So many times there have been stories told about the honey badger that is tough and fearless.
This morning our mission was to find some lions. We had an idea where to start looking for a specific pride of lions and so we took off from River Lodge. On our way to this area, in the road right in front of us, the luck struck us. There were six lions running around and playing with each other. Well, that was what it looked like from a distance.
As we approached these lions, we realized that they are not playing with each other. Instead, there was a honey badger running straight towards the lions. This was amazing! The male honey badger, which may weigh up to 30kg, was showing its teeth and groaning while he was approaching the lions without even hesitating. Everybody thought this was a suicide mission, but to our surprise, that was not the case.
This honey badger was fearless and stood his ground running straight through the pride of lions. They didn’t know what to do and tried to play games but they did not succeed. When he got to the young male lion he growled at him and actually aimed with the front paw to hit the lion in its face. Once he ran through the pride, he went to safety into a hole in the ground where he probably spent the rest of the day sleeping. The lions eventually took off, losing interest and minding their own business.
The honey badger is not known to be the most fearless animal for nothing. It is an extraordinary animal which will defend itself against the king of Africa. It was amazing to witness with my own eyes that the honey badger is indeed as tough as we thought it was.
By Janco Du Plessis – Kapama River Lodge
08/08/2012
