A video of a giant rock python and a pair of leopards getting into an old fashion brouhaha has emerged on the inter webs. The incident, which occurred in South Africa’s Kruger National Park last summer, ended with the rock python getting murdered by the leopards.
According to the video uploader:
‘While on safari in South Africa we witnessed a rare and unusual event.
‘The morning started out with a bang – finding a female leopard (Metsi) in a tree, one of my favorite sightings.
‘After a short while she climbed out of the tree and climbed upon a termite mound and began calling.
‘Soon her cub came out of the brush to join her for a little bonding and motherly love.
‘However, before long the cub was off exploring again and noticed something in the bush and curiously approached to see what it was.
‘It turned out to be a huge Rock Python that began hissing at the cub.
‘This is where the video begins and all bedlam breaks out with vehicles backing out of the way, the cub sitting on the sidelines, and the mother leopard and python squaring off in a battle to the death.
‘The leopards fed on the carcass and then we were told a clan of hyena came in later in the day and ate the majority of it.’
The nonvenomous African rock python kills its prey by constriction and eats animals up to the size of antelope and crocodiles, according to Daily Mail. Unfortunately, this little fucker ended up on the losing end of the battle.
This isn’t the first time video has emerged of an unlikely battle between species. Back in 2012, a leopard had clamped down on a pythons head, before it managed to escape and find a safe haven in a nearby body of water.
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Nature, man.
[h/t Daily Mail]