino charging up the road towards the camera. Meanwhile, in the background, its huge mother trundles slowly closer.
Rhinos are very short-sighted, so it isn’t until it is within a few metres of the observer that it realizes they’re there. As bold as it had been a moment ago, it suddenly becomes a little nervous.
Accordingly, it does what any sensible kid would do when met with a potential problem. It turns tail and runs back to Mum.
Hyperactive hippo
In the next clip, a baby hippo is seen running around on the bank of a waterhole. In the background, a herd of zebras looks on anxiously. They’re eager to drink but wary of the hyper-hippo.
With its mouth agape, the youngster is practicing aggressive behaviour and burning off excess energy in the process.
Subsequently, he splashes through the shallows before returning to his family. Adult hippos are highly possessive of their waters, so this is an important practice for adulthood.
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Protective calf
Our next example is a young elephant bull whose out to prove a point. With his ears flared and head held high, he charges towards the camera, letting out a cute little trumpet.
He is mock-charging, a warning behaviour he will use throughout his life to deter threats.
However, when it fails to scare off the observer, he tries to recruit a teenage sibling’s support. Unfortunately, the teen is more interested in eating than posing.
Consequently, he scales up and returns with his Mum. You can be sure the whole herd feels much safer with him there to protect them.
Practice predator
In the final clip, an adorable lion cub tests the patience of its pride. To begin with, it looks like the picture of innocence.
However, as he starts chewing on his mother’s tail, her patience soon wears thin.
When she moves off, he moves on to an aunt. But she is in no mood to be “practice-prey”.
Her snarl warns him off and he goes in search of his next “victim”.
Consequently, when another aunt walks by, he tries tackling her.
For the cub, anything that moves is considered fair game. For the rest of the pride, it looks like they’d all prefer a little peace and quiet.