Deon Wessels witnessed this interesting interaction and sent his video to Latest Sightings. He filmed it at Chitwa Chitwa Game Lodge in the Sabi Sands Game Reserve, South Africa.
Stolen meal
As solitary predators (except when they have cubs), leopards occasionally lose their kills to scavengers. And, this seems to be what happened before the start of this video.
A lone hyena had stolen a kill from a mother leopard and her cub. The pair then moved off a short distance before lying on the ground about ten metres away.
After a while, the cub got restless. And, with lots to learn, it decided to see if it could retrieve the kill from the thief.
In the image above, the well-camouflaged young leopard can be seen stalking towards the hyena. At this point, the hyena seems to be unaware of its presence.
Busted!
Leopards can stalk very quietly by placing the hind foot exactly where the front foot was. But it seems this cub hadn’t quite mastered the skill.
Consequently, whatever noise it made was enough to prick the hyena’s sensitive hearing. As a result, it turned and looked right at the approaching cub.
Initially, it seems the hyena struggled to see the cub, thanks to its amazing camouflage.
No, you don’t!
Even so, when it did eventually make out what it was looking at, the hyena decided it was time to put an end to the cubs’ game.
Subsequently, the hyena reluctantly got up, preparing to deal with the cheeky youngster.
Dash for safety
Realising it had been caught out, the cub immediately turned to flee to the nearest safe place it could find.
In the image below, you can just make out the cub’s tail and the tree it runs to the tree on the right of the image.
From an early age, leopard cubs instinctively know that they can escape danger by climbing, and that is exactly what the cub did.
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Am I safe enough?
In a single leap, the young leopard sprang onto the trunk of a dead tree, its claws desperately clasping the trunk. Given the chance, the hyena would kill the cub, so this was no game.
Thankfully, though, the hyena’s heart wasn’t in it, possibly because it knew the mother leopard was nearby. This is just as well, because it seems the leopard couldn’t muster the strength to climb higher.
For an anxious moment, the leopard checked on the hyena’s progress before looking over its left shoulder. There, the cub saw an even safer place to be, and promptly dropped off the tree and headed in that direction.
Safe again with mom
In a flash, the adventurous youngster was at his mother’s side. Gratefully, nuzzling her, the cub knew he was safe and protected.
Of course, Mom had been watching the whole saga unfold, and no doubt would have come to her cubs’ aid if it was necessary.
Learning by experience
However, like any good parent, she knew that sometimes it is best to let the cub learn for itself. If it is to survive to adulthood, the best lessons it will ever learn are those it teaches itself.
As the video concludes, mom and cub resume their vigil, still hoping to get another morsel of their stolen meal.
