An epic battle between hunters; lions take on leopard!

Recently, our guests witnessed a true battle of the bush when a leopard killed an impala close to one of our safari vehicles. If this wasn’t exciting enough, as the leopard settled in for his lunch, three lions appeared in a surprise ambush and chased the startled leopard up a cedar tree!

The leopard looked on with horror as the three lions settled into to eating his impala, as he watched on hungrily from the tree above.

Lions and leopards are abundant in Lolldaiga Hills, but to see them battling like that is not common. Especially in a heavily wooded area where visibility is not at its best! This interaction was caught on camera by our resident photographer Jack Godwin, and he snapped the retreating leopard you can see below.

Lions are not known to be scavengers - they most often send the females out to hunt and catch prey. But no one is adverse to a free lunch, especially when it means not having to do all the hard work! We particularly love the photo Jack too because of its cedar tree taking front stage. Lolldaiga is famous for its cedar forest, many of the trees being several hundred years old.

Let us know what you think of the photo below in the comments!