Predators are masters of disguise. Three cheetahs strategically hid behind a termite mound, which is often used by these animals to elevate themselves and suss out their surroundings, when an unsuspecting impala walked past.
A video of the event was captured by Michael Tilley, a Game ranger at MalaMala Game Reserve, and shared by Latest Sightings.
In the video we see the impala leaving the safety of its herd, wandering through the bush. The impala realises just seconds to late what it has gotten itself into, and tries its best to get away. Unfortunately the cheetahs were too quick.
Tilly told Latest Sightings that emotions ran high as they watched the impala walk into the trap.
The sighting took place during a morning game drive at MalaMala Game Reserve. The three cheetahs were seen late in the afternoon the day before. ‘Two other rangers and I set out with our guests to try and relocate them that morning,’ said Tilly.
‘Probably an hour or so into the drive, we managed to find them in a block of land to the south of our airstrip. The cheetahs were still resting when we found them. The composition of the cheetahs was a mother and her two sub-adult cubs.’
According to Tilly, the cheetahs then started to move, and they decided they would follow the animals in hopes of seeing something exciting. After they spotted the impalas, at first they thought a chase was unlikely as the impalas were still quite far away from the cheetahs.
Once the impala stumbled upon the cheetahs, a chase of about 100 metres ensued, but the impala’s fate was sealed.
Watch it all unfold here:
Featured image: Screenshot from video
