Strange Kills

Old Oct 14th, 2004, 07:09 AM
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 4,916
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Strange Kills

While I have been on several safaris, I have never seen an actual kill (unless you count a serval catching a mouse), but I have arrived on kills a few minutes after the takedown (so I have seen lions eating a freshly killed wildebeast and leopard eating an impala), but I have recently been surfing around the Taga website (on Roccco's recommendation) and today I saw two very strange kills (lion eating giraffe and leopard eating python). http://www.tagasafaris.co.za/african...-13-oct-04.htm

So my question to you is, have any of you been lucky enough to see an actual kill (chase and takedown) of the type you see on TV, and if so, where.

Thanks

Michael
thit_cho is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2004, 09:23 AM
  #2  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 221
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Got back from Kenya a month ago and saw a lioness chasing down some Grants gazelle and then, at the last minute, swerve off and catch a warthog. On a night drive under spotlight at Sweetwaters - got most of it on tape !
philw is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2004, 10:06 AM
  #3  
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 542
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
While we didn't witness this (it was the morning drive and we got there in the afternoon), two lionesses in Manyara had chased a baboon into a small tree and the group spent more than an hour waiting hopefully for a kill, which they never saw because they had to catch their flight.

The only "odd" one we witnessed firsthand was a fish eagle who had caught a pigeon - I can't recall if they rarely eat other birds or just that type of bird. Either way our guide was shocked.
hlphillips2 is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2004, 12:50 PM
  #4  
 
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 2,552
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
At Sausage Tree (Zambia) looking out on the Zambezi we saw a crocodile take down a baby buffalo. It was an extraordinary sight...very bloody and it took some time to kill.

The heard of buffalo were walking through fairly shallow water but the croc was able to finally pull the calf down into the water.

The mother just stood on the sandbank looking back for what seemed like a long time and finally left.

Very sad.
welltraveledbrit is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2004, 12:56 PM
  #5  
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 346
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Wild dogs hunting and killing a steenbok in kwando lagoon. drove to the den site nearing dusk, the dogs got up and started chirping, a lead dog headed out, the rest of the pack fanned out behind. shortly after following the pack one of them started bounding high in the air so the others could see. all of a sudden all the dogs exploded towards the bounding dog and tore apart a steenbok. also saw the same pack run a kudu into a lake the next day and enventually got the courage to swim in after it and take it down.
the best sequence i've seen though was at vumbura. found a leopard eyeing a young sable. followed the leopard for about 30 min as it circled the group to get down wind and then attacked, just missing the young sable. the leopard proceeded to sit down under a tree near a warthog hole. seconds later, 2 warthogs came barreling out and the leopard was on one of them. the leopard had the hog by the throat when all of a sudden our guide swung the light and 3 hyeans came bounding in. the leopard dropped the warthog and was up a tree. one of the hyenas, thinking the hog was nearly dead, grabbed it by the ear to drag it. the hog was bleeding but not dead, jumping at the hyena, gore it in teh jaw and the hog scurried down backend first into the hole. the hyenas stuck around for a min then gave up hope and left.
bigcountry is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2004, 01:15 PM
  #6  
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 4,222
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Lioness got a Thomson - Serengeti

Stranger kill: hyena actually getting a wildebeest on its own - Ngorongoro. Just saw the end of that one. Must've been a sick or weak wildebeest.
Leely is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2004, 01:34 PM
  #7  
 
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,922
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I don't know if crocs chasing wildebeest count but while in the Maasai Mara near the Mara river we saw a wildebeest calf (maybe 2-3 months old) who had lost it's mother. It was calling out for her but to no avail.

It was tough for me not to intervene when it came up and nosed our jeep. I wanted to take it back to camp like Billy Crystal did with the calf in City Slickers.

When it spotted some gazelle on the other side of the river, it attempted to swim across. It was about 3/4 across when the 16 ft. croc came over and took it under. It struggled for a few minutes but of course, the huge croc won.
Then another croc came over where they proceeded to play tug-o-war with the dead calf.

Being the avid photographer, it was tough to take photos during the kill because I was so stunned by the action but I did get the shots immediately before and after.

divewop is offline  
Old Oct 14th, 2004, 08:17 PM
  #8  
 
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 32
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
While at Tubu Tree Camp in September watched a female cheetah kill a red lechwe from start to finish. Cheetah started about 100m from us, ran down the lechwe toward us with the kill about 30m from the truck. Simply awesome display of nature! Have some photos of the take-down but it happened so fast hard to get photos and watch.
azrat is offline  
Old Oct 15th, 2004, 12:25 PM
  #9  
 
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 82
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Saw two lions take down two wildebeast in the space of about three minutes during the migration last year in the Serengeti. Also got lucky enough to watch a very small clan of hyena (3) try to take one of the wildebeast away. They failed. It was awesome!!!!!
syclark is offline  
Old Oct 15th, 2004, 04:22 PM
  #10  
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 37,415
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I know that baby Simba has to eat and I have no problem watching the feeding part but I just can't stand the take down. When watching wildlife shows on TV I always switch channels until the "deed" is done. Stupid, I know.
crefloors is offline  
Old Oct 26th, 2004, 07:13 PM
  #11  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 75
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
yes we saw a group of Cheetas following and thrn hunting an Impala, that was in april 2004 , Seronera Serengeti.All together it took them 7 minutes for the whole 'show'. I call it a shaw because there were like 20 vichles sorrunding them and even disturbing with all the radio sounds!
hamitzer is offline  
Old Nov 2nd, 2004, 12:55 PM
  #12  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 19
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Mala Mala Feb 94 - Cheetah took down an Impala.

Mala Mala Feb 99 - Wild Dogs took a Bushbuck.

Kwando Sep 04 - Cheetah on Impala.

Everyone who has seen Lion kill Zebra, Giraffe or Buffalo says you really dont want to see it, in particular I would not want to see Lion kill Elephant which happens in the Savuti channel.

In my opinion there is nothing more exciting than watching Lion hunt. We saw this in Mala Mala with a huge electrical storm going on in the background - a spectacular memory.
winomatt is offline  
Old Nov 2nd, 2004, 02:09 PM
  #13  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 9,326
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I have seen a number of unsuccessful chases including the hilarious sight of wild dogs trying to chase a large male warthog into it's burrow. The warthog went in back first in order to present his scary tusks to the wild dogs who eventually gave up.

Have also seen various high speed chases by wild dog and cheetah that didn't pan out in a kill.

In terms of kills the only ones I have seen are a leopard getting a baby francolin much to the disgust of the mother and another small female leopard taking down a huge male baboon. She had been stalking impala for a while but a hyena hot on her trail spooked them and she made a last minute turn during a chase and went for the nearby baboon instead.
Kavey is offline  
Old Nov 2nd, 2004, 02:10 PM
  #14  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 9,326
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Oh and does the hamakop with frog count? We were certainly fascinated watching him bash the frog repeatedly on the ground and then dip it into nearby water to wash the mud off it. Our guide explained that the bird was breaking the bones in order to swallow the frog more easily.
Kavey is offline  
Old Nov 3rd, 2004, 12:19 PM
  #15  
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 19
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Kavey's last reminds me of watching a number of Stork fish in a pool at Mala Mala, right by the causeway opposite Main Camp. A Black stork grabbed a pretty big Tilapia and tried to stun it, lost his grip and the fish bounced down the bank and back into the water where a Saddlebill promptly snagged it and set to beating the poor fish until it was able to swallow it.

That pool contained at the time the following species of birds in a 150 square foot area.

Saddlebill Stork
Black Stork
Marabou Stork
Wooly Necked Stork
Hamerkop
Pied Kingfisher
winomatt is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Original Poster
Forum
Replies
Last Post
samcat
Africa & the Middle East
19
Apr 26th, 2009 09:35 AM
star55
Africa & the Middle East
32
Apr 15th, 2008 02:57 PM
melissaom
Africa & the Middle East
24
Oct 22nd, 2007 09:59 PM
mv
Africa & the Middle East
46
Sep 7th, 2006 03:48 AM
Wulfstan
Africa & the Middle East
1
May 20th, 2004 11:50 AM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are On


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -