It is known as a battle of the fittest; some call it the survival of the toughest. This was two male giraffes in a battle field, contesting for their dominance on a dam wall just before sunset. It was a very energetic fight and full of action and took about 25 minutes. It is amazing to see what strength these creatures have in their necks alone.

Not long afterwards, we saw three 9 month old lion cubs approaching the giraffes. This was so surprising; their hunting instincts kick in at such an early age. When they were at a distance of about 15 meters, the giraffes noticed that they were being watched and stalked by these was baby lions. They stood still and stared at the baby lions for few seconds but this did not intimidate the cubs. They were so determined to kill that they were even joined by 6 more cubs of about 4 months old. The two giraffes were not courageous enough to wait for the encounter so they ran for their lives into the bush. These 9 lion cubs were unfortunately not fast enough to catch their running food. However, I think they should get an A for their efforts.

Nelson – Kapama River Lodge
21/09/2012