Watch the Sighting:
Jan-Louis Human and Moosa Varachia were on a game drive near Berg-en-Dal in the Kruger National Park when they witnessed this thrilling sighting. It was a beautiful Monday afternoon when the group heard a squirrel making an alarm call, immediately piquing their curiosity.
Their first thought was to search for a nearby predator that could have set the squirrel off. Sure enough, after a few minutes of searching, Moosa spotted a leopardess resting on one of the lower branches of a nearby tree.
A Family of Warthogs in the Crosshairs
Suddenly, the group spotted a family of warthogs making their way down the road. The leopardess’ attention was immediately captivated, as she lifted her head and locked her eyes on the family as they approached.
Jan-Louis and Moosa were on high alert, sensing the tension building as they readied their cameras. The leopardess quietly climbed down the tree and into the tall grass, where she disappeared momentarily, preparing for the hunt.
A Leopard in Pursuit
The group once again regained sight of the female leopard, her tail poking in and out of the tall grass. As she approached the road, she lowered herself into a crouch, patiently waiting while the warthog family wandered up the road, oblivious to her presence.
Jan-Louis and Moosa held their breath as the situation became unbelievably tense. Finally, the warthogs were within striking distance.
The Attack is Launched
The leopardess sprang into action, bolting after one of the piglets. A plume of dust covered the road as the warthogs were sent sprinting away in different directions, their squeals of fear filling the air.
After chasing the family several meters down the road, the leopardess gave up her chase, walking back towards the vehicles and disappearing once again into the tall grass.
This sighting demonstrates the delicate balance between patience, strategy, and unpredictability during a hunt and that every moment in the wild is a learning opportunity.
For Jan-Louis, this was a first experience. For Moosa, he had witnessed several hunts but never directly in front of his vehicle — “Sightings like this are what makes it all worth it!”
Warthog Strategies for Survival
While warthogs are certainly capable of fighting off predators with their fearsome tusks, their primary defence mechanism is to sprint away from danger at speeds of up to 48 km/h.
Typically, they will seek refuge in their dens, backing in tail-end first to keep an eye on predators and fend them off with their tusks if necessary.
From time to time, warthogs have been observed charging at and even wounding larger predators. This is more common in mother warthogs when they aggressively protect their young.
Since piglets were present at this particular sighting, the leopardess was lucky that the warthogs decided to run off instead of fight back, as she was greatly outnumbered.