Lioness & Buffalo Calf

Well, I'm back, had a fantastic time with lots more stories. The first one I would like to share with you is about this lioness and buffalo calf. This photograph was taken in Nakuru wildlife reserve and we were the only vehicle around to witness the unfortunate demise of this baby buffalo calf.

We had arrived at the reserve the previous evening and were getting an early start for our first game drive as I wanted to photograph the sunrise over lake Nakuru. On the way to the view point Ken noticed a hyena in the weak twilight of dawn. We didn't want to stop in case we missed the crucial moment when the sun first appears on the horizon and we still had to get into position and set up the tripod. So we made a note of where the hyena was and aimed to go back later. It was around 7am by the time we had finished so we packed up and set out to find the hyena. We returned to the same spot and found not one but five hyenas on the road, straight away we knew that something was happening. As we slowly drove closer to them we also noticed two lionesses and three jackals not far away. All these predators and scavengers in one area could only mean one thing, they were after something!

They were all looking in the direction of a mother and baby buffalo a little way down the road so we drove away from the predators towards the buffalo. As we got closer it was clear that the baby was sick. The rest of the buffalo herd were making their way to the lake but the baby couldn't walk far and kept collapsing on the ground. The mother was trying to encourage the baby to get up and follow her, she would move off then return when the baby called out for her. The hyenas took this opportunity to creep closer, when they got too close the mother would turn on them and chase them away. This went on for around forty minutes, all the time the lionesses kept their distance and stayed in the background, they were very patient.

The mother stayed and protected her baby as long as she could, but she instinctively knew that there was nothing more she could do and she had to follow the rest of the herd to the lake, she got further and further away from the calf, finally deciding not to return despite the cries. The hyenas we in like a flash, one, two, then three of them snapping at the calf's legs. The calf was bravely trying to defend itself, to little effect. In less than a minute one of the lionesses, who had been waiting in the background ran in and pounced on the calf. The hyenas scattered, there was nothing they could do against two powerful female lions. Once one lioness had pinned down the calf the other lioness came in and smothered it before they began their meal. The hyenas vocalised their protests, but wouldn't approach too closely, they had to wait for scraps along with the jackals.

For around an hour the whole scene played out right in front of us and not a single vehicle joined us. It was a privilege to watch the behaviour all these animals in their natural habitat and one that will stay with me for a long time to come.