LIONS FEAST ON A HIPPO

After hearing over the radio that a pride of lions had been spotted feasting on a buffalo, together with my friends. the Knowles family, we made a decision to drive to the sighting.

At around 8:30 in the morning, a small group of onlookers had already gathered. We stopped to get a good look at the pride of lions fifty or so metres away from us. As we got a closer look with our binoculars, it became clear that this was either a very large buffalo or something else entirely—it turned out to be a hippo.

It was my first time ever to see lions on the crater floor feasting on a hippo. It was not certain what might have killed the hippo that looked to be fully grown. Usually the crater lions go for smaller kills, up to full size buffalos and elands. This was the first time I had actually seen it. We were thrilled and fascinated as we watched the lions sticking their head into the carcass to get at the meat.

Of course, they weren’t the only ones who wanted a meal. We came back to the carcass a couple of hours later after lunch and noticed that in that time, nearly every carnivorous animal in the crater had discovered the feast. Jackals tentatively approached the hippo but were easily scared away by the pride. Meanwhile, hyenas used a stealthier tactic, and slowly crept toward the carcass from all angles. However, they wouldn’t dare to go much closer, seeing as there was an intimidating male lion in the pride. Even the vultures and Marabou storks in the area did their best to get a piece of the coveted hippo.

Lacking the patience of the jackals and hyenas, we did not see the result of their efforts, and drove away with much less memory on our cameras, and a wonderful story to tell.

Posted: Ngorongoro Crater by Erick Nyamohanga, Date: 17 February 2012

 
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