This is the amazing moment a feisty zebra turned the tables on a cheetah mid-charge – and successfully chased it away into a bush.
The extraordinary photo sequence shows the fastest big cat on earth sprinting menacingly towards a zeal of zebras who wandered too close to her three young cubs in Kenya.
A beautiful mother cheetah was seen prowling across the plains in Naboisho convervancy in Kenya with a coalition of cubs
A zeal of zebras stumbled into their path, and the mother sprang into action to defend her cubs against any threat
The cheetah, which can run at speeds of well over 60mph, began chasing after the striped mammals who quickly fled
But moments later, in an astonishing turn of events, one of the zebras made an abrupt about turn and began galloping towards the big cat
The frenzied zebra bore down on the spotted predator and began chasing her back in the opposite direction
Cheetahs live across the plains of eastern and southern Africa and are counted as big cats, despite typically weighing in at a meagre 80 – 140lbs and being unable to roar.
The fascinating scene was captured by photographer Sebastian Lehrke, 30, in Naboisho conservancy, Kenya, East Africa
The cheetah, seemingly stunned by the incredible bravery of her stripey foe, skidded to a brief halt, before tearing off in the other direction as the much larger quadruped bore down on her
The zebra chased the cheetah across the plains and sent her cowering into the bushes
The cheetah disappeared into the bush to conceal herself from the charging zebra, who ultimately strutted away victorious
In the aftermath of the chase, the cubs were pictured looking on in disbelief as one of them called out for their mother who remained in hiding