Lioness Befriends Baby Antelope After Killing Its Mother In Uganda (PHOTOS)
It's not often in the wild that an antelope turns from prey to a
member of the pride, but that's exactly what happened recently at Queen
Elizabeth National Park in Uganda.
Photographer Adri De Visser captured photos of the amazing sight when a lioness befriended a baby Uganda Kob
after killing its mother. In the photo series, the lioness seemingly
adopts the baby antelope, nuzzling it and picking it up by the scruff of
its neck.
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De Visser got word of two lions feeding on a kill and went to take
photos of the scene when he discovered the heartwarming moment. After
feeding on the carcass of the Uganda Kob, the lioness retreated to the
shade of a nearby tree to rest. Moments later, the antelope's offspring
popped out from its hiding spot in the tall grass.
The two animals took some time to warm up to each other -- De Visser
estimates about 45 minutes -- but the lioness eventually let down her
guard and befriended the calf. When a park ranger appeared on a
motorbike the lioness picked up the impala like she would her own and
carried it away. Other tourists to the park reported seeing the baby Kob unharmed later, after the photos were taken, according to The Daily Mail.
This interspecies friendship may be rare, but it's not entirely
unheard of. In 2002, a Kenyan lioness named Kamuniak, meaning "the
blessed one," adopted at least five baby antelopes throughout the year.
While the antelope might appear to be in greater danger than the lioness in the photos, Uganda Kobs (Kobus kob thomasi) as a species are listed as "least concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Lions (Panthera leo) are currently listed as "vulnerable"
due to "indiscriminate killing (primarily as a result of retaliatory or
pre-emptive killing to protect life and livestock) and prey base
depletion."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com
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