There was a battle between two of the top predators with casualties on both sides. A young male leopard killed a young hyena and took it up a marula tree. For some reason the leopard then came down the tree to face off against two fully grown hyenas.
When the hyenas spot him, they sense that he is injured and decide to test the waters. They surround him — cautiously at first — but it quickly becomes apparent that the old leopard can barely defend himself.
While they don’t generally prey on big cats, they do face off with lions, leopards and cheetahs over food and territory — and they rarely pass up an opportunity to take out a potential competitor, especially one that is young or weak.
All four hyenas take turns attacking and dragging the helpless cat by its tail, neck and limbs, all while producing a variety of intimidating calls.
After sniffing around for a while longer, the hyenas eventually abandon the leopard, but it’s clear he won’t survive for long. This just goes to show that nature can be an unforgiving place, even for top predators!
Spotted hyenas are ferocious hunters who frequently target medium-to-large size prey, including impalas, zebras and wildebeest. Unlike brown and striped hyenas that primarily scavenge for carcasses killed by other animals, spotted hyenas are among Africa’s fiercest predators.
