In a heart-stopping turn of events, a daring leopard snatched a defenseless lion cub right under the watchful eyes of its mother and devoured it perched atop a tree.
The incident took place in Tanzania’s Ruaha National Park, East Africa, where a lioness had been relocating her cubs to ensure their safety while she ventured off in search of food.
A 160-pound leopard snatched a three-week-old lion cub that had been left alone by its mother and climbed a tree to devour it
Tragically, as the lioness left her offspring unguarded, a cunning leopard seized the opportunity and targeted one of the vulnerable three-week-old cubs. The lion cub, visibly terrified, was swiftly taken away by the stealthy predator.
The leopard, clutching the helpless cub in its mouth, skillfully ascended a nearby tree and proceeded to feast on its captured prize.
The lion cub had been left alone by its lioness mother while she moved her other children to the safety of a nearby bush before she went hunting for food
Scott Hyman, a 54-year-old Canadian lawyer, witnessed this shocking scene and fortuitously managed to document the event through his camera lens.
According to Hyman, the lioness had been leading her cubs deeper into the bush for their safety, leaving them momentarily to embark on a hunting expedition.
He noted that since lions lack hands, they rely on their mouths to carry their young, hence the vulnerability of the unattended cubs.
The cub was helpless and unprotected and the perfect prey for a hungry leopard, who fancied the baby lion for dinner under the Tanzanian sun
Although Hyman refrained from capturing the most gruesome moments of the lion cub’s demise, his photographs offer a glimpse into this chilling encounter between two fierce predators. Image 258
The leopard snatched the cub in its jaws and sprinted away. It climbed up a tree before eating the young animal in the shade
The cub’s mother looked shocked with her mouth hanging open and her eyes wide when she realized what had happened to her baby
The lioness moved her other cubs into the safety of the nearby thicket to prevent another gruesome attack by the hungry leopard