by What happens when two equally ʟᴇᴛʜᴀʟ ᴏᴘᴘᴏɴᴇɴᴛs engage in a ᴅᴇᴀᴅʟʏ ꜰɪɢʜᴛ? Well, the ᴄᴏᴍʙᴀᴛ becomes a cliffhanger, we say! In a video, recently uploaded to the Latest Sightings YouTube channel, a leopard is seen ᴛᴜssʟɪɴɢ with a hefty python and coming out on top.
The footage was captured by US tourist Suzie Moll while on a guided safari drive with her family in Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve. The group came across a leopard on the prowl and watched eagerly in the hopes of ᴄᴀᴛᴄʜɪɴɢ it on the ʜᴜɴᴛ. The cat seemed focused on something lurking in the tall grass and the group looked on – with a decent measure of astonishment – as a massive African rock python slithered into view.
Initially caught off guard, the big cat leapt into the air and swiped with its enormous paws as the python tried to sǫᴜᴇᴇᴢᴇ it into submission. Hᴏʀʀɪꜰɪᴇᴅ safari onlookers were certain the leopard would be on the menu as it lay helplessly trapped in the snake’s vice-like grip.
But the big cat managed to claw his way out and deliver a final ᴋɪʟʟᴇʀ bite. The photographer Mike Welton, 28, from Ontario, Canada, was present at the event, said: “We all had a moment thinking about how terrible it was that we were watching a beautiful leopard get ᴋɪʟʟᴇᴅ. Python constriction is horrible and it was sickening to imagine ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ from that. The leopard ᴡʀᴇsᴛʟᴇᴅ out and was able to claw, then bite the head of the snake.”
“We heard a very loud crunching sound which was likely the leopard ʙɪᴛɪɴɢ the skull of the python. The python may have ᴅɪᴇᴅ or been ᴛᴇʀʀɪʙʟʏ ɪɴᴊᴜʀᴇᴅ because it continued to flop around slowly. It was probably the closest scrape with ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ that the leopard has ever been through.”
Although adult pythons can weigh in at over 90 kilograms, leopards are bold ᴘʀᴇᴅᴀᴛᴏʀs that are more than capable of tackling larger ᴘʀᴇʏ.
“In the end, the python was ᴅᴇꜰᴇᴀᴛᴇᴅ, with numerous ᴘᴜɴᴄᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴡᴏᴜɴᴅs on its body, especially on its head area,” Saint, owner of Live Life African Safari Getaways who shared the clip with Latest Sightings, explained. “The leopard also had ɪɴᴊᴜʀɪᴇs with an obvious ᴡᴏᴜɴᴅ to the right front paw which could be clearly seen as it limped away from the scene.”
