Vultures are famously scavenging birds that circle their prospective meal from high in the air before swooping down to swarm their selected carcass, and commence feeding.
If they’re lucky enough to find a carcass completely unguarded, these vultures have the opportunity to gorge themselves, but they’re often facing stiff competition from other scavengers and predators that like the look of their meal.
Sarah Gonzalez sighted this martial eagle which had laid claim to the carcass of an impala, likely a lamb by the size of it, but the swarm of vultures was already closing in and the eagle would have to fight if it was to retain its meal.
This sighting took place on the H1-2 road in the Kruger National Park, and Sarah sent the footage to Latest Sightings. Competition is rife amongst all the animals fighting for survival in the wild, and this footage shows just how fierce it can be.
Modern Day Dinosaur
When Sarah first came across the eagle, it was crouching low over the impala carcass and tearing out chunks of meat with its sharp beak. It’s likely the impala was a lamb as the eagle was almost the same size as it, but martial eagles do grow to a considerable size.
Hunched low over its meal, the bird looked particularly vicious and intimidating, and it’s easy to understand why many farmers dislike martial eagles for attacking their livestock. Surely anything, man or beast, would think twice before fighting something with such an air of violence.
With its eyesight, the eagle noticed Sarah and her group quickly, and kept a careful eye on her to ensure she wasn’t a threat, but the vultures were already circling overhead, and the eagle spread its wings and hunched its back, also keeping a wary eye on the sky.
Here Comes The Swarm
Potentially forced off the carcass by the presence of the vultures themselves, the eagle vacated the impala for only a short period of time. Without the fierce bird to protect it, however, the meat of the impala was now free for the vultures to swarm.
The scavenging birds wasted no time as they swooped down to cover the carcass with their feathery bodies, until there were so many of them that they completely blocked the impala from sight.
Feast Interrupted
As the vultures formed a mound of bodies over the impala, so high that those on the top couldn’t even reach the food through the thick press of bodies, the eagle returned.
It hadn’t left its meal undefended for long, and a single, well-timed swoop, typical of martial eagles, was all it needed. It came overhead so fast and sudden that the camera almost missed it, but the vultures didn’t and quickly scattered.
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Unchallenged Might
With the vultures forced into retreat, the eagle was able to take its place once more as the sole bird in possession of the impala carcass. Despite having a clear advantage in numbers, the vultures couldn’t stand up to the eagle and watched from afar.
This time the martial eagle had succeeded, but combat against other animals doesn’t always go so well for them, and as a result of their interaction with humans, they are currently considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
